Blackberry Smoke

You Hear Georgia 3 LEGGED

Atlanta rockers blend rhinestones and rock’n’soul with reliable skill.

There was always a danger for a band like Blackberry Smoke that they would end up too country for rock fans and too rock for the country massive. But after six studio albums, including two No.1s on the US country chart, they seem to have perfected a winning balancing act between their two chief influences.

Readers of Classic Rock are always going to prefer it when the bottom end has some heft, though, and Live It Down, the opening track on You Hear Georgia, is one of the finest rockers Blackberry Smoke have recorded to date. A lean, funky central riff and a muscular rhythm section drive behind it set us off nicely, before Stonesy gospel backing vocals boost an anthemic, party-tonight, sleep-tomorrow chorus, laced with tumbling piano and interspersed with gnarly vintage organ breaks and sleazy guitar squalls.

Another up-tempo highlight is . Given the title, it’s no surprise that it’s a classic high-octane stomper designed to soundtrack an ill-advised, full-throttle