In the real world

In a career entering its sixth decade, Eric Bibb is in top form. 2023s Grammy-nominated Ridin, Aprils Live at the Scala Theatre, and 2021s Dear America all proved essential and edifying. In the Real World is no exception. Like Ridin, it contains 15 songs spanning an hour. Bibb and longtime musical partner Glen Scott (producer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist) helmed the sessions at Peter Gabriels Real World Studios with an international cast of collaborators that includes a string quartet, a fiddler, a gospel-inspired backing chorus, and a guest spot by actress/vocalist Lily James. The album is poignant, alternating between tension, narrative reflection, and hope. "Taking the Stage" is the opening (and longest) track here. While the songs melody and lyrics are pure Bibb, it reflects the influences of Mississippi John Hurt and Taj Mahal. Part folk song, part spiritual, part blues, Bibbs protagonist reflects on the world of the present: burning, crumbling, violent, filled with fear, pain, and rage, but he also points to a new world of freedom emerging. Bibbs fingerpicked acoustic is backed by electric slide, B-3, and gentle backing vocals. "Walking Steady On" is a spiritual blues. Bibbs banjo and steel strings are backed by thudding kickdrums, tom-toms, and organ. He references trouble in the present before the "fire next time" that arrives to tear the world asunder. His exhortation to …"keep walkin’ in the gospel way," is the path to the new world referred to in the previous song. "Best I Can" is a sparse folk-blues delivered with canny melodic skill and a subtly arranged string section. "Everybodys Got a Right" and "Make a Change" are drenched in country/urban blues and rhythms, with entwining guitars -- acoustic, electric, and slide -- underscoring the prophetic authority in Bibbs vocal. "This River" is a haunted gospel-blues showcasing Esbjorn Hazelius fiddle and a soulful womens chorus ad libbing. "Stealin Home" is a sung blues narrative about Jackie Robinson. "If Theres Any Rule" is a lithe, rocking, Americana tune; the lyric is painted by a marching snare, Hazelius fiddle, Robbie McIntoshs resonant slide guitar, and a faraway piano. Its message, "If there is any rule were born to follow/Its love each other/If any rule is gonna guarantee tomorrow/Its love.…" The harrowing Delta blues narrative in "King of the Castle" carries a single vamp played by the band; its composition recalls Howlin Wolf, its guitar sounds Tom Waits. "Dear Mavis" is country-blues offered in homage and tribute to Mavis Staples. On the dreamy, gorgeous title track, Bibb melds modern blues, contemporary R&B, and strings as he sings, "In the real world, there’s no fine print/All is clear, all is fair." The set-closer, "Victory Voices," is an uplifting pop song with Lily James duetting. Its lyric subject is an affirmation of a pure new world. In the Real World displays all of Bibbs gifts on a single album as a lyricist, guitarist, blues stylist, music historian, and contemporary singer/songwriter. At once poignant and hopeful, Bibb has upped his own creative ante here. ~ Thom Jurek