The E Street guitarist wrote 11 of the tracks on the new album.
Nils LofgrenNils Lofgren, “Old School” (Vision Music). 2 ½ STARS
Before he was Neil Young’s guitarist, before he was Bruce Springsteen’s guitarist, Nils Lofgren was an established artist on his own.
That solo career has taken a back seat through the years, but he surfaces here on “Old School,” a 12-track album for which he wrote 11 of the songs.
Though his guitar work is consistently incendiary, some of the uptempo tracks here are mundane, like “60 is the new 18,” and the Southside Johnny echoes of “Ain’t Too Many of us Left,” the latter which features Sam Moore of Sam & Dave fame.
Frankly, Lofgren is far better on the ballads, particularly a tribute to Ray Charles, “Miss You Ray,” and the album’s one non-original, the beautiful “Irish Angel,” written by Bruce McCabe.
Tracks to download: “Miss You Ray” “Irish Angel”