John Hammond – In Your Arms Again

The son of Columbia A&R legend John Hammond Sr. (whose signings included Billie Holiday, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen), John Hammond Jr. caught a fast track to fame in the NYC folk/blues scene of the early 1960s, landing a record contract just three years after first picking up a guitar.

Hammond’s early recordings were marred by an annoying, mush-mouthed vocal affectation and an obsessive, almost academic approach to the acoustic blues of such giants as Son House and Charlie Patton that made him seem more of a museum curator than creative artist. Sporadic samplings of his subsequent discs did little to change that view.

That is, at least, until 2001’s revelatory Wicked Grin, a head-clearing crucible that found the then-59-year-old Hammond reinventing himself in the cleansing flames of Tom Waits’ songs. Seemingly recharged, Hammond followed in 2003 with the David Hidalgo-produced Ready For Love, yet another terrific outing on which the singer took on works by George Jones, the Rolling Stones, Waits and, for the first time ever, a composition of his own.

In Your Arms Again makes it three winners in a row. The previous album’s rhythm section of bassist Marty Ballou and percussionist Stephen Hodges returns, providing a swinging, copacetic backdrop for Hammond’s scintillating acoustic guitar and harmonica. Affectation-free and boasting an agreeable patina, Hammond’s voice is strong and unfiltered on this soulful, satisfying set, which taps into Dylan, Hooker, Reed, Percy Mayfield, Ray Charles and Howlin’ Wolf, plus two more fine originals.

Old dawg + new tricks = cool beans.