It certainly did no harm for Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf,
so Tim ‘Too Slim’ Langford has passed the first test of blues sainthood with a
name deviation. Seriously, the thousands of records he’s shifted as front man
of Too Slim and the Tail Draggers has also adhered him to the blues community
and now thirteen years after his previous solo release, the time has arrived to
indulge again in a little dose of self effacing acoustic blues. With the
freedom to roam, Langford, via eleven brand new self-penned tracks, has exerted
his creative license on a set of material that is experimental in style without
veering too far away from the strict demands of blues connoisseurs. BROKEN HALO
is an evolution of guitar diversity that has the potential to engage the wider
Americana community to fully justify this rare solo excursion for Langford.
For those who prefer their blues a little less intense, the
appealing friendly upbeat sound attached to the title track ‘Broken Halo’ will arouse attention while
those with a keen ear to the intrinsic sound of string-based instrumentals will
revel in the Hispanic feel to ‘La Llorona’
and to the ukulele that provides a the backdrop to ‘Princeville Serenade’. Langford transports us many miles south east
from his Pacific North West roots to the land of the delta with ‘You Hide It Well’ while it’s straight
down the middle traditional blues accompanying the personal recollections
providing the inspiration for ‘North
Dakota Girl’.
The lyrical content of many of the songs highlights the
wordsmith talents of Langford and blue is the appropriate colour for the language
littering ’40 Watt Bulb’ while ‘Shaking the Cup’ with harmonica backing
and stuttering structure will resonate with any struggling artist. The
concluding track ‘Gracie’ shows the sentimental
and tender side of Langford’s artistry with it being impossible not to feel
moved by this account of family memories.
While this release does not stray too far away from the
spirit of the blues, the craftsmanship derived from experimenting with a
multitude of guitars from dobra to slide coupled with Langford’s ability to
construct a song, has created an album with the potential to broaden appeal. Therefore
the decision to take a hiatus from the Tail Draggers has been fully justified.