This came out in 2003 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Guitar slinger Kenny Brown has been grizzled Delta bluesman R.L. Burnside’s sideman — and “adopted son” — for a buncha years. And now that R.L.’s playing days seem to be coming to an end, it’s only right for the student to see if he can carry on without his teacher.
Thankfully, Brown shows he’s more than ready for his closeup on his Fat Possum debut Stingray. Anchored by an in-the-pocket rhythm section featuring Burnside’s boy Cedric on drums, Kenny cuts loose on a wicked 11-cut slate of moonshine-fuelled juke-joint hoodoo and rough-hewn acoustic folk-blues. But whether he’s tearing through a searingly funky version of R.L.’s Shake Em On Down or laying down some serious boogie on his own France Chance, Brown’s ringing guitar licks and train-whistle slide work make it clear he’s moved from apprentice to master. His voice is still a little too smooth and youthful, but he needn’t worry — he’ll have plenty of years to grow into a grizzled old bluesman on his own.
