About Bernard Allison

Over the past two decades, Bernard Allison – guitarist extraordinaire – has stepped out of the long shadow cast by his famous father Luther Allison to become one of the most popular blues musi-cians working today. Year in and year out, he has wowed fans on both sides of the Atlantic with his exhilarating live show, preaching the blues the "Allison Way," as he calls it in one of his newest songs. He's also been a prolific recording artist, releasing a dozen albums, most recently 2007's impressive and eclectic Chills & Thrills. On each of those recordings, Allison has put a slightly different twist on his modern electric blues, alternately adding elements of funk, soul, reggae and rock to his Chicago roots.   

At this point, it’s fair to ask: What can he possibly give us that we haven’t heard before? His newest release, The Otherside, delivers the answer. Produced and engineered by longtime associate grammy nominated David Z and co-produced by Allison himself, the 13 cuts on his 13th album are a testament to his developing maturity as a singer, songwriter and musician – and to his continued willingness to visit new places.

The first thing you notice is how relaxed and confident he sounds. Allison seems to have found a comfort zone in the skilled band he has assembled around him: Rather than smother the tracks in guitar, he allows each song to breathe and gives his fellow musicians plenty of space to contribute. Above all, the sweet, melodic sound of Jose Ned James's saxophone acts as a fitting counterpart to Allison's biting guitar licks. It lends a delicate touch we've seldom heard on Bernard's previous releases. Songs like "Tired of Tryin" and "I Wouldn't Treat a Dog (The Way You Treated Me)," invite the listener in with an easy and comfortable urban groove.

Of course, the guitarist can still tear it up with the best of them. The rough-hewn title cut, "The Otherside," is soaked through with the thick, full-bodied, nasty guitar tone Allison has become famous for. The tongue-in-cheek "Slide Master" provides the latest demonstration of his serious bottleneck chops. "Still Rainin'," written by keyboarder Bruce McCabe and featuring his own excep-tionally strong lead vocals, is just as gritty and powerful.

While it offers plenty of fresh sounds, The Otherside also maintains the strong ties to blues tradition which have always been at the heart of what Bernard Allison does. The swampy "Leavin the Bayou" is perhaps the most striking example: Written by Allison especially for blues veteran Lonnie Brooks, who adeptly handles lead guitar and vocals, the song reflects upon the 20th century migra-tion of the blues from the farms of the Deep South to the industrialized cities of the North. It also tells the story of Brooks own arrival in Chicago in 1959. Father to two modern-day torch-bearers of the blues himself (Wayne and Ronnie Baker Brooks are his sons), the elder Brooks seems proud to be playing alongside the man he mentored when Bernard was just starting out. "Now you got BA, Wayne and Ronnie playing these lowdown dirty blues," he sings.

Finally, there is the heartfelt, autobiographical "Allison Way." Here, Bernard Allison defines himself as an artist and a human being, explaining proudly and in the clearest terms that which has made him what he is – and taking it all back to the lessons he learned from his father Luther. "Leave your Ego, Play the Music, Love the People": Allison elegantly weaves the song around his father's now legendary mantra. According to his own tradition, he also covers one of his father's songs on the album. This time around, it's the sorrowful, minor-key "Let's Try it Again," a staple of Luther Allison's live shows during the 1980s.

Firmly founded on tradition, yet exploring new directions, The Otherside is a well-rounded effort that will take its place among Bernard Allison's finest recordings.