Spit The Blues Out

The Saints circa the early 21st century no longer feature many bandmembers who were spotted on their classic 1977 release, I'm Stranded -- in fact, the lone holdover is singer/guitarist Chris Bailey. But Bailey and a group of hired guns have been known to sporadically issue Saints albums, and 2002 saw the release of Spit the Blues Out. And regardless of a quite valid argument -- if the presence of a lone original member warrants the use of a band's name -- Spit the Blues Out is a heck of a dirty rock & roll album. Instead of focusing on their early garage punk sound, '60s-era blues-rock has now taken its place, as evidenced by the Animals-esque album opener, "A Gentleman Came Walking," while "Where Did My Mind Go?" brings to mind '60s Brit-pop and "Who's Been Talking" is reminiscent of early Stooges (à la the track "1969"). Although not all of it hits the mark (was an umpteenth cover of "Before You Accuse Me" really necessary?), Spit the Blues Out will certainly not tarnish the Saints' name. ~ Greg Prato|