Delbert & Glen
Blind, Crippled & Crazy (New West)
Reviewed by Jim Caligiuri, Fri., June 28, 2013
Delbert & Glen
Blind, Crippled & Crazy (New West)After recording two albums of blues and country-soul together in the early Seventies, Texans Delbert McClinton and Glen Clark went their separate ways. The former needs no introduction to anyone who loves Lone Star grit, while the latter went on to become a respected songwriter, keyboardist for Bonnie Raitt and Kris Kristofferson, and a Blues Brother under the helm of Jim Belushi. Throughout, the two remained friends, often talking about cutting another album together. Forty years on, they've reassembled for a collection of songs that goes a long way to proving that in the right hands the blues remains alive and thriving. With McClinton's longtime collaborator Gary Nicholson added to the mix as co-producer, the pair jumps with "Whoever Said It Was Easy," get wisely reflective on "More and More, Less and Less," and give McClinton's "Somebody to Love You" a reprise that's impossibly funky. Sharp musicianship, droll yet inventive wordplay, and impassioned vocals make this one reunion that's neither handicapped nor insane.