Ritchie Dave Porter - Fast Train Rollin' (2019)

Fast Train Rollin is the latest release from Ritchie Dave Porter. Released in 2019 it may well be the last album for a while as RDP takes stock and looks at the blues in a different way. As with his first three albums and EP all the songs are written by himself. Add to that two USA radio specials this bluesman has a lot in his back catalogue. The opening track New Beginnings is a very relaxing start to an acoustic album. From the off you hear the influences of such artists as Led Zeppelin to name just one. A great instrumental that eases you gently into a brilliant collection of songs. Blues To The End is as straight blues as you will hear anywhere. Detailing part of his own story into the structure and lyrics of the song make it simply wonderful. If acoustic blues is your bag then this will certainly ring your bell.

The Girl With Red Hair is another fine example of the acoustic guitar skills of RDP. There is no doubt that he is a very talented acoustic guitar player but the added attraction is his ability to bring actual life events into his music as opposed to just writing a standard blues song. So what you get is a more in-depth feeling to the songs and that certainly ticks all the boxes for me. Fast Train Rollin’ being the title track needs to be good, and boy it is. As soon as the song starts you immediately get the feeling of a fast train thundering down a fast track across vast swathes of American wilderness with the sun shining and the wind blowing in your hair. As an instrumental it works so well, as you don’t normally get an instrumental as a title track. Cold Black Heart is a dark kind of song reaching the very depths of the blues world. Lyrically and musically this finds RDP at the very top of his game. Short and straight to the point. Brilliant.

Loner Blues is the kind of song that embodies the story of a blues musician with just a hint of an obituary about it. Don’t misunderstand me in thinking that this is a song that will lead to an untimely demise in anyway but it has the darkness and foreboding that comes with the worldly knowledge of a bluesman searching his inner soul. And as blues fans the world over we can all relate to that. This is probably my favourite song on the album but lets take nothing away from the rest of it. Spirits Of The Wood is the final track on the album and it sees the arrival of drums courtesy of Michael Tingle. This is another instrumental but with the addition of drums it gives the tune an extra dimension. Not very often do you hear just drums and acoustic guitar so this is a nice way to end what is a really good acoustic blues album. Hopefully I’ll get to see RDP perform live sometime soon and I’m sure I won’t be disappointed. A very talented acoustic bluesman. Nuff said.