Ft. Worth, TX. (Top40 Charts/ Delbert McClinton Official Website) - Three-time Grammy Award winning artist Delbert McClinton has not changed his musical formula, but he's subtly enhanced the flavors on his thirteenth studio album Acquired Taste. The reflective lyrics provide one of the wisest and most introspective albums of the
Texas roots music legend's musical career. The new record, available August 18th from New West Records, was produced by Grammy Award winning producer Don Was (Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt). Acquired Taste will be released as a 14-track CD as well as a deluxe CD/DVD with never before seen performances from one of his Austin City Limits TV appearances.
Acquired Taste, McClinton's first new studio recording in over four years,is a juke joint blend of country soul, infused with blues, rock and jazz. McClinton, one of the greatest American vocalists, showcases his versatile voice on ballads like "Starting A Rumor" and "Never Saw It Comin'", while he jazzes things up on tracks including "Mama's Little Baby" and "Until Then." There is a subtle maturity to both McClinton's singing and writing on Acquired Taste especially present in "She's Not There Anymore." The sultry tango conjures images of a smoky lounge complete with a lone couple dancing to heart wrenching lyrics "I once was a king in a never better land, a pastel place con mi amor, my every wish fulfilled by loving hands. But she's not there anymore...I walk alone these lonely streets at night; no warmth awaits me at my door, like a broken string of pearls so goes my life. She's not there anymore."
McClinton, who can be heard on vocals, guitar and harmonica, calls on his seasoned band, Dick50, to back him on the new record; Lynn Williams (drums), Steve Mackey (bass), Kevin McKendree (keyboards, lead guitar on "Cherry Street") and Rob McNelley (guitar, background vocals on "When She Cries At Night"). McClinton is also joined by several guest musicians including his longtime friend Stephen Bruton, who plays guitar and sings background vocals on "Can't Nobody Say I Didn't Try." Also on the album: Dennis Taylor (sax on " People Just Love To Talk"), Michito Sanchez (percussion on "Do It," "Mama's Little Baby," "Until Then" & "Starting A Rumor"), Maxine and Julia Waters (background vocals on "Starting A Rumor" & "Mama's Little Baby") and Tom Hambridge (drums on "Mama's Little Baby" & "She's Not There Anymore").
McClinton's lasting significance has been well recognized by the Recording Academy. In 1991, he won his first Grammy Award for his vocal collaboration with Bonnie Raitt on "Good Man, Good Woman" (from Raitt's Luck Of The Draw). He has won two Grammy Awards in the Best Contemporary Blues Album category. The first was Nothing Personal in 2001 and Cost of Living in 2005. In between the two Grammy wins was Room to Breathe which was nominated in the same category in 2002.
The quintessential Texas blues rocker, McClinton has known few genre boundaries during his more than five decade-spanning career with threads of country, rock, pop soul, folk and jazz abounding. He received his musical education playing harmonica with The Straightjackets, the house band at a local R&B club backing artists such as Jimmy Reed, Howlin' Wolf, and Sonny Boy Williamson. McClinton was first known for his outstanding harmonica skills and reportedly gave John Lennon a few lessons in the early 60s. One of McClinton's notable credits is the creation of the harmonica riff heard on Bruce Channel's 1962 No 1 hit "Hey! Baby," recorded in his native Ft. Worth, TX.
