80's Reloaded

Although he took a pop-metal detour during the '80s, guitarist Gary Moore was always a blues-rock guitarist at heart. After all, his chief instrument throughout his career has been a Les Paul that once belonged to Fleetwood Mac's Peter Green, and he played on the original version of Thin Lizzy's slow-burning bluesy tour de force "Still in Love With You." By the dawn of the '90s, Moore had grown tired of trying to keep pace with the Def Leppards of the rock world, and returned to his original love. The move paid off immediately for Moore, as 1990's Still Got the Blues was a worldwide hit, and as a result, the guitarist continued with this direction for much of the decade. The 2004 12-track compilation Blues Collection is true to its title, as it includes the cream of this aforementioned rootsy era. Moore sounds reinvigorated on much of the material here, especially "Oh Pretty Woman" (nope, not the Roy Orbison song of the same name), "Walking By Myself," and "Cold Day in Hell." Also included is the Phil Lynott-penned classic from the late '70s, "Parisienne Walkways," and the George Harrison-penned "That Kind of Woman," which proves to be a break from the blues (it would have fit comfortably on a Traveling Wilburys album). But one glaring omission prevents Blues Collection from being the definitive Moore blues collection -- the title track from Still Got the Blues, which just so happens to be arguably Moore's best blues track of them all. ~ Greg Prato|