| Fear No Evil | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | Robert Ward |
| Cover: | Fear No Evil (Robert Ward album).jpg |
| Released: | 1991 |
| Genre: | Blues, soul |
| Label: | Black Top |
| Producer: | Hammond Scott |
| Next Title: | Rhythm of the People |
| Next Year: | 1993 |
Fear No Evil is an album by the American musician Robert Ward, released in 1991.[1] [2] He is credited with his band, the Black Top All-Stars.[3] Ward supported the album with a North American tour.[4] Ann Peebles covered the title track on her 1992 album, Full Time Love.[5]
Recorded in New Orleans, Fear No Evil was produced by Hammond Scott.[6] Ward used a pronounced tremolo in his guitar playing.[7] George Porter Jr. played bass on the album. Mark "Kaz" Kazanoff led the horn section.[8] Some songs dated to Ward's Ohio Untouchables days. Ward's wife, Roberta, sang on "Strictly Reserved for You".
USA Today called Ward "an overlooked virtuoso."[9] OffBeat considered Fear No Evil "one of the great soul discs of recent years."[10] The Chicago Tribune wrote that it "crackles with funky, Memphis soul arrangements, gospel-blues vocals ... and, most of all, Ward's distinctive guitar playing." Robert Christgau considered Ward to be "a better-than-average writer, a hooky arranger, and a sneaky soloist you remember for the wobbly sound of his Magnatone amp alone."
The New York Times determined that "the percussive urgency of '60s soul and '70s funk ... fuels Robert Ward's superb Fear No Evil."[11] The Commercial Appeal praised the "jovial quips" and "explosive solos."[12] The Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph listed Fear No Evil among the 10 best albums of 1991.[13]
AllMusic deemed Fear No Evil "one of the classic blues/soul albums of the '90s."