Live on
Never mess with a good thing; Kenny Wayne Shepherd certainly hasn't. There's no appreciable stylistic difference betweenLive Onand its predecessors,Trouble Is...andLedbetter Heights, except that Shepherd's guitar work here sounds more assured. All of the other usual ingredients are present--a full, crunchy guitar sound, a tight rhythm section, mature-sounding vocals from Noah Hunt, and the usual assortment of uptempo rockers and slower, sweeter numbers. If Shepherd seems to be edging closer to the rock side of the blues-rock genre, it's hardly surprising given that's where he's had his greatest success. And if the result doesn't seem to quite transcend genre boundaries, it is, at least, a high-octane, energetic effort.--Genevieve Williams