No Blues is Steve Lambke’s (The Constantines) 2^nd release under the name Baby Eagle and features Julie Doiron (Eric’s Trip), Shotgun Jim, Fred Squire, Jesse Baird and Will Kidman. Gently easing into the Canadian contemporary folk scene, Lambke’s new disc will appeal to a wide audience, particularly those with freshly broken hearts. The title track book-ends the disc with the little eagle trying hard to convince himself, if no one else, that he has “No Blues”. Sandwiched between vulnerable vocal etchings on the opening track and its penultimate reprise are songs that explore the human condition of falling in and out of love. With lines like “Death may rattle at my chain but I won’t shake to no blues”, Lambke conjures recurring images of death, bones and graveyards. Viewed through sorrow-filled eyes and a shattered heart, even his Christmas is bone dry. The second version of “No Blues”, sung entirely by Julie Doiron, while exquisitely fragile, offers some hope and a trace of optimism. Thankfully, the disc closes with “Resurrection Blues”, a ditty affirming that love will come again once our Baby Eagle quits “napping in the boneyard” and “turning dreams to stone”. Delicate and lovely, No Blues is highly recommended for quiet reflection, drinking alone, pining for long lost lovers yet hopeful for brighter days ahead.

By Anne-Marie Brugger
Jan 5, 2008