Roots trio Jeffrey Halford & The Healers have been making the rounds on the club circuit for more than 30 years, treating their audience with bluesy swagger and heartfelt Americana. Main man Jeffrey Halford is never afraid to point out his flaws and making fun of them, like the cool uncle who will pick a guitar and tell a story that will make you laugh, cry or think (sometimes within the space of the same song). The new album Used Parts deals with ageing as well as promise to himself to make some changes - well, not giving up being a guitar man and setting stages on fire, because he can't and doesn't want to get away from that.
Matters of the mind and the heart are for scrambling for getting the upper hand, but in turns out that he does not have to commit, as long as he manages tor retain a careful balance. It all comes together in the superb soulful Chasing Forgiveness ("sunrise is no friend of mine, for promises it can't keep, it's way too late for warning signs"). Smart move to include the stand-alone single Mississippi Flyer, a Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings' cover, as well, as it fits the mood of the album perfectly. Jeffrey Halford & The Healers are road rats, who thrive on stage. They won't bring Halford's son and daughter with them, but their parts on the album are proof that they have inherited his genes and are putting them to good use.
