A genuine keeper of the faith, Brian Setzer has been burning the rock’n’roll flame for around 10 times longer than the original burst shone for. Indeed his is a world where The Beatles are still travelling across Liverpool to meet a fella who can show them a B7 chord, and he’s all the better for it.
What makes Gotta Have The Rumble – his first solo album in seven years – such an unmitigated joy is how effortless it all sounds.
Still in thrall to juvenile delinquency, fast cars and even faster women, Setzer shoots straight from the hip with deadly and infectious precision.
The tremolo’d twang of Checkered Flag drips with the salacious menace that would meet with The Cramps’ full approval, while Turn You On, Turn Me On builds on Bo Diddley’s rhythmic foundations, and Off Your Rocker’s slap-backed groove is Brian Setzer at his best.
