The lineup of Reckless and Blue includes Williams on guitar and vocals, Allen Anderson on keyboards, Tom Dillard on bass, and Steve Gaskin on drums. The fifth member of the quintet is sultry vocalist Shaunda Fry, a 50-year-old latecomer who joined the group two years ago. Williams and Fry share lead vocals, often trading verses within the same song, creating a passionate he-said, she-said dynamic that adds emotional depth and tension. All the songs on the album were written or co-written by Williams.

The opener, “Come Back,” kicks off with a percussive intro featuring Williams on a cigar box guitar, while co-writer Fry pleads for her lover’s return: “You know I miss you, baby, but now you’re gone. I know you love me, please just come back home.” Fry fuels her next plea for lost love with the libation-inspired title track, singing, “I’ve been drinking gin like never before, since my baby walked out the door,” over rolling organ riffs from Anderson.

The torchy “Triflin’” features Williams and Fry trading soulful verses of mutual torment, mirroring each other’s pain. Fry begs, “Now baby stop, don’t you walk out that door. If you leave me this time, I won’t be here when you get back home.” Williams takes over for a vocal romp on the honky-tonk rhythms of “Don’t Expect Me,” warning his lover that he’s done: “Seems like you got what you had comin’, you ain’t gettin’ no more of my lovin’.”

Fry and Williams pair up again for the gently rocking “Burnin’ Daylight,” each pushing hard to reconnect as they sing, “I’m comin’ home, baby, wait and see. I’m comin’ home, just you and me.” The slow-burning “Can’t Give Me the Blues” explores their shared heartache in a duet that aches with resignation: “You can’t give me the blues, I’ve had the blues for a long, long time.”

Anderson turns up the heat with a boogie-woogie piano groove on “Shimmy Shakin’ Blues,” a rollicking dance tune that gives both singers a chance to cut loose. “Woke up this morning with a beat in my shoes, gonna shimmy shake away these shimmy shakin’ blues,” they shout with infectious energy. The drinking theme returns on the mournful duet “If the Blues Was Whiskey,” where Williams and Fry lament, “If the blues was whiskey, I’d stay drunk all the time.”

Another rollicking organ intro from Anderson kicks off “Hey Pretty Baby,” with Williams on lead vocals, looking for love as he croons, “Hey, pretty baby, won’t you look my way. Talk to me, woman, you’ll want to hear what I say.”

The album closes with the haunting “Stormy Night in Denver,” a slow, aching ballad featuring Fry’s lovelorn vocals as she sings, “In this rainy night, I’m lost in pain, looking for my man, so, so far away.” Backing singers Annie Phillips and Ernie Martinez join her, along with a horn section featuring Jeff Miguel on saxophone and Derek Banach on trumpet, adding a rich, soulful finish to the record.

Reckless and Blue’s Seven Deadly Gins blends traditional blues storytelling with modern edge and emotional realism. Williams and Fry’s chemistry fuels the heart of this record, while the band’s tight musicianship and classic tone make it a strong follow-up that’s both fresh and steeped in tradition.

Richard Ludmerer
Contributing Editor, Making A Scene