Ben Poole
Anytime You Need Me
Audio CD (14 Sept. 2018)
Label: Manhaton Records
RATING: *****
Beautiful. Cool. Deliciously smooth. Ben Poole’s latest album Anytime You Need Me is a further assured stamp of a young man who is headed all the way to the very top!
There is something enigmatic about this album. Something as elusively unattainable as fog, yet every bit as stunning as a rainbow in full arc. And rest assured. There are plenty of golden nuggets to be had upon reaching its end as well.
Take It No More is fabulously and almost ludicrously gentile in its production values, yet still manages to pack a punch. This in no small part is the absolute respect Poole clearly has not only for the blues-rock genre he inhabits, but also the instrument he wields so blindingly well.
Produced and partially written by King King drummer Wayne Proctor, Anytime You Need Me is a 48 minute box of musical delight. Proctor himself supplies the drums, whereas the underlying bass lines supplied by Beau Barnard and the Hammond of Ross Stanley cement just about every track. You Could Say is an understated funky master class of the highest levels, whereas Found Out The Hard Way couldn’t possibly be any more lovely to listen to.
Poole’s own talents are clear for all to see. His manifestly overwhelming abilities shining brightest during Further On Down The Line and Don Henley cover Dirty Laundry.
Yet it is the freshness of the sound, the overall accessibility of the music, that is most attractive. There is nothing here that disappoints, with Poole’s almost prosaic attitude allowing each song to breathe alone.
Start The Car is the stand out – its rocking, swaying beat as contagious as chocoholism – but in all seriousness, it could have been any of the 10 of which Anytime You Need Me consists.
In short, this is an album that marks yet another giant leap forward in the career of Ben Poole. An artist, lest we forget, who has been dubbed “F#####g amazing” by Jeff Beck and “So amazing” by Beth Hart. This album merely serves to underpin the obvious. This is a man with places to be!
Track List:
Anytime You Need Me
Take It No More
You Could Say
Found Out The Hard Way
Further Down The Line
Dirty Laundry
Start The Car
Holding On
Tour
Latest Music Bar, Brighton
Wednesday 21st November 2018
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14-17 Manchester St, Brighton, BN2 1TF
https://latestmusicbar.co.uk
The Stables, Milton Keynes
Thursday 22nd November 2018
Double headline with Stevie Nimmo
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Stockwell Ln, Wavendon, Milton Keynes, MK17 8LU
https://stables.org
Old Schoolhouse, Barnsley
Friday 23rd November 2018
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Blackburn Ln, Barnsley, S75 2BA
www.oldschoolhousebarnsley.co.uk
The Meeting Room, Elland
Saturday 24th November 2018
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19-21 Elland Lane, Elland, HX5 9DU
www.themeetingroomelland.co.uk
The Beaverwood Club, Chislehurst
Wednesday 28th November 2018
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Beaverwood Rd, Chislehurst, BR7 6HF
http://thebeaverwoodclub.co.uk
Oran Mor, Glasgow
Thursday 29th November 2018
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Top of Byres Road, Glasgow, G12 8QX
https://oran-mor.co.uk
Cafe Drummonds, Aberdeen
Friday 30th November 2018
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1 Belmont St, Aberdeen, AB10 1JR
www.aberdeenperformingarts.com
The Green Hotel, Kinross
Saturday 1st December 2018
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2 The Muirs, Kinross, Perthshire, KY13 8AS
www.green-hotel.com
Früit, Hull
Wednesday 5th December 2018
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62-63 Humber St, Hull, HU1 1TU
www.fruitspace.co.uk
Real Time Live, Chesterfield
Thursday 6th December 2018
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13 Marsden St, Chesterfield, S40 1JY
www.realtimelive.co.uk
The Ropewalk, Barton upon Humber
Friday 7th December 2018
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The Ropewalk, Maltkiln Road, Barton upon Humber, North Lincolnshire, DN18 5JT
www.the-ropewalk.co.uk
Half Moon Putney, London
Wednesday 12th December 2018
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93 Lower Richmond Rd, London, SW15 1EU
http://halfmoon.co.uk
The Musician, Leicester
Thursday 13th December 2018
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42 Crafton St W, Leicester, LE1 2DE
www.themusicianpub.co.uk
The Railway, Winchester
Saturday 15th December 2018
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3 St Paul’s Hill, Winchester, SO22 5AE
www.railwayinn.pub
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