I’ve been following Laurence Jones’ career since he first emerged in 2010, and thoroughly admired his growth as a musician and his determination not to let battles with illness stop his making music.
This album is quite a change for him as he is playing solo acoustic, booking his own tour and has started his own label – Ron Records named after his late Grandfather – very much ‘On My Own’.
And I am a little surprised as to just how good this album is. The songs are urgent, powerful and very personal. Every one is a personal statement but there is not feeling of excessive introspection – all the messages could be taken on board by the listener as well. Laurence says “I’ve waited 15 years to bring it back home to the blues music and pay homage to the music I love. I feel these are some of the best songs I’ve written, you can’t hide behind just one guitar and a vocal. I’m excited to push my musical boundaries as I first started on the classical guitar when I was just 8 years old. I’ve always wanted to get back up on the stage on my own and combine my experience of the blues with my classical guitar training. I can say I have suffered my fair share of my blues having an invisible illness Crohn’s Disease. I have challenged my real-life blues into these songs; I wrote the album when I was having a Crohn’s flare over Christmas last year and it’s my most personal album yet.”
That he is an excellent guitarist is a no-brainer, but here he is playing exclusively acoustic guitar, not something he is noted for. He plays riffs, chords, changes and even a bit of picking, all with a driving urgency that is engaging and affecting.
His lyrics are those of a man who has been let down, ripped off and has come through and is proclaiming independence and a new future,
My favourite track is probably ‘One Life’ – assertive and independent.
11 self-written tracks, co-Produced by Laurence Jones and Wayne Proctor, recorded at The House Of Tone Mix Suite, Nottinghamshire, UK and Engineered, Mixed and Mastered by Wayne Proctor.
A fine album and one that suggests he won’t be standing still.
