Steve Hackett, the lead guitarist of Genesis between 1970 and 1977, has recently revisited his 1994 solo album Blues with a Feeling for an expanded reissue on Cherry Red’s Esoteric Recordings imprint.  This release follows up other Genesis-related releases from Esoteric drawing on the catalogues of Hackett (including a reissue of his 1986 supergroup album GTR with Steve Howe), Tony Banks and Anthony Phillips.

Hackett’s first solo album, Voyage of the Acolyte, arrived in 1975 while he was still playing with Genesis.  Blues was eleventh in a string of diverse albums touching on rock, pop and world music.  As the title would indicates, Blues with a Feeling allowed Hackett to explore the American blues idiom of which he’d had an affinity since his teenaged years.

The artist strapped on his guitar and harmonica for a set of mostly original compositions.  Notable exceptions include the album’s storming opener, Nick Gravenites’ “Born in Chicago,” and Freddie King and Sonny Thompson’s “The Stumble.”   To bring these selections to life, Hackett enlisted a band consisting of Julian Colbeck on keyboards, Doug Sinclair on bass and Hugo Degenhardt on drums.  Guest musicians on the album include Dave “Taff” Ball on bass and a horn section consisting of Matt Dunkley, John Lee, Pete Long and John Chapman.

Esoteric’s 2016 reissue of the original Camino Records release has been remastered from the original tapes, and features two songs newly recorded by Hackett specifically for this project.  “On Cemetery Road” and “Patch of Blue” were recorded in 2016 with Hackett on guitar and harmonica joined by Roger King on keyboards.  The reissue also features a brief essay by Hackett.  Melding classic blues stylings with modern production techniques, Blues with a Feeling showcases another side of the legendary rock guitarist.  It’s available now from Esoteric/Cherry Red at the links below!

Steve Hackett, Blues with a Feeling (Camino Records, 1994 – reissued Esoteric Recordings ECLEC 2553, 2016) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

1. Born in Chicago
2. The Stumble
3. Love of Another Kind
4. Way Down South
5. A Blue Part of Town
6. Footloose
7. Tombstone Roller
8. Blues with a Feeling
9. Big Dallas Sky
10. The 13th Floor
11. So Many Roads
12. Solid Ground
13. On Cemetery Road
14. Patch of Blue