Ben Poole - Trio (Live '19) (2020)

Personnel:
Ben Poole – Guitar, Lead Vocals
Steve Amadeo – Bass, Backing Vocals
Wayne Proctor – Drums, Backing Vocals

The album mainly features songs from his two studio albums, opening up with one of the stronger tracks from 2018’s “Anytime You Need Me”, the riff driven chugging rock of “Take It No More”, setting the scene for what follows, mainly mid-tempo blues-rock sung quite soulfully (the guitarist is in fine voice throughout) punctuated by long solos and underpinned by the reliably steady backbeat laid down by drummer and producer Wayne Proctor and unfussy bass playing of Steve Amadeo. To be honest the best numbers are the covers, Jude Cole’s “Start the Car” helping to keep the show on the road early on, a song that really suits the guitarist’s singing and rhythmic telecaster playing. Jeff Healy’s “I Think I Love You Too much” is another standout. The recordings are drawn from three gigs performed in intimate settings and the sound reflects that, relatively raw and unprocessed, providing listeners with a front of stage audio experience. The two-CD set is a very good representation of the guitarist’s current live show and it will be interesting to see what direction his guitar playing and songwriting take him in future (Ben Poole Live – 2022?). ~Simon Green