Peter Spencer: Press

Sweet acoustic blues! Peter's vocals and guitar-playing are a paragon of excellence. The keyboard work on several tracks by Dave Bristow...nicely rounds out the sound. The songs were all penned by Peter...a pleasing meld of folk and blues that is as fresh as a new day and a few straight blues tossed in for good measure. From the opening of "Went Too Far Blues" to the fast finger work on "Root Man Boogie" or the solid "Never Do Right Blues" Peter's got it going on. I found the minor chord groove in "The Afterwhile" almost hypnotic and the hidden bonus instrumental track I call "Walking 'Round the Bend" clearly shows off Peter's abilities with a melody.

"Everybody Danced" is as gloriously mournful a slice of modern folk-rock/Americana as has been heard this decade.

Peter Spencer's live CD (and his fourth overall), "The Blues Concert," features eight originals and four covers, and is an acoustic blues treat. Recorded in January, 2007 at the Island Music Guild on Bainbridge Island with help from Liam Graham on fretless electric bass, the CD showcases a talent that has been a regular at the Winslow Way Cafe on the Island, as well as repeat performances at Highway 99 in Seattle. My favorite originals on the disc - which has a crisp, "you are there" recording - include "Under the Mountain," "Ghost Man Blues," and the romantic "Turn to Me." The opening cover caught my attention, because I've never heard an acoustic blues version of "Confessin' the Blues," one of Jay McShann and Walter Brown's more popular Kansas City blues songs. Likewise, I appreciated Peter's version of Percy Mayfield's "Please Send Me Someone to Love," and each song in between those two covers. This past year Peter has played our annual picnic and at our monthly meetings and I look forward to seeing him live again. Until then sample his work at peterspencer.com. I highly recommend "The Blues Concert" to fans of original acoustic blues.

I dig your style a lot as it reminds me of guys like Tom Rush or Dave Van Ronk, all those folk blues revivalists active in the sixties. You understand the blues tradition but make it sound fresh. Your guitar playing is elegant and tasty plus your vocals are deep and enjoyable. I like both albums very much!

Peter's deep, soulful guitar is something you gotta hear.

Spencer writes highly creative lyrics set to catchy melodies on topics far removed from those trampled by most contemporary singer-songwriters. ‘Streets of Montreal’ should become an instant classic.

You’ll love this dinosaur.

Spencer’s smooth, fluid picking is syncopated and swinging, never flashy, and always the exact tensile strength to support the song. His voice (is) full and resonant, sweet and sad, strong and smart, tender, tough, and tuneful. This is a thoroughly satisfying record.

I’ve been waiting for this album for years. Finally Peter Spencer has got it down on a disc, and what a disc it is! Peter shows himself a first-rate songwriter, a superior singer, and a subtle and very accomplished guitarist.

Peter Spencer shows a maturity and depth in his songs that’s lacking in all too many today.

A seasoned professional (and) a gifted lyricist with a sharp eye. This is a sleeper of an album that grows on you with repeated listening. There’s something here for the singer-songwriter crowd, the blues crowd, and the No Depression/alternative-country crowd.

One of the great guitarists.

A gratifying disc of stripped-down acoustic blues. A founder of New York's Fast Folk Musicians cooperative in the 1980s, Spencer's singer-songwriter cred serves him well. While the disc's best songs — "Turn to Me" and the moody "Under the Mountain" — owe more to folk than blues, the Seattle-area guitarist also flashes some first-rate blues songs, including the title track, "Never Do Right" and "Root Man Blues." Tom Walz plays rollicking bass against Spencer's spare guitar and kicks in some fine blues harmonica, especially on "Look and See Blues" and "Little Walter Medley." Don't miss their folkie take on Miles Davis' "All Blues."