For those of us who’ve been crushing on the soulful earworms Joanne Shaw Taylor’s been sending our way over her recent releases, within the first few seconds of new single ‘I Gotta Stop Letting You Let Me Down’ she reminds us that she built her reputation as a wildfire blues guitarist with added class and charm.
Mean slide work is followed by a churning roll of the blues that rocks all the way from the drum seat to the back of the house. A mighty declaration that enough’s enough relationship wise, and for anyone foolish enough not to listen to what she has to say, the tour de force of her guitar wrangling on this track’s gonna stop you in your tracks.
“‘I Gotta Stop Letting You Down’ is a story about an on-and-off-again relationship with someone who keeps making promises they can’t fulfill,” Taylor confirmed. “It’s about someone whose lack of self-esteem governs their choices, to the point where you have to decide to stop letting them disappoint you.”
The song’s heartfelt lyrics, like “Babe, I gotta stop letting you let me down,” stand out as a powerful declaration of self-worth and empowerment. Taylor’s passionate performance, alongside Audley Freed on rhythm guitar and Doug Lancio on slide guitar, is enhanced by Kevin Shirley’s production, amplifying the raw emotion and gritty rock energy of the song.
Available on digital platforms here you can also check out the official video here at RAMzine.
As noted, the blues rock guitarist and singer/songwriter has been serenading listeners of late, delivering some of the coolest sounds around, and yet she still questioned just ‘Who’s Gonna Love Me Now?‘ on her previous single.
Written from a deeply personal place, the song reflects on recent experiences with family loss, drawing her back to the memories of her mother’s passing and the initial shock and heartache that accompanied it.
“This song was a way for me to process some of the emotions I’ve been feeling,” Taylor explained. “At the start of this year, I lost another family member, which brought me back to those early, raw days of grief after losing my mom. Writing ‘Who’s Gonna Love Me Now?’ has been part of my journey in working through that pain and moving forward.”
With haunting lyrics like “I’ve called your name in every room in this house, until my tears dried up and my breath gave out,” the track captures the anguish of unresolved goodbyes and the search for peace.
Gentle percussive rhythms undulate to evoke warmer worldly cultures while the song itself is universal; the hypnotic trip style guitar licks running alongside the hook line vocal mantras while more intensive blues wailing echoes away like tides retreating from a beach to leave the listener standing there alone. For all this, Taylor’s guitars are not in-your-face, just there, ever present, so much so you’re initially not quite aware when the music takes a progressive turn, her six string stylisations bending appreciatively towards the kind of sounds usually associated with one Dave Gilmour.
Available on all major streaming platforms. You can check out the video for the single here at RAMzine.
For those enchanted by the rhythmic chordal melodies Joanne Shaw Taylor’s been slotting into a whole batch of songs over her last few albums, the video for her ‘All The Things I Said’ single proves a treat because you can see just what is she’s doing. That it looks deceptively simple yet so effective is small reward for those less talented.
That it’s just chinking away in the mix within what’s another in Taylor’s radio-friendly crossover tunes is cool. More revealing, once you start listening properly is the direct openness of the words she sings, recalling a past relationship. As background chorus vocals start repeating the title, like some dream one can’t escape, a brief guitar solo cuts through, dancing lightly but with deliberate purpose.
“This is the first song I wrote for the new album,” said Taylor of an upcoming new studio set. “It’s about reflecting on a past relationship and accepting your part in its failure as well as asking your ex-partner to do the same. It’s also about how you can reflect on a love relationship and with the benefit of time you can see how you could have done things differently.”
Candid, it’s a powerful testament to her ability to translate deeply personal experiences into universally relatable stories. The song also sees Taylor expanding her songwriting prowess, channelling influences reminiscent of John Mayer while seamlessly blending them with pop sensibilities for a fresh, contemporary sound. This track follows the recent release of, ‘Black & Gold’, a soulful, blues-gospel rendition of Sam Sparro’s 2008 Grammy-nominated hit, and was produced by Kevin Shirley (Black Crowes, Aerosmith).
With praise from legends like Stevie Wonder and Annie Lennox and a career that has spanned over a decade, Joanne Shaw Taylor continues to solidify her status as one of today’s most prominent voices in blues rock. Her next studio album is set to be released early next year. We can but hope it delivers more of the fearless songwriting and stirring performances that have earned her critical acclaim and a worldwide fan base.
