luther black and the cold hard facts

​Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts (from the album Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts available on D.A. Records)
Opening their self-titled debut with a recounting of his years circling the sun, Rick Wagner (aka Luther Black) claims the space he has carved out in “59”, stating ‘it took 59 years getting here and I ain’t about to leave’. Music has been Rick’s path since leaving the Pennsylvania coal town of his birth and relocating to NYC’s Greenwich Village. The choice was a no-brainer and Rick recalls that ‘when I started out playing bass in bands as a teenager I thought it was my ticket out of my small, coal mining hometown in Pennsylvania. My whole world revolved around Led Zeppelin, Kiss, Circus and Creem magazine.  Once I discovered Punk Rock I was off to New York City’. The streets and alleyways of the Lower East Side of Manhattan held secrets, and the Folk music of Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, and Pete Seeger found a way to partner with Rock influences in the songs of Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts.
 
The inclusiveness of Americana soundtracks Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts as the album falls “Under the Influence of Love”, the storyline tracing a cross-country trek that trails two lovers while Blues grit pokes at “Trouble”, Rock’n’Roll jangle sparkles along “Backroads”, somber strums toast “Prisoner of the Bottle”, and dusty notes freckle the air around “Lonesome Valley Blues” from both electric and acoustic six-strings. Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts frontman/songwriter Rick Wagner speaks/sings honesty in his words, supporting the tales with shifting musical soundscapes. A slow churning rhythm keeps the man in “The Ghost That’s Chasing Me” a step ahead of his fears as Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts demand “Proof” on a shaky percussive rattle and tenderly map out a path of loneliness for “Longer Than a Country Mile” while the album exits on a needle-scratch version of Hank Williams “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry”.
 
Listen and buy the music of Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts from AMAZON
 
Visit the Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts website for more information
https://lutherblack.com/
 

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