Review: Eddie 9Volt ‘Saratoga’

Review: Eddie 9Volt ‘Saratoga’

By Hal Horowitz

Change is usually good for any artist, but it is coming very quickly for Eddie 9Volt.

No sooner did he emerge from the Atlanta blues scene with 2023s well-received Capricorn, which mixed blues with melodic R&B, than he returns a year later, now transformed into a full-blown, retro soulman on ‘Saratoga,’ released Nov. 22nd.

Studio album number four ignores Eddie’s established skills as a hotshot blues guitarist informed by greats like Howlin’ Wolf and Albert King, instead focusing on his vocal and especially songwriting abilities. These dozen tracks–11 originals co-penned with his brother Lane Kelly (who also produces, as in the past) and one obscure cover– demonstrate another side of Eddie’s talents.

How willingly the country/folk of the Poco-styled “Truckee” (with a sneaky, rustic, slide guitar replacing pedal steel) will be embraced by his recently acquired audience weaned on his blues-oriented fare is unclear. That’s especially true for the funk/almost hip-hop of “Wasp Weather” with its stream-of-consciousness lyrics “Sto’ bought /mugshot/apple reds /Got 22 textbooks still left unread /He’s learning.” “I like spewing words that don’t make sense,” he explains in the disc’s bio.

However, once the listener warms up to this stylistic swing, the quality of the songs, their melodies, and especially Eddie’s sincere, often thrilling voice– which occasionally shifts to falsetto as on the swampy, horn-assisted, gospel-infused “Halo”—it’s impossible not to be impressed by the passion imbued here. When the vibe goes full retro for the Otis Redding-inflected “Cry Like a River,” it’s clear all involved have nailed a groove that’s authentic, polished and inspired.

You’ll be captivated when Eddie pulls off “Love Moves Slow,” a tune seemingly mashed together from William DeVaughn’s “Be Thankful for What You Got” and Al Green’s “Here I Am (Come and Take Me)” with an enthusiasm and dedication to 70s R&B he seems proud that he conjured up. It’s followed by “Delta,” which could pass for a lost Hi label gem. Here Eddie adds a two-piece sax section (and plays drums!) as he sings “Sometimes you gotta step foot in the delta /To know what it’s like sinking down,” above a thumping conga enhanced beat and opening blues-based acoustic guitar.

No one will doubt his sincerity when crooning the romantic lyrics to the ballad “Love You All the Way Down” “The way she gives me laughter /And holds me through the night /It makes the man inside of me /Wish she’d been there all my life” then adding a staccato short guitar solo worthy of Robert Cray, another artist who is a benchmark for this collection.

There are echoes of John Hiatt, particularly in the vocals and even Paul McCartney on “Red River.” The bumpy-bump beats on this mid-tempo soul/pop nugget call for blasting out of car radios.

It’s worth noting that the multi-talented Eddie plays all the instruments except for keyboards on the track.
He laid down the basics for these songs with his brother, then had others overdub the remaining instrumentation. But the results sound so organic and natural, few will be able to tell these performances weren’t capture live in the studio. It’s another tribute to Lane and Eddie’s production expertise.

On the closing “The Road to Nowhere,” Eddie looks back to the 50s, crooning a slow dance tune like a combination of Elvis and Roy Orbison, with a dash of Dexter Romweber, at their dreamy height. It’s an anomaly, even compared to the rest of the album, and another example of Eddie 9Volt’s intention to explore further afield on the sumptuous, beautifully crafted, supremely soulful and often wonderful Saratoga.

Pre-order the album Here

‘Saratoga’