Randy McAllister - Power Without Power (2022) [CD Rip]

Rarely, in my opinion, has the title of an album fitted so well when you look at all the things that you use in a review in their entirety. The 'Corpus Delicti' in this case is the new disc “Power Without Power” by Texas musician Randy McAllister.

McAllister has been making music since the late 1980s and has since built a reputation as an excellent singer-songwriter with no commercial background. In addition, he is credited with exceptional ability on drums and harmonica.

The first thing I liked immediately was the wonderful black and white glossy cover. One recognizes immediately that this is an unplugged work and even the two completely black pages in the inner cover, which appear very unusual, still somehow seem appropriate. All relevant information can be found on the back.

If you then put the disc in the CD player and have the necessary listening sessions behind you, everything completes to form a coherent overall picture.

Even if the instrumental portfolio, in addition to McAllister's great singing, is roughly reduced to acoustic guitars and his harp, an enormous intensity develops. The protagonist and the two guitarists involved, Brandon Hudspeth (all tracks except 2) and Howard Mahan (track 2, rhythm on 6, 7, 10) let their full power roam here even without an amplifier.

Jack McAllister (tracks 1 and 6) and Heather Newman on “Donnie Downer” add subtle background vocals, and a few percussion noises can also be heard on the latter song. Otherwise there is purely acoustic blues with all its facets, which is often given a subliminal rocky and soulful touch through Randy's strong voice, which repeatedly reminds me of Malford Milligan ( Storyville , Big Cat , etc.). In the solo parts, filigreely played acoustic guitars often duel with a lot of slide and McAllister's wildly blustering harp parts.

In the end, with "Power Without Power" by Randy McAllister, you get an entertaining, authentic, never-boring, dynamic and energetic long player, which you would also like to hear later in an electric version. A clear tip for blues fans! ~Sounds Of South