In one word : Underestimated!
12/01/1998
(4 out of 5 stars)
"In two words : Strangely underestimated. I can not for the life of me understand why Izzy Stradlin doesn't receive the acclaim that his two great solo albums really deserve. Sure, Izzy Stradlin can't sing, but neither can half of the current "alternative rock" and "britpop" idols. Isn't being a bad singer sort of "in"? And as far as his song writing skills go, this is still the same guy who wrote or co-wrote "Don't Cry" and several other Guns n' Roses hits. This is a hard rocking album with a fun cover of Chuch Berry's sentimental "Memphis, Tennessee" and some really good self-penned stuff, such as the title track, "Here Before You" and the melodic "Bleedin'". Okay, four stars might be a little generous, but three just didn't seem enough, 'cause Izzy was always the best of the lot when he was with G n'R, and he hasn't lost his skills."
Buy It
09/14/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This album will appeal to anyone who likes the Rolling Stones, Guns n' Roses' more relaxed moments, or any turn-of-the-90's rock n' roll. Just because Geffen couldn't be bothered to promote it, doesn't mean it's no good."
Tough, straight-ahead rock n' roll
Docendo Discimus | Vita scholae | 11/29/2003
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Former Guns n' Roses guitarist Izzy Stradlin's second album isn't quite as sublime as his magnificent solo debut, "Izzy Stradlin And The Juju Hounds", but "117°" is still a really good, solid rock record.
It is a little bit more punk-like than its predecessor, and the songwriting is not quite as consistent. But Stradlin's love for the music of Chuck Berry, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood is still very much apparent, and his musical partnership with former Georgia Satellites-guitarist Rick Richards makes for some great guitar playing.
Also, former Guns n' Roses bassist Michael "Duff" McKagan plays on almost all these songs, laying down a very prominent and completely unmistakable, metallic-sounding bass line on the great, shuffling rocker "Here Before You". He even takes a solo - the only one I can remember him ever recording.
Not many 90s rockers were even trying for this kind of unassuming, straight-ahead hard rock, and it's doubtful whether any of them matched Izzy Stradlin, even on their best day.
His songwriting has its down moments, but when he hits the bullseye, like on the slide guitar-driven acoustic blues-rock of "Bleedin", the hard rocker "Ain't That A Bitch", and the mid-tempo shuffle "Good Enough", Stradlin comes off as a better songwriter than all the pretentious, nihilistic grunge-rockers who got most of the accolades about this time in the mid-nineties.
"117°" is a suberbly arranged, delightfully raw and somewhat sloppy hard rock record, moving effortlessly between bluesy, acoustic folk-rock ("Gotta Say"), classic guitar-driven rock n' roll ("117°") and hard rock with a punk twist ("Freight Train").
It's not Guns n' Roses (unless by Guns n' Roses you mean "Dust n' Bones" and "You Ain't The First"), but it's good ol' fashioned rock n' roll. And that's even better."
Track Listings (16) - Disc #1