by Ann WickstromAlthough not released until 1995, this CD was recorded live in 1993 in Bremen, Germany. Live in Europe is Earl's tribute to his major influences, and Ronnie plays his favorite guitar throughout: a 1962 red Strat. The fast, driving San-Ho-Zay and Blues for the West Side go out to Magic Sam; The Stumble to Freddie King; Thank You Mr. T-Bone to T-Bone Walker and Duke Robillard (who inspired Earl to learn T-Bone). Thank You Mr. T-Bone features some cool call-and-response between Earl and Bruce Katz on the Hammond B-3. It segues nicely into Akos, where you'll find more great B-3 (check out the improvised Summertime riff). An all-instrumental offering, Live in Europe includes a handful of tunes found on its predecessor, Still River, including Szeren, Rego Park Blues, and the aforementioned Blues for the West Side. Contrition, a slow, soulful tune penned by Katz, has some jaw-dropping runs by Earl. One can only imagine what it must have been like to be one of the lucky souls at this show. The only fault to be found on this album is the mislabeling of several tunes on the cover. (For example, The Stumble is listed as Not Now Kovitch.) Still, it's this reviewer's all-time favorite album -- thank you, Mr. Earl.