Acoustic blues fans will be delighted that Melbourne’s Doc White has a fine new album!

“I’ll Look Back” features four new original tunes and a great cross-section of classics mostly from White’s favourite era, the 1920s through to the early 40s, in other words the era when acoustic blues and ragtime fingerpickers, slide players and the like were in their hey-day. 

The picking is delightfully crisp, accurate and authentic yet never slavishly derivative. Like previous White releases, the songs with their lyrical ambiguities and above all that quirky humour, so often missing with modern blues interpreters, is the lasting impression. It’s great to be reminded in particular of the wonderful Bukka White (“Jitterbug Swing”) the mysteries of Skip James (“Hard Time Killing Floor”) and the fingerbusting Reverend Gary Davis (“Children of Zion”).

White’s originals are of course equally beguiling and his studio comrades including Pete Howell on double bass and Steve Williams on blues harp and sax contribute tastefully as always. White as usual multi-tasks cleverly on all manner of guitars both resophonic and standard as well as mandolin, mandocello, ukulele and banjo.

This album will be a great addition to your acoustic blues collection as well as an excellent introduction to the genre for the uninitiated.