Singer, songwriter and guitarist Bad Temper Joe seems restless. After Sometimes A Sinner and the live record Man for the Road, the man from Bielefeld has now released his third album, Tough Ain't Easy, on the nation's record tables in just over a year. Business as usual on the one hand, but somehow different on the other. Rough blues and soft ballads alternate in the familiar manner, but Joe also takes a new path. Actually known for playing the guitar lying flat on the lap, the so-called lap slide technique, there are only pieces on this disc that are played in a conventional way. "Since I've only played lap slides in my concerts since the summer of 2014, I practiced on a regular guitar 90% of the time at home. So most of the songs came about that way. […] At the moment I just feel more comfortable with this way of playing,” writes the 22-year-old in the liner notes.
Bad Temper Joe describes his new album as a kind of book. "First there's the 'woke up this morning' line in 3rd Floor Elevator Blues and that's kind of the foreword. And all the other songs are like chapters in this book.” The focus is on the lyrics and the mood of the songs. And if you end up missing the slide guitar, you'll find a video of the song Outlaw Blues as a bonus.
Reduced to voice and guitar, Tough Ain't Easy immerses the listener in Bad Temper Joe's stories. Like a narrator, he leads through the individual chapters. Truly, this isn't a tight blues, there are also elements of folk, country and Americana here. But these genres have strong common roots and Joe embarks on a journey to these roots with his stories.
01 3rd Floor Elevator Blues
02 Trusted But Twisted
03 Come On In My Kitchen
04 Rich Man Blues
05 Delilah
06 Old Oak Tree
07 Farmer’s Daughter
08 Chicago At Midnight
09 Rosie’s Blue Eyes
10 Beggar’s Velvet Serenade
11 Nighthawk Woman Blues #9
12 I Bid You Goodnight, Sweet Marie
13 Data Track: Video „Outlaw Blues“
