DistritoJazz.es – My Turn Review

DistritoJazz.es
06/2012
By Vicente Zumel

The son of a minister of the Baptist Church, Kirk Fletcher began playing guitar at the tender age of eight, after looking closely at his older brother Walter who played in Sunday services at the church of his father.

Live also saw the likes of Albert Collins, Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland and the Staple Singers, so Fletcher decided to pursue playing and interpreting the blues with all her heart and passion.

The final leap to the professional scene was the hand of the singer and harmonica player of the Hollywood Fats Band, Al Blake, who introduced him to the business and introduced him to such luminaries as Junior Watson and Kim Wilson.

In this “My Turn”, Kirk explores different ways and territories provided with blues sound as a starting point. The result can be more satisfying and effective, ten master songs he gives vent to his expressive language, passionate, multifaceted, stating clearly their extensive knowledge and skill, not just the guitar, but also the language of African American music which is a past master.

With conviction and elegance, so the result can not be other than a serious and high quality level.

Kirk Fletcher Band live in Freiburg

Kirk Fletcher & Band zu Gast bei der (Freiburger Blues Association. Check out the video.

Blues Revue – My Turn Review

Blues Revue Magazine
09/2010
By Tom Hyslop

Kirk Fletcher is among the most in-demand guitarists on the scene, with a résume that includes the Los Angeles edition of the Blues Across America series, The Mannish Boys, Charlie Musselwhite, various Kim Wilson projects, the Hollywood Blue Flames, and appearances on a number of other recordings. His 1999 solo début I’m Here And I’m Gone announced the arrival of a distinctive traditional stylist. But clubgoers and interested youTube viewers (and those who listened closely enough to detect echoes of Robben Ford’s style bubbling under the Junior Watson-isms on Shades Of Blue) have heard the guitarist chafe under the limitations of tradition and explore both Hendrix-inspired rock and the fusion styles of Larry Carlton and Ford, and may be asking, “Will the real Kirk Fletcher please stand up?”

With his third solo CD, Fletcher at last expresses on record something close to the full range of his musical interests. The playlist includes several straight blues numbers, including the upbeat, urban “Ain’t No Way,” a take on Jimmy Reed’s “Found Love” spotlighting Fletcher’s inimitable electric guitar phrasing over an acoustic arrangement (and marking his first recorded vocal), and two original instrumentals, the rip-roaring “El Medio Stomp” and the devastating “Blues For Antone,” a slow number that feels like a needle-gun rippling over a molasses-slow groove. The soulful “Way Back Home” is a study in craftsmanship and dynamics, building subtly in intensity behind Paulie Cerra’s melodic saxophone, then quieting and repeating the cycle for Fletcher’s wiry guitar break.

But the arrival of My Turn on Eclecto Groove, rather than the more traditional Delta Groove imprint, signals an adventurous bent, manifested in a cover of Sly Stone’s “Let Me Have It All” that has not only a snake-charming guitar solo and an eye-opening vocal turn from Fletcher, but the legendary James Gadson sitting in on drums. Where Jesse Ed Davis’s “Natural Anthem” pops, swaggers, and soars, the slow, funky title track is super-bad. Sonny Landreth’s “Congo Square” develops brilliantly, driven by Tom Fillman’s drumming and Fletcher’s aggressive guitar. Make what you will of Karen Landau’s not-necessarily-stoned-but-Experienced spoken word contribution, Fletcher and guitarist Michael Landau indulge their deepest Hendrix fantasies on the closer, “Continent’s End.”

Fletcher’s guitar playing has never been better captured on tape: the tones are wonderful and varied; his expressive, quirky, original lines make both musical and emotional sense; and he has the elusive knack of constructing solos that have beginnings, middles, and ends. His impressive singing certainly improves his career prospects by permitting him to claim frontman status, and although My Turn ventures far enough afield to confound blues traditionalists, its expanded scope is destined to bring new listeners to the fold.

Living Blues – My Turn Review

Living Blues
06/2010
By Roger Gatchet

It was roughly six years ago that Randy Chortkoff launched his Delta Groove label with Kirk Fletcher’s Shades Of Blue. Like his previous solo debut on JSP, it was a straight-up, no nonsense blues record that showcased Fletcher’s masterful guitar playing—even when his fretwork was somewhat overshadowed by the high-profile vocalists (Janiva Magness, Kim Wilson) that appeared on those earlier releases. While he’s perhaps best known as an in-demand studio guitarist and for his tenure playing in the bands of Charlie Musselwhite and Wilson, with the aptly titled My Turn Fletcher has stepped back into the spotlight as a serious bandleader with a unique vision.

This album marks Fletcher’s vocal debut on the easy Jimmy Reed groove Found Love and the super-funky Let Me Have It All. It’s too bad previous producers didn’t coax Fletcher in front of a vocal mic sooner, because this dude can sing! At times he evokes the subtle intonation and smoky grit of Matt “Guitar” Murphy’s voice, another blues guitarist not known for his vocal prowess although he was a great singer in his own right. Blues For Antone is a deep slow blues instrumental written as a tribute to the late Clifford Antone. Here, even with fingers racing like lightning across the strings of his axe, Fletcher is able to convey a sense of solemnity and respect for his lost friend.

There are fun shuffles (Ain’t No Way, with Paulie Cerra on vocals and sax) and groovy original rockers (Medio Stomp) sprinkled throughout the set list, but it’s tracks like the closing Continents End that really set Fletcher apart from the current pack of up-and-coming blues guitar slingers. It’s a dreamy, stream-of-consciousness rock number complete with spoken word poetry floating beneath massive, earthy guitar tones. Fletcher describes it as “Jimi Hendrix meets Sonic Youth.” This particular tune might not please the diehard blues fans in the audience, but it’s one hell of a ride, and proof that Fletcher is ready to make a big splash on his own.

All Music Guide – My Turn Review

All Music Guide
04/2010
By Michael G. Nastos

His third album finds Kirk Fletcher singing strong, contemporary, soulful blues in the new populist image of someone like Robert Cray. Mostly mellow but not nearly as slick, Fletcher’s apprenticeship with Charlie Musselwhite and the Mannish Boys has served him well enough to tackle music from varied songwriters such as Jimmy Reed, Jesse Edwin Davis, James Earl Thompson, Sly Stone, Will Felder, and Travis Carlton, while adding three more tunes of his own, including one that is loose and even experimental. With various rhythm players, guitarist/producer Michael Landau, saxophonist Paulie Cerra, and trumpeter Paul Litterall, Fletcher sounds like he is coming into his own on his terms. From the cover of the traditional “Congo Square” with loud guitar and a Neville Brothers attitude, to the fast, instrumental rocker “El Medio Stomp” and Thompson’s shuffle swing “Ain’t No Way,” it’s clear Fletcher’s music is not set in stone. On the more traditional end are slow get-down tunes like “Blues for Antone” or the steady rollin’ Reed classic “Found Love,” but then Fletcher hits up the lighter retro-funk of Sly’s “Let Me Have It All” with wah-wah guitar, horns, and organ, assuring everybody what generation Fletcher comes from. It’s that mix of looking back and being in the present that makes Kirk Fletcher’s blues enjoyable and even adorable, carving a bright and long-lasting future for this premier blues artist.