Break The Chain
Doug MacLeod
Winner of the 2018 Blues Music Awards Acoustic Album of the Year
Nominated for the 2018 Blues Blast Music Awards Acoustic Blues Album of the Year
Hi-Fi News Top Audiophile Vinyl Album of 2019!
In this release, his third album for Reference Recordings, Doug MacLeod continues to explore the breadth and depth of the human condition. Recorded by Reference’s Grammy-winning engineer ‘Prof.’ Keith O. Johnson at Skywalker Sound in Marin County, California, Break The Chain brings twelve new MacLeod originals. Each song is extremely personal and at the same time, universal; covering subjects topical, humorous, and soulful; from the satirical to the sublime.
The title work, Break The Chain, composed and performed with his son Jesse, focuses on breaking the cycle of family violence and abuse. A powerful concern all too many are familiar with, Doug and Jesse confront this pervasive issue directly and personally, bringing it out of the shadows. Together, they share the healing, reconciliation and peace available to all who work to prevent the cycle from repeating and to “Break The Chain”.
The album is co-produced by Doug MacLeod and Janice Mancuso. Bassist Denny Croy, drummer Jimi Bott and percussionist Oliver Brown join Doug in duo, trio and quartet settings. Like all ‘Prof.’ Johnson’s sessions, Break The Chain was recorded live, in real- time, with no overdubs or effects. It is being released on compact disc with HDCD, as high-resolution and conventional downloads and as a premium 2-LP set.
A prolific singer, songwriter, engaging storyteller, and masterful guitarist, Doug is a perennial Blues Music Award nominee and multiple Blues Music Award winner including Acoustic Artist Of The Year and Acoustic Album of the Year. An active touring artist, MacLeod supports his beloved St. Louis Cardinals during baseball season and, when at home, enjoys cooking for wife Patti Joy.
Extra notes
RM-2519 is a 45 rpm Two-LP set pressed by Quality Record Pressings on 180-gram Vinyl, Half-Speed mastered by Paul Stubblebine. — Available August 6, 2018
LP Track-listing
On This Recording
Reviews:
Winner of the 2018 Blues Music Award for Acoustic Album of the Year!
The Absolute Sound: 4/5 music 5/5 sound
5 stars Downbeat Magazine
Living Blues Magazine Top 50 releases of 2017
“Doug MacLeod’s new album — the 17th according to the All Music Guide — has at times…that spatial sound of desert nights in the far Out-Beyond. It’s a world where MacLeod’s array of National Reso-Phonic guitars produce a feeling so haunting you can almost hear the air move. …” Blues Music Magazine
“Like all good blues storytellers, Doug MacLeod sings and speaks the truth. Indeed, the blues as a medium of truth-telling appears throughout his latest release, Break the Chain.” —Living Blues
“Break The Chain is another gem in MacLeod’s long chain of recorded jewels if you’re a fan of intimate acoustic blues.” —Blues Blast Magazine
“MacLeod’s third for Reference ticks all the boxes for arch purists — both blues devotees and hard-core audiophiles. For the former, the 12 new songs are undiluted, unapologetic paeans to the genre, some with a bit of spleen. … authenticity is the order of the day. This, too, informs the audiophile element: no overdubs, no remixing, noting to detract from an atmosphere that recalls legendary live jazz sessions from the 1950s. … Hints of boogie, some nice slidework, airy percussion — just the ticket.” —Ken Kessler, HiFi News
“‘Break the Chain’ is yet another simply superb release from a guy who just keeps on keeping on, turning out albums of enormous quality, traditional blues with a modern twist and a humorous autobiographical edge at times. This is simply a wonderful album, a must for lovers of top-notch acoustic steel-guitar and tasteful slide work.” —Iain Patience, Cashbox Canada
“I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Break The Chain, from Doug MacLeod and it’s a cool, textural documentary of contemporary observations.” —Bman’s Blues Report
“As a recording, it’s typical of the Johnson signature — lifelike dynamics and amazing instrumental and vocal timbres. As I’m akin to saying on reviews from this team, another winner. … Very highly recommended.” —Anthony Kershaw, Audiophilia
“MacLeod has a rhythmic guitar style, a soulful voice and loves to tell a story usually via a narrative in which he builds rapport with his audience.… MacLeod’s influences not only include bluesmen like George “Harmonica” Smith but also contemporary artists of our generation. This is a beautiful album.” —Richard Ludmerer, Making A Scene
13 Reviews Hide Reviews Show Reviews
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This is a beautiful album
“MacLeod has a rhythmic guitar style, a soulful voice and loves to tell a story usually via a narrative in which he builds rapport with his audience.… MacLeod’s influences not only include bluesmen like George “Harmonica” Smith but also contemporary artists of our generation. This is a beautiful album.”
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Very highly recommended
“As a recording, it’s typical of the Johnson signature — lifelike dynamics and amazing instrumental and vocal timbres. As I’m akin to saying on reviews from this team, another winner. … Very highly recommended.”
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BREAK THE CHAIN , DOUG MACLEOD
“I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Break The Chain, from Doug MacLeod and it’s a cool, textural documentary of contemporary observations.”
-
This is simply a wonderful album
“‘Break the Chain’ is yet another simply superb release from a guy who just keeps on keeping on, turning out albums of enormous quality, traditional blues with a modern twist and a humorous autobiographical edge at times. This is simply a wonderful album, a must for lovers of top-notch acoustic steel-guitar and tasteful slide work.”
-
Hints of boogie, some nice slidework, airy percussion — just the ticket.
“MacLeod’s third for Reference ticks all the boxes for arch purists — both blues devotees and hard-core audiophiles. For the former, the 12 new songs are undiluted, unapologetic paeans to the genre, some with a bit of spleen. … authenticity is the order of the day. This, too, informs the audiophile element: no overdubs, no remixing, noting to detract from an atmosphere that recalls legendary live jazz sessions from the 1950s. … Hints of boogie, some nice slidework, airy percussion — just the ticket.”
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BREAK THE CHAIN , DOUG MACLEOD
“Break The Chain is another gem in MacLeod’s long chain of recorded jewels if you’re a fan of intimate acoustic blues.”
-
BREAK THE CHAIN , DOUG MACLEOD
“Like all good blues storytellers, Doug MacLeod sings and speaks the truth. Indeed, the blues as a medium of truth-telling appears throughout his latest release, Break the Chain.”
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the 17th according to the All Music Guide
“Doug MacLeod’s new album — the 17th according to the All Music Guide — has at times…that spatial sound of desert nights in the far Out-Beyond. It’s a world where MacLeod’s array of National Reso-Phonic guitars produce a feeling so haunting you can almost hear the air move. …” Blues Music Magazine
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Album of 2017
Album of 2017
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Top 50 releases of 2017
Top 50 releases of 2017
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BREAK THE CHAIN , DOUG MACLEOD
5 stars Downbeat Magazine
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BREAK THE CHAIN , DOUG MACLEOD
4/5 music 5/5 sound
