Veteran guitar hero Pat Travers has had a long and storied career; the Canadian axe-slinger sold plenty of records and toured the world in the '70s as one of the premier hard rock players on the scene, dipped into more commercial waters in the '80s, and has spent the last two decades mostly playing blues as well as old favorites on the live circuit. Now, here in 2013 the legendary guitarist finds himself on Italian juggernaut Frontiers Records, and with a brand new Pat Travers Band CD titled Can Do, he's looking to reclaim some of the magic from those early albums that originally put him on the map.
One thing is for sure, Travers can still sing and of course play a mean guitar. Can Do is filled with meaty, bluesy hard rockers that feature both his warm melodic vocals and sizzling guitar licks, which is everything you want in a PTB album. Tunes such as "Stand Up/Give It Up", "Long Time Gone", "As Long As I'm With You", and the title track rock hard and contain plenty of memorable hooks, while the guitar interplay between Pat and Kirk McKim is quite impressive. Some of the tunes here almost have a Southern Rock vibe going on (I was reminded of modern day Lynyrd Skynyrd a few times, right on down to the scorching slide guitar work), though I'm not sure the syrupy Bon Jovi styled pop rockers like "Diamond Girl", "Here Comes the Rain Again", and "Wanted (That Was Then / This Is Now)" are really a fit here, as well done as they are. Thankfully, with tasty blues drenched scorchers like "Armed and Dangerous", "Red Neck Boogie", and "Dust & Bones", and the tasty guitar led instrumental "Keep Calm & Carry On", there's plenty of raunchy rock 'n' roll to go around.
While it's not going to compete with some of the classic Pat Travers Band release of the '70s, Can Do is an enjoyable slice of bluesy guitar rock from this veteran player and his hot band. Southern Rock fans will especially love some of the swampy tones and wealth of slide guitar that is heard on the CD, and while there are few too many ballads for my taste, they are well done and could have radio potential. So, does Pat Travers still have it here in 2013? You bet!
Track Listing
1) Can Do
2) Stand Up / Give It Up
3) Diamond Girl
4) As Long As I'm With You
5) Long Time Gone
6) Wanted (That Was Then / This Is Now)
7) Armed And Dangerous
8) Here Comes The Rain Again
9) Keep Calm & Carry On
10) Dust & Bone
11) Waitin' On The End Of Time
12) Red Neck Boogie
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