Legendary Producer David Z, a Prince alumni who was behind albums by Jonny Lang and Kenny Wayne Shepherd, was brought on board to produce Tinsley Ellis’ Capricorn debut, Kingpin, but surprisingly the classic-rock squall Z provided for Lang and Shepherd isn’t evident. Truth be told, this is a fairly low-key affair that may be his purest blues to date, the occasional radio-ready gem like “Dying To Do Wrong” notwithstanding. Onstage, he may rip it up like a cross between Albert Collins and Lonnie Mack, but here he’s mellowing down easy, less the sound of a sawdust-filled barroom than a late-night lonesome drive, full of secrets (and maybe a body or two).

Z’s funk-pop pedigree helps put a lot of rhythmic snap into the subdued yet feral strut “Imagination,” and there’s a soulful elegance to “The Other Side Of Town” that has O.V. Wright all over it, but the real star remains Ellis’ guitar, complimenting the song rather than trying to choke it to death in revenge for what Ellis does to its neck. Thankfully, he’s not relying on note bending alone, because there’s a real feeling here that can only come from fighting the good fight in clubs throughout the South. It’s all about mood, friends, and Ellis can spray it like the smell of a cheap motel. If that means that more traditional barnstormers like “Days Of Old” suffer in the process, so be it, if we get sweet dark gifts like “Slingshots And Boomerangs,” which might be what Cab Calloway would have done if he’d come up listening to Santana. Wash your car with Jonny Lang on, if you feel the need; but when you’re driving out to the woods to bury that gun, play

this baby.