Back Roads

Collection Contents

#		Title	Length
1		Find My Baby Blues	5:21	Play
2		Every Minute	4:27	Play
3		Honeysuckle Breeze	3:51	Play
4		I Could See It In Your Eyes	4:04	Play
5		Mama's Place	3:15	Play
6		Son of the Night	3:41	Play
7		A Little Bit of Heaven	4:25	Play
8		Wake Up	4:02	Play
9		Forever and Always	4:55	Play
10		Lucinda	2:55	Play
11		Back Roads	3:56	Play
12		Little Rock and Roller	4:00	Play

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"Find My Baby Blues" hit the #1 spot for the week on Twang Cast Radio out of Austin Texas on June 26. Twang Cast is an Internet country music station. You can see the listing at http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=29481361&blogID=138126655&MyToken=e0f364ce-ae0e-4919-a392-ada0a65e3d0b
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Sonny Landreth or Zachary Richard couldn't do it better than that. Robinson's got soul heat and dark depths that only come from midnight meetings at the crossroad.
- Dr Blues - Long Island Blues Society - March 2006
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Robinson kicks off with "Find My Baby Blues," a roadhouse rambler with a galloping beat and some nifty slide guitar. From there, he delves into soft rock ("Every Minute") and old-time country picking ("Honeysuckle Breeze"). But then comes a surprise: the waltzing rhythm and expansive guitar of "I Could See It In Your Eyes," a terrific '50s-style ballad with Robinson crooning like Roy Orbison.
That's just the first of the unexpected but somehow logical turns Robinson takes throughout "Back Roads.
- Rafer Guzman - Newsday Dec 22 2005
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From the opening track, Find My Baby Blues, I was hooked, as they say. This album encompasses blues and ragtime, rock, folk, and jazz and is great for driving to.
- Rick Christian - Tradition Magazine (UK) - Spring 2006
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Steve Robinson is one guy with talent to burn. He possesses a pleasant, laid back and expressively soulful voice, hes a gifted musician who plays with diversity and passion, and has a talent for well-written lyrics and an ear for a great melody... leaves no doubt about Steve Robinsons talent, from the very first note of Back Roads, to its last
- AnnMarie Harrington - Take Country Back Magazine - Spring 2006
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Steves Music and style combines Folk, Americana, and Nawlins all in one amazing package -
- Frank Walker Aural Fix Magazine Jan 2006
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Ive enormous respect for this mans talent. In a word, Steve is the package,
-Roger Silverberg Aural Fix Magazine Jan. 2006
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READ FULL REVIEWS BELOW

The disc is "Back Roads" by Steve Robinson, a singer-songwriter from Massapequa Park with roots in the blues and an ear for classic rock, '50s pop, country and even bossa nova. None of his 12 songs here are alike, but together they create a coherent whole, woven together by Robinson's versatile guitar playing and clear, unpretentious vocals. A team of skilled session musicians gives the album a polished, solid feel.
Robinson kicks off with "Find My Baby Blues," a roadhouse rambler with a galloping beat and some nifty slide guitar. From there, he delves into soft rock ("Every Minute") and old-time country picking ("Honeysuckle Breeze"). But then comes a surprise: the waltzing rhythm and expansive guitar of "I Could See It In Your Eyes," a terrific '50s-style ballad with Robinson crooning like Roy Orbison.
That's just the first of the unexpected but somehow logical turns Robinson takes throughout "Back Roads." On "A Little Bit Of Heaven," he matches a bossa nova beat to a melancholy melody that recalls America's "Ventura Highway." On "Wake Up," he enlists a jazzy fiddle, creating a sunny tune that's halfway between Hank Williams and Stphane Grappelli. Robinson's gentle guitar intertwines nicely with the tinkling piano on "Forever and Always," a smoky supper-club number
Robinson, 57, clearly has a handle on numerous musical genres...Overall, "Back Roads" blazes some fresh trails in well-marked territory.
Rafer Guzman - Newsday - Dec. 22, 2005

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From the opening track, Find My Baby Blues, I was hooked, as they say. This album encompasses blues and ragtime, rock, folk, and jazz and is great for driving to. Robinson, from Long Island, New York, has penned all 12 tracks on this release and his influences range from Steve Earle, and Delbert McClinton, to Paul Brady. As well as Steve on vocals and acoustic guitar, hes aided and abetted by some first class musicians including John O. Reilly (drums, percussion), Bob Stander (bass, guitars), Tony Montalbo (bass, violin, harmonica), Paul Errico (piano, organ), and Mark Newman (slide guitar). Many of these have played with the likes of Richie Havens, Steve Forbert, and the Trans Siberian Orchestra.
Every Minute has a slow blues air about it whilst Honeysuckle Breeze has a blues/ragtime feel. The quality production of this recording allows the acoustic guitar work on tracks such as Mamas Place to shine through. A Little Bit Of Heaven shows a gentler side to Robinsons writing and makes use of some lovely acoustic guitar and piano. Back Roads also follows the slow blues path, and leads into Little Rock And Roller which has its roots firmly in the blues but more along the lines of Joe Ely. An excellent album available online form CD Baby
Rick Christian - Tradition Magazine (UK) - Spring 2006

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Over the course of his 57 years, native Long Islander Steve Robinson has been something of a jack-of-all-trades. Hes worked at everything from being a carpenter to an English teacher, a fisherman to a truck driver, an air traffic controller to a computer programmer, and pretty much everything in-between. Through it all though, music has always been a big part of his life and hes been a fixture on LIs original music scene for some time. He has an affinity for acoustic and roots/Americana based music and cites as among his favorite songwriters, John Hiatt, Delbert McClinton, Steve Earle, Guy Clark, Kevin Welch, Paul Brady, Jimmy LaFave, and Slaid Cleaves. His live performances reflect that, as along with Steves own original songs, he often peppers many of their songs, among others, into his sets.

Despite this well-respected singer/songwriters lengthy tenure on the music scene, Steve has just gotten around to recording his first release, Back Roads. The album contains 12 of Steves original songs that run the gamut of roots music- blues, country and folk with occasional touches of soul and jazz, often mixed and matched in varying combinations.

Back Roads opens strongly with a shuffling ramblin man roadhouse blues, Finding My Baby Blues, which features some mighty tasty slide guitar work that gives the song a swampy delta feel. Steve shows off some outstanding finger picking and soulful vocals on the rock on down to save your soul Nawlins flavored boogie, Mamas Place. The easy, laid back arrangement gives it a warm, toe tapping, back porch feel. Although the bulk of the album leans towards a quieter, more acoustic based sound, Steve does plug in and crank things up in a few spots. Son Of The Night is a dark, powerful blues-rocker that swirls around a man tormented by his inner demons. As harmonica relentlessly wails in the background of the percolating melody, it serves to accentuate the desperation of a man spurned by the untrue Lucinda, the tale of a woman whos driven her jilted lover to murderous thoughts. A real standout, Little Rock And Roller is a driving, down & dirty electric blues that advises, there comes a point in time when its best to just bow out gracefully.

Another gem is Forever And Always, a serving of heartache done up with a smoky, swaying, late night lounge feel. In the sterling country-blues title track, Back Roads, Steve paints a vivid, melancholy portrait of a lost soul, the quiet pain of a mans desperate search for that elusive something to hold onto. Some fine old-time country finger picking gives Honeysuckle Breeze a lazy back porch feel, while fiddle adds the same touch to the breezy, Wake Up. Family inspired a couple of Steves songs. A soulful, mid-tempo rocker, Every Minute is a lovely, heartfelt love song, inspired by his wife of 35 years, Ellen. Little Bit Of Heaven has one of the albums most intriguing melodies. Steve combines a gentle bossa nova beat, luminous piano, and tender vocals that wrap themselves warmly around the reflective lyrics, resulting in a captivatingly pretty song that was inspired by his grandchildren. The albums true highlight and most stunning song is the gorgeous, I Could See It In Your Eyes. This heartbreaker is a soaring 50s Orbison style ballad, with an infectious beat keeping time as guitars swell with the mournful ache of a love thats been lost.

Steve Robinson is one guy with talent to burn. He possesses a pleasant, laid back and expressively soulful voice, hes a gifted musician who plays with diversity and passion, and has a talent for well-written lyrics and an ear for a great melody. With veteran producer Bob Stander at the helm, along with the contributions of a well seasoned group of backing musicians in the studio, together theyve crafted a solid album with just the right amount of polish that leaves no doubt about Steve Robinsons talent, from the very first note of Back Roads, to its last
AnnMarie Harrington - Take Country Back Magazine - Spring 2006

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Steve Robinson's taking to the highways with a wandering eye and a diverse taste in styles. He's taking the roots route, relying on the ear and sight to get him where he wants to go. Steve voyages through the homelands of Americana, up and down the coast and crossland too. Opening with "Find My Baby Blues", straight moving R&R courses through his veins in a similar way to Mel Melton or even the Grateful Dead's "New Minglewood Blues." "Every Minute" pours out love and appreciation, no superfluous words needed and it's rocking steady. "Honeysuckle Breeze" is a sweet southern loving done folky. In my mind, I hear Jonathan Edwards. The lessons of Jesse Colin Young infuse "I Could See It In Your Eyes" with bittersweet loss as Steve ably condenses feeling into its deepest essence and Chris Isaak flows within Bob Stander's electric guitar. Just In time, the bopping rocking of "Mama's Place' brightens the scene, guaranteeing some fine times. "Son of the Night" cries and wails with the darkness of a Louisiana night and "Lucinda" roils with desperate pain. Sonny Landreth or Zachary Richard couldn't do it better than that. Robinson's got soul heat and dark depths that only come from midnight meetings at the crossroad. Lowering the heat but not the feeling, ennui pours out of the titler "Back Roads" and "Forever and Always", joy and renewal reverberates from "Wake Up" and the platter closes with some fine Sun Studio styled slow stroll rock and roll called "Little Rock and Roller." Not content to deliver just a nice tempo and melody, there is a reality check enclosed in the lyrics. Steve makes you stand up and notice. He's a proud product of LI and holds it down with fine chops, tight construction, multilayered feeling and a natural feel. I want to thank Pops Westcott for the word up. Now, it's your turn to check out Steve Robinson and Back Roads.
Dr Blues - Long Island Blues Society - March 2006

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Steve, a native New Yorker, has been a carpenter, high school English teacher, commercial shell fisherman, truck driver, landscape crew foreman, air traffic controller, and computer programmer (and those are just some of the jobs). It hasnt been dull, as Ellen, his wife of 35 years, puts it. What he is now is one hell of a songwriter, guitarist, singer, and performer.
Steve has developed his own unique finger style combining driving rhythms with tasteful licks. And the songs. His CD of originals, Back Roads, contains 12 gems that range from blues, country, soul, folk, and jazz, each one delivered with an authenticity and soulfulness that is rare. His songwriting abilities were confirmed by fellow songwriters when they chose him as the winner of the coveted ISS Writers Choice award the first time he entered.
Steve has been featured at some of the top acoustic venues on Long Island. Recently he had the honor of opening for Steve Earles sister Stacy and her talented husband Mark Stuart.
Ask him about his musical influences and he is likely to smile. Too many to count. His favorite artists tend to be other great songwriters such as John Hiatt, Delbert McClinton, Steve Earle, Guy Clark, Paul Brady and, currently, Jimmy LaFave and Slaid Cleaves. Each of these guys has a knack for reaching into your gut and pulling out a truth so crystal clear it leaves you gasping for breath. That is the kind of songwriter I want to be. He is well on his way.