Glen Clark: You Tell Me

Review by Blues Bytes
www.bluenight.com/BluesBytes/wn0619.html

Back in the ’70s Texas-born piano man Glen Clark co-founded Delbert and Glen, a southern rock and roots group, with Delbert McClinton, recording a pair of albums for Atlantic. Clark also toured with and wrote songs for Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson during the ’80s, and he also appeared in several of Kristofferson’s movies during that same period. He toured and recorded with Bonnie Raitt during the ’90s and continued to have success as a songwriter for McClinton, Wynonna Judd, Buddy Guy, John Mayall, Etta James, Lee Roy Parnell, and many others. He’s also worked as a producer, served as musical composer for the series According To Jim, performed with the Blues Brothers, and cut a reunion album with McClinton in 2014.

Clark’s new release, You Tell Me (Glenco Records), is his first solo album since 1994. It’s a dandy, consisting of ten superb tracks of blues, soul, country, and rock n’ roll. Clark (keyboards, guitar, vocals) is backed by a fine group of music vets (John Bryant – drums/co-producer with Clark, Jim Milan – bass, Sam Swank – guitar) with guests James Pennebaker (guitar), Jeff Silbar (acoustic guitar), Jim Foster (trumpet), and Ron Jones (saxophone).

Clark wrote six of the ten tracks with Silbar, including the country/blues title track that opens the disc. They also collaborated on the smooth Memphis R&B burner “Accept My Love,” the gospel-flavored “Walk On,” the soulful “I’m Never Gonna Stop Loving You,” the sparkling “In Search Of,” and the Americana rocker “That’s Where You Come In.” The funky “I Can Tell By Looking” was co-written by Clark and the late Stephen Bruton.

“When The Time Is Right,” co-written by Clark with Steve Cropper, appeared on Buddy Guy’s Heavy Love album in the late ’90s, with Clark’s greasy, Stax-influenced version getting the nod between the two versions to these ears. Clark wrote the lovely piano-driven ballad, “Dreamer,” all by his lonesome and provides a wonderful, heartfelt vocal. The album’s lone cover is a Kristofferson track, the reflective ballad “This Old Road,” with another powerful vocal from Clark.

Also deserving of notice are the wonderful backing vocalists on the album --- Pat Peterson and Benita Arterberry for most of the tracks, and Paige Clark, Ty Clark, Tracy Truong, Cierra Franco, and Ryan Franco for “I’m Never Gonna Stop Loving You.”

Hopefully, Glen Clark won’t wait a quarter century before blessing soul and blues fans with another solo effort, because You Tell Me is an absolute gem of an album.