Break The Chain Wins Blues Music Award!
Doug MacLeod’s Break The Chain recording won the 2018 Blues Music Awards Acoustic Album of the Year!

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 has twelve new MacLeod songs. Each 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. This premium 2LP set is sure to thrill all vinyl loving audiophiles and blues fans!

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.

For 41 years, REFERENCE RECORDINGS has been one of the most innovative and respected independent labels in the music business. RR releases have been highly praised for their dedication to high quality sound in the service of great music. Founder Tam Henderson was joined in 1978 by engineer Keith O. Johnson, and some 145 projects later, RR is still recording what many consider to be the finest sounding classical, jazz and blues discs in the world.

“Doug MacLeod, a craftsman of rare skill and sagacity, shares more than a few dramatic affinities with past greats as he offers his own creative parameters to the common 12-bar language. … distinctive, well-regulated singing and note-bending on classic guitars stimulate the keening hopefulness… [performed] with five assured sidemen, including his son Jesse on guitar. One topical spoken track, ‘What the Blues Means To Me,’ affirms life’s light amid the darkness.” – Downbeat Magazine

“Recorded over a four-day period in October 2016, MacLeod and co-producer Janice Mancuso eschewed the type of post-production work that erases errors and sweetens the mix. The producers even banned overdubs. Break the Chain, MacLeod asserts, reflects ‘music made by humans for humans’. The music is as truthful as it is beautiful and sublime.” – Stephen A. King, Living Blues

“…an album of great music with great sound.” – Jason Kennedy, HiFi+, Music 9/10, Sound 10/10

“Vintage LPs, eg, Muddy Waters’ Folk Singer, have been audiophile totems for decades, but rare are new titles. MacLeod’s third for Reference ticks all the boxes: higher-speed playback, 180g vinyl and half-speed mastering. It is, as ever, a lesson in the genre; like Messrs Mo’, Bibb, Mahal and Cooder, MacLeod’s approach to the blues is almost academic, but the set is amply electric rather than primarily acoustic. The benefit, in the context of HFN, is sound that’s massive, visceral and weighty. The content? As earthy as it gets, but at times, seriously rocking. The atmosphere throughout? As open as I’ve ever heard. Check out the title track on YouTube and your next move will be to order this!” – Ken Kessler, HiFi News, Sound Quality: 95%

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