Tommy Malone, former member of the subdudes and Tiny Town and favorite subject of attention on the OffBeat message board, delivers the goods with his first solo recording.

While Soul Heavy is not much of a stylistic departure for Malone it does amply justify why he has developed such a devoted cult following. Soul Heavy is full of Malone’s trademarks; impressive cliché-free guitar work and wonderfully smoky vocals.

The major weakness of the recording is in its song sequencing and pace. The first five songs, while far from losers, are more challenging and not unrewarding. The best of the bunch is “Somebody Got Caught,” a tale of jealousy and murder featuring a blazing guitar solo ending in a lonesome train whistle.

The second half of the recording features some of the very best work that Malone has ever done beginning with “Hold On,” a soulful funky uptempo track featuring outstanding vocal work that falls somewhere between Steve Winwood and Curtis Mayfield. “Mothers” slows things down and delivers an emotional wallop with perfectly combined lead and backing vocals. “Real” shows off Malone’s slinky rhythm guitar to great affect with unexpected flourishes and chord changes and a wonderful solo that fades to the end. “Oh Baby” is a satisfying old-fashioned blues rocker with changes reminiscent of such chestnuts as “Ain’t Superstitious” and “It’s All Over Now.”

The entire CD was beautifully engineered by Jane Clark and features outstanding drum work by the heretofore unknown Nicole Falzone. While there is little new here that will likely appeal to a mass audience of new listeners, Tommy Malone fans should find much to love with Soul Heavy.