Cold as Ice

For John Lee Hooker, Jr., blues is in his blood. His father, John Lee Hooker, Sr., is dubbed a "legendary blues pioneer" on Hooker, Jr.'s MySpace page. On Hooker, Jr.'s album, Cold as Ice, the son also reminisces about his father, with the fifth track, called, "Do Daddy (Requiem for John Lee Hooker)." John Lee Hooker, Jr.'s lyrics on Cold as Ice deal with traditional blues subjects...sexual references, unhappy romances, negative feelings, etc....but he can also update those traditional topics. In the opening lyrics for "You Blew It Baby," for example, Hooker, Jr. says that he "got a text message late last night." That simple mention of getting a text message brings the blues song to the here and now and makes it seem more relevant to the 21st-century listener. Hooker, Jr.'s vocals are deep and sound well-matched for his genre. Overall, Cold as Ice is a good album that seems to epitomize the idea of blues music, yet is not exactly like all other blues albums.