Reviewed by Bob Gottlieb.
Edited by David N. Pyles

Frank Carillo saw Duane Eddy on American Bandstand and knew right then that being a guitar player was what he wanted to do. He has taken the path that was laid out for him playing on albums by the likes of Peter Frampton, John Hammond Jr., and French star Johnny Hallyday. He has written songs with or for Carly Simon, Ricky Byrd and Joan Jett, and done albums with his rock band Doc Holiday, and a couple of solo outings on Atlantic. This is his first true solo project without record company executives looking at his every move; he wrote 12 or the 14 songs and the other 2 he co-wrote with long time collaborators Ricky Byrd, Glen Levie, and Mark Lacob, and he co-produced the disc.

This is a songwriter that also happens to be a class guitar player. His music is of the type that tells stories and he touches on that whole roots, blues, rock, folk, folk-rock type of classification. His talent is as a storyteller who tells his stories with the musical accompaniment of a band. His voice has the raspiness of sandpaper, but not in a way that sounds forced or strained, just a naturally gritty set of pipes to sing the stories he wants to share with us. His guitar playing, whether it is electric, acoustic or slide, is right there and he doesn't over play and clutter-up the landscape with extraneous notes. The band is tight and gives the impression that it is happy to be right where it is, playing its heart out. "Red Queen" sure sounds like a hit waiting to happen.

Not a disc to miss, it is solid and shows the years and experiences have been well used.