| The Gift | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | Joe Louis Walker |
| Cover: | The Gift (Joe Louis Walker album).jpg |
| Released: | 1988 |
| Genre: | Blues, soul |
| Label: | HighTone |
| Producer: | Joe Louis Walker |
| Prev Title: | Cold Is the Night |
| Prev Year: | 1986 |
| Next Title: | Blue Soul |
| Next Year: | 1989 |
The Gift is the second album by the American musician Joe Louis Walker, released in 1988.[1] [2] Walker was backed by the Boss Talkers. He supported the album with a North American tour.[3]
The album was produced by Walker with assistance from Bruce Bromberg.[4] Walker's singing style was influenced by gospel music; he wanted the music to be reminiscent of the Memphis soul of the 1960s.[5] [6] He tried to avoid blues clichés in his lyrics.[7] The Memphis Horns played on several tracks.[8] Steve Berlin contributed a tenor sax solo to "Mama Didn't Raise No Fool".[9]
The San Diego Union-Tribune wrote that "Walker's music swings with a smooth rhythm that lends itself well to his polished vocals and linear guitar solos."[10] The Washington Post called the album "a taut, funky record steeped in '60s soul and highlighted by some stirring vocals that occasionally recall Otis Redding."[11] Robert Christgau said that, "like they say, he just plays the blues... Yet between sharp tempos and worldly-wise material, he overcomes the boredom factor built into that time-worn endeavor."
The Chicago Tribune labeled Walker "an impressive lyric writer [who] has created wry and wise songs gloriously free of the usual blues cliches."[12] The Globe and Mail determined that Walker's "a tad more traditional (and less guilt-ridden) in his approach to the blues (and life) than Cray, and he's got a nice tough edge to his playing that the yuppified Cray sometimes lacks."[13] The San Francisco Examiner praised the "sleek production and depth of feeling."[4]
AllMusic wrote that the album "just may be his finest album of all, filled with soulful vocal performances, bone-cutting guitar work, and tight backing."