Bad Temper Joe - The Acoustic Blues Guitar Revue Vol. II (Original Songs of Bad Temper Joe) (12inch Vinyl-Album)

Colored vinyl (transparent blue) in a gatefold sleeve.

With *The Acoustic Blues Guitar Revue Vol. II (Original Songs of Bad Temper Joe)*, Bielefeld native Bad Temper Joe presents his tenth studio album. While the first part of the duology focused on traditional blues pieces from the 1920s to the 1960s, the sequel now contains exclusively his own compositions. The charismatic curmudgeon showcases his unique feel for contemporary songwriting. At the same time, he underscores his reputation as a distinctive guitarist and expressive singer, confirming why he has been one of Germany's most distinguished blues musicians for years. BTJ receives support on his *Acoustic Blues Guitar Revue* from three influential companions throughout his career. Greyhound George, an important mentor of BTJ, and Moritz "Moe" Herrmann, with whom he has enjoyed a close musical collaboration for many years, each contribute to one of the blues bard's compositions – George on resonator guitar, and Moe on acoustic guitar and vocals. The 10 songs acquire their own unique character through harmonica player Marcel Rahe. The interplay between Rahe's harmonica and BTJ's guitar, honed over dozens of joint concerts, unfolds a captivating dialogue throughout the album, lending the songs a special immediacy and intensity.

From the driving 12-bar blues "Leaving Town Blues" at the start to "Closing Time," the ballad-like conclusion of the Blues Guitar Revue, Bad Temper Joe and his colleagues boldly explore the diverse facets of acoustic blues. Sometimes it's a rag on the nine-string resonator guitar that inevitably gets your foot tapping, as in "Tired Eyes," and other times it's a stomping blues with Weissenborn and Marcel Rahe's distorted harmonica, as in "Nighthawk Woman Blues #9." BTJ's slide playing and Moe's gentle fingerpicking on the acoustic guitar lay the foundation for "Man for the Road," a ballad in which Bad Temper Joe demonstrates his exceptional songwriting talent, even beyond the classic blues territory. His Fallin' Bird Blues (She Cut My Wings) transports Shakespeare's Macbeth into the blues universe, while in World of Worries, Greyhound George's bottleneck slides sharply across the strings and Bad Temper Joe declares: "We're living in the strangest of all times." That he has truly composed a modern blues classic with Reinventing the Blues should be undeniable after just one listen. Likewise, this musician from East Westphalia leaves no doubt that blues, in its purest and most direct form, in its acoustic guise, maintains its place even in the 21st century, in times of shuffled playlists on streaming platforms, short videos, and artificial intelligence.