''A Piece of Your Soul'' is the second album by the American blues rock band Storyville, released in 1996. It was chosen as the album of the year at the

Austin Music Awards Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

. The album peaked at No. 5 on ''Billboards Blues Albums chart; it remained on the chart for more than half a year. Its first single was "Good Day for the Blues", which was a radio hit. Storyville promoted the album by opening for the

Allman Brothers Band Allman may refer to: Music *The Allman Brothers Band, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame southern rock band, formed by Duane and Gregg Allman *The Allman Joys, an early band formed by Duane and Gregg Allman *The Gregg Allman Band People *Allman (surnam ...

on some West Coast tour dates.

Production

The album was produced by

David Z David Z may refer to: * David Z (producer) * ''David Z.'' or ''David Z. Norton'', a sister ship of the ''Robert S. Pierson'' {{disambiguation ...

. All five bandmembers contributed to the songwriting; fellow Austin musicians, including

Doyle Bramhall II Doyle Bramhall II (born December 24, 1968) is an American guitarist, producer and songwriter best known for his work with Eric Clapton and Roger Waters. He is the son of the songwriter and drummer Doyle Bramhall. Early life Bramhall was born i ...

, helped as well.

Reese Wynans Reese Wynans (born November 28, 1947) is an American keyboard player, who has done session work and has been a member of Double Trouble and progressive rock band Captain Beyond. In 2015, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a m ...

played organ on ''A Piece of Your Soul''. Compared to the debut, frontman

Malford Milligan Malford Milligan (born March 29, 1959) is an American singer. He sings soul, blues and gospel songs and also writes music. He has won 8 Austin Music Awards for Best Vocalist. Career Storyville In 1994 Milligan became the singer for Storyville ...

's work on the album was influenced more by

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became ...

than by the blues.

Critical reception

The ''

St. Louis Post-Dispatch The ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' is a major regional newspaper based in St. Louis, Missouri, serving the St. Louis metropolitan area. It is the largest daily newspaper in the metropolitan area by circulation, surpassing the ''Belleville News-De ...

'' called the album "a broad and colorful pallet of soulful laments ('Don't Make Me Cry'), hard-driving rockers ('Bitter Rain'), and bluesy ballads ('Blind Side')." ''

The Indianapolis Star ''The Indianapolis Star'' (also known as ''IndyStar'') is a morning daily newspaper that began publishing on June 6, 1903, in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It has been the only major daily paper in the city since 1999, when the '' Indiana ...

'' wrote: "A little blues, a little country, a little R&B, a little gospel ... Storyville handles all the elements masterfully." The ''

Sun Sentinel The ''Sun Sentinel'' (also known as the ''South Florida Sun Sentinel'', known until 2008 as the ''Sun-Sentinel'', and stylized on its masthead as ''SunSentinel'') is the main daily newspaper of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, as well as surrounding B ...

'' labeled "Don't Make Me Cry" "a slow burn of desert rat guitar and lazy back-beat drums." ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by T ...

'' determined that the album's best songs "use the blues vocabulary to express some decidedly non-traditional ideas." The '' Austin American-Statesman'' concluded that "though ''A Piece of Your Soul'' doesn't hold up well to critical analysis, with such well-worn titles as 'Solid Ground', 'Blind Side' and 'Luck Runs Out' providing a road map to the commonplace, there's no denying how good it sounds."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

deemed it "a gritty Texas blues record, but it's delivered with enough rock & roll savvy to crossover into the mainstream."

Track listing

References

{{reflist 1996 albums Atlantic Records albums Blues rock albums by American artists