Even if it saves your life, having your leg amputated must be a right bitch. It's been two years since Mountain guitarist Leslie West suffered that fate and he's responded in typically courageous fashion, channelling his horrendous experience into a mammoth hard rock album crammed with special guests, ferocious fretwork and an unflinching dissection of mortality.
Recorded prior to that operation, West's last solo album - 2011's 'Unusual Suspects' – was a sterling effort, bolstered by sizzling contributions from Slash, Billy Gibbons and Zakk Wylde. 'Still Climbing' continues that trend, with appearances from guitar god of the moment Mark Tremonti, blues-soul merchant Jonny Lang and fellow war horse Johnny Winter.
Repeating successful formulas can be a mistake. Carlos Santana's subsequent attempts to ape his guest heavy 'Supernatural' album delivered increasingly watered down results, but 'Still Climbing' betters its predecessor with a stronger, more varied set of songs whose fiery emotional charge is a result of West being in a state of mental and physical recovery while recording them.
A furious survival spirit detonates through the air as opener I've Been Dying pummels the eardrums with a riff Slash has described as being “about as heavy as you can get”. Accompanied by explosive shredding from Tremonti, West's barbecued vocals unleash a grizzled ode to fighting life's constant struggles.
Before you can draw breath, Busted, Disgusted Or Dead snarls out of the speakers, oozing Delta inflected muddy grooves as Winters and West intertwine devilish slide solos with a slithering, laid back cool. Feisty blues-rockers aside, West also expels some demons on acoustic number Tales Of Woe. It's sung with a refreshing honesty that transcends the veneer of faux positivity that so many adopt in the face of crisis. When he growls “you say I'm the lucky one, but you never walk a mile in my shoe”, his candour and black humour really strike a nerve.
Far from being downbeat, West's ambivalent emotional state comes to light on a cover of Feeling Good. Where other versions highlight the song's brooding qualities, West provides the most life affirming version you'll ever hear. With guest vocals from Twisted Sister's Dee Snider, its celebratory feel shows that in spite of his recent trauma, he's thankful to be alive.
Mountain's Long Red is also reworked with similarly sparkling results. The original's acoustic, slightly psychedelic sparseness is given a big, gleaming makeover that sounds like the rhythmic bounce of LynyrdSkynyrd's Sweet Home Alabama flirting with the tasty intro to Guns N' Roses' Paradise City.
The album's lyrics were co-written by West's wife Jenni, who made the difficult decision to amputate her husband's leg while he lay in a coma. That shared bond fuels much of 'Still Climbing', from the sublime Fade Into You – whose low key beginning swells to a stirring storm of beautiful orchestration, impassioned vocals and divine soloing – to a rousing cover of Percy Sledge's When A Man Love A Woman, featuring soulful co-crooning from Lang. This is clearly West's thank you to her, and the pair of guitar heroes brew up a romantic cocktail of heartfelt vocals and sweet soloing that just about raises the song above sickly cliché.
West's guitar work is typically brilliant throughout, with his playing eliciting its usual yin-yang feel. The darkness is provided by his thunderous riffs that cut, scald and strut on the likes of Don't Ever Let Me Go and Hatfield Or Mccoy. Then, he unleashes waves of the most beautiful soloing known to man, with his succulent tone making it feel like the heavens have opened and angels are singing to you. The title 'Still Climbing' references Mountain's debut album as West feels he's continually improving as a musician. It's apt, as this brilliant record is as potent and powerful as anything from his exalted past.
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