Dean Zucchero
Song For The Sinners
Pugnacious Records
New Orleans bassist, songwriter, and producer Dean Zucchero releases his latest album, entitled Song For The Sinners, following on the heels of his 2023 debut album, Electric Church for the Spiritually Misguided, which hit number 1 on the Billboard Blues Album chart.
Song For The Sinners features a dozen tracks, all written, arranged, and produced by Zucchero. Guests on the album include a who’s who of vocalists and instrumentalists, including Bobby Rush, Mike Zito, Victor Wainwright, Albert Castiglia, John Németh, Jimmy Vivino, Little Freddie King, John Boutté, Glen David Andrews, and Sean Riley.
Brimming with retro sounds from the ‘60s and ‘70s, the songs cover lyrical topics such as the slide out of co-habitation, patricidal dreams, Saturday night hookups, grief, J. Geils-like infatuation, Taoist revelations, lustful alcoholic wives, and suicide.
Originally from New York City, Zucchero made his bones in the Manhattan music scene, followed by a nine-year residency in Europe. In 2013, he returned to the U.S., landing in New Orleans, where he played local gigs with artists such as Little Freddie King, Johnny Sansone, Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes, Mason Ruffner, Mama’s Boys, and Ghalia Volt. He also toured internationally with Cyril Neville.
Speaking subjectively, entry points on Song For The Sinners include “Biting Through,” a smoke-flavored blues rocker reminiscent of Stevie Ray Vaughn. Jimmy Vivino’s rasping, snarling vocals and sizzling lead guitar create a seething gas-burner of a song.
“South Side,” a bluesy jazz number, features an intro full of Latin-flavored brass and then flows into a funk-tinted jazz melody. The vocals, provided by Glen David Andrews, grimace with growling textures along with gospel-laced harmonies.
“She’s Saturday Night,” a personal favorite because of its boogie-woogie piano, conjures up suggestions of Jerry Lee Lewis. This track swings!
Another favorite because of its creamy, drifting blues motion highlighted by the simmering bray of the organ, “Crawfish No More” is reminiscent of Otis Redding, evocative, melancholic, and beautiful. “Tone Of The City” blends elements of blues, gospel, and Americana into a wonderfully structured tune akin to early Bob Seeger.
With “Suicide For Jesus,” sung by Ron Hotstream, Zucchero offers a dark, bluesy hymn that for some reason invokes Johnny Cash and Chris Isaak. The lyrics narrate a tale of sin, punishment, and repentance, and the guilt that can’t be washed away.
“Suicide for Jesus / Penetrate within / Negotiate forgiveness / Then trespass again.”
Song For The Sinners isn’t just good. It’s oh my goodness excellent. It’s cunning and shifty, old-school and charming, as well as bristling and snarling.
