Album Review: Ronnie Baker Brooks – Blues in my DNA

Acclaimed blues guitarist and singer Lonnie Brooks had a stellar career, working in Chicago’s West Side and releasing scattered singles throughout the ‘60s. By 1969 he landed an album deal. By the late 1970s he would be featured on an Alligator compilation, and soon thereafter he joined the label. Between 1978 and 1999 he would release nine albums for Alligator. He passed away in 2017, but his legacy has been carried on by son Ronnie Baker Brooks.

Ronnie Baker Brooks launched his recording career in 1998, recording for Watchdog and Provogue. In a sense he has come how with his latest: Blues in my DNA finds him on Alligator Records. The 11-track collection of original songs is the product of a regular writing schedule that Brooks undertook during the pandemic. Creating new material on a weekly basis for a series of lockdown-era Facebook concerts gave structure and purpose to the guitarist, who had previously spent most of his time on the road.

The album is an unabashed nod to Brooks’ father. After the strong opening of “I’m Feeling You,” a brief tape of Lonnie speaking sets the tone for the record: “Son, I’ll give you your first blues lesson… keep these blues alive!”

And he does just that. With a variety of songs that touch on Chicago blues, Memphis soul and more, Ronnie Baker Brooks demonstrates that melodic guitar artistry runs in the family. He follows that message with the chunky stomp of the title track, full of crackling guitar interplay, a pulsing bass line and a storytelling lyric.

With a walking r&b feel, “My Love Will Make You Do Right” features an assured vocal and searing licks slipped in between Brooks’ vocal phrases. As with many tracks on the set, second guitarist Will McFarlane provides supple support. Though he’s credited with “rhythm guitar,” McFarlane’s role extends well beyond strumming chords; with the help of tight rhythm section Dave Smith (bass) and Steve Potts (drums), he paints a sympathetic sonic canvas upon which Brooks can sing and play to his heart’s content.

“Accept My Love” is a classic slow jam, filled with passion and determination. Subtle use of Hammond and horns leans into the gospel feel of the tune as Brooks peels off one of his most emotion-filled guitar solos. For “All True Man” it’s back to stomping, swaggering blues in the classic style. The shuffling “Robbing Peter to Pay Paul” won’t win points for lyrical originality, but it’s playful and fun. “Instant Gratification” is a riffy, uptempo rock crossover, and it’s very effectively done.

A first-person lyrical approach characterizes Blues in my DNA, and “I Got to Make You Mine” doubles down on that. Brooks showcases some B.B. King style on the extended workout of the “Red House”-ish “Stuck on Stupid.” Guitar fireworks punctuate “I Found a Dollar Looking for a Dime,” and album closer “My Boo” swings. Start to finish, Brooks has a winner with his latest. Dad would have been proud.