The Kinsey Report: Smoke and Steel

The three sons of Delta-born bluesman Big Daddy Kinsey joined forces in the mid-’80s as The Kinsey Report. After two fine albums for Alligator, they jumped to Pointblank and pursued a rockier muse for two albums. Smoke and Steel (Alligator 4860; 57:26) marks their return to the label that broke them and to a bluesier, grittier sensibility. With Donald Kinsey on screaming, Albert King-inspired lead guitar and vocals, Kenneth on bass and Ralph on drums, the Gary, Indiana natives cook up a good ol’ time on the infectious organ-fueled shuffle “Dead in Your Tracks.” “This Old City” carries a more contemporary flavor and message while the brothers get down in the alley on “Can’t See the Hook,” an ultra-funky take on “Can’t Judge a Book By Its Cover.” Donald sings with sanctified fervor on the Stax-styled soul ballad “Loved Ones” and he crosses over into James Gang territory on the hard-hitting “Must Be Love.” Their interpretations of John Fogerty’s “Rattlesnake Highway” and Bob Seegar’s “Fire Down Below” and the crunchy, ZZ Top-ish “One Step Back” are all nods to the rock world while the more traditional Delta-fied “Down In The Dungeon,” featuring some righteously raw harmonica work by Lester Davenport, is a nod to Willie Dixon’s “Sittin’ on Top of the World.” Granted, Gary, Indiana isn’t as romantic and mysterious a locale as New Orleans, but the Kinsey Brothers have put together a body of work over the past two decades that compares favorably to the Neville Brothers. And Smoke And Steel may be their finest effort in years.

Originally Published January 1, 1999