CONNOR SELBY is an up and coming talent on the UK blues scene. He was voted “Young Artist of the Year” at the UK Blues Awards in 2020, 2021 and 2022 and he’s already played some prestigious gigs – including Wembley Stadium, where he opened for The Who in July 2019 and has since gone on to play BST Hyde Park, London, on a bill with Pearl Jam, Stereophonics and Johnny Marr in the summer of 2022.
Record-wise, Connor self-released his eponymous debut album in 2021 and such has been the interest that the Provogue/Mascot Label Group has just reissued it.
The original album was a ten tracker and on it Connor displayed a range of blues styles including a penchant for Southern soul flavoured blues as on ‘Show Me A Sign’ which proffers a Little Milton-ish sound. ‘Falling In Love Again’ has a Southern soul feel too – biting guitar, a melancholic vocal and soul-drenched Hammond stabs that recall the sounds of Booker T. On things like ‘Starting Over’, Connor shows that he can do wistful too.
This new release of ‘Connor Selby’ offers four new tracks of which the most interesting is a cover of Ray Charles’ ‘My Baby Don’t Dig Me’. This obscure 1964 song is given a proper, old school treatment till Connor’s 21st century guitar solo takes hold. The slower ‘Love Letter To The Blues’ (another of the four bonuses) is a homage to what Connor loves the most – the inspiration for the sound could be Van Morrison. ‘The Deep End’ (another “extra”) closes the album in fine style – it has a soul-jazz /Mose Allison/Georgie Fame feel and is a satisfying end to a varied blues album . Out now!