Music that introduces “alternative country” to “contemporary blues".

Singer/songwriter/guitarist Clay McClinton’s musical sound is woven together with rawhide and hemp, barbwire and willow reed. It’s that eclectic sound born in Texas where honky tonk, Delta blues and soulful rock meld seamlessly. Clay’s music introduces “alternative country” to “contemporary blues,” and the two genres become fast friends.
His new CD, Son of a Gun, boasts plenty of gutsy, gritty lyrics laid on a strong musical bed. “The Man I Wanna Be,” is an inward-looking, country conversational tune with a haunting melody. Clay moves from there to the Texas romp of “Worn Down To The Bone,” and the two-stepping lost-love tune, “Missing You,” which is one of two songs on the album that he co-wrote with his dad, Delbert McClinton. Delbert provides backup vocals on “Missing You” and also co-wrote “Howlin’ at the Moon.”
Like his debut CD, Out of the Blue, this project is mostly self-produced, with Delbert’s keyboard player, Kevin McKendree, adding his ear to some of the cuts. “A Thing For You” was actually written in the studio with Kevin and Delbert when Clay brought in the musical base without lyrics. The only song Clay didn’t write is “Listenin’ to the Rain.”
One of the differences between his first CD and Son of a Gun is that Clay used mostly studio musicians for Out of the Blue. Now he has his own road band, and many of the cuts feature those musicians. His piano player, Andrew Bett, not only plays on most of the cuts, he also co-wrote “The Man I Wanna Be.” Clay’s drummer, Jim Evans, provides drums and percussion to all the cuts.

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