Ricky Warwick returns with his eighth solo album, Blood Ties, and it is the most personal album that Ricky has ever released. Oh, it rocks like a hurricane as well.
Ricky Warwick – Blood Ties
Release Date: 14 March 2025
Words: Robert Adams
Music has always been the driving force in Ricky Warwick’s life. After being given his first guitar at fourteen, he has never looked back. His career has been varied and plentiful – Touring guitarist with New Model Army, The Almighty, sic, solo, Thin Lizzy and Black Star Riders.
“I mined a deep seam to make this record,” Warwick said about Blood Ties. “It’s in the darkest, most uncharted of places where the real energy is to be found. There comes a time in everyone’s life when the game is afoot, and the decision is taken to facedown and exorcise personal demons.
“This album has finally given me the opportunity. The time is now. Repression isn’t good for the soul, and in making Blood Ties, I got to sail the ship around, to face into the sun and to the future, with the guitars turned up way beyond driven. It has been uplifting and life-affirming.”
Blood Ties is not just a fantastic rock album. It is also a musical autobiography. It takes a brave man to lay his soul bare in the way that Ricky Warwick has done here. Teaming up with ex-Buckcherry guitarist Keith Nelson once more, Ricky has delivered a pedal-to-the-metal rock album of incredible quality.
Angel Of Desolation sets us up for what is to come – deeply personal lyrics coupled with classic rock riffs. There are no ballads to be found in Blood Ties. Instead, we are given a rich musical tour with shades of classic bands.
Rise And Grind features Blackberry Smoke’s Charlie Starr ripping a glorious guitar solo and namedrops Wigan Casino. It’s a thing of sheer beauty. Lita Ford joins Ricky for a tale of love lost in Don’t Leave Me In The Dark. This is the slowest song on the album, but it still motors along.
There is more than a subtle Thin Lizzy reference in The Crickets Stayed In Clovis. If this was played at a Thin Lizzy gig, no one would notice the difference. Yes, it’s that good.
Don’t Sell Your Soul To Fall In Love does exactly what it says on the tin. It is a cautionary tale and one that Ricky knows only too well. There is a proper Scottish-spoken introduction to Dead And Gone, introducing us to Ginger Jesus. I asked Ricky who Ginger Jesus was, and he is a real bloke. He is a drug dealer in Scotland. Dead And Gone tackles addiction and is brutally honest in its delivery.
The Cult’s Billy Duffy is soloing all the way through The Hell Of Me And You. Again, the lyrics are heart-breaking, but musically, it rocks.
Crocodile Tears is the perfect example of what Ricky Warwick does best. He has a very rare talent for writing songs that stick in your head. After the second play through this album, I found myself singing along like a lunatic.
Blood Ties is a stunning rock album married to deeply personal lyrics. It is the perfect package. I had the pleasure of reviewing Ricky’s last album, When Life Was Hard And Fast and thought it was amazing.
Blood Ties is better. I cannot give a higher recommendation than that.
Ricky Warwick – Blood Ties is released today via Earache Records and is available from here.
