Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts

Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts blend rock, folk, country and blues to take listeners along on a soul-searching journey through the eyes of singer-songwriter Rick Wagner.  “Great stories about wisdom gained from hardscrabble living, similar to Ray Wylie Hubbard, Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt,” noted one early review of their 2020 self-titled debut album. Wagner’s honest, plainspoken lyrics come straight from the heart with a nod to Outlaw Country’s founders Willie, Waylon, Johnny and Kris, delivered in a warm, gravelly voice that American Songwriter says “hits with a cool sincerity that is a genuine rarity in the modern musical landscape.” Traditional country music themes like lonesomeness, heartache and, of course, drinking are pondered, but make no mistake -- this is by no means a traditional country act. 

“My background is in rock and roll, and I was always content to just lay back and play the bass.  I came to songwriting late.” say Wagner, who enjoyed success in the early part of his career as a bass player (among the artists he has played bass for are The dB’s, The Silos, Paul Collins, Swales, Emily Duff, The Cucumbers and Storytown).  “I had the good fortune of working with a lot of great songwriters, so eventually that rubbed off on me.”  That influence reveals itself on Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts debut as Wagner proves his craftsmanship and versatility on rockers like “Trouble” and “The Ghost That’s Chasing Me” while also being more reflective on “Proof,” “Longer Than A Country Mile” and “Lonesome Valley Blues.”

The more somber, cinematic tone of the 2022 follow up album Moment Of Truth propelled Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts to further recognition. Ethereal electric guitars lay the foundation for a hypnotic cover of “Most Of The Time,” a long lost Bob Dylan song from his 1989 album Oh Mercy.  Rolling Stone featured the track as a Song You Need To Know upon its release.  The haunting, brooding rendition of this Dylan gem sits nicely beside Wagner’s contemplative and tenderhearted originals like “The Rest Of My Days,” “Before I Stop Loving You,” and “Long Way To Go,” a blue-collar testament of perseverance with a shout-out to the great Texas singer-songwriter Ray Wylie Hubbard.  Positive reviews poured in from around the globe… “Understated, beautiful, melancholic songs that will send a chill down your spine” wrote Bluestown Music (Netherlands), while Americana UK proclaimed “Echoes of Dylan.”

The band's third album Let The Light Back In leans a bit more into gospel, landing somewhere between Johnny Cash and Nick Cave as Wagner continues his search to find truth in a song.  The result is an introspective collection of hard-hitting emotions ranging from escapism (“Lost In The Rye”) to disillusionment (“Ghosts On The Boulevard,” “Can’t Catch The Wind”) to redemption (“Let The Light Back In”) to profound love (“Ain’t Nothing Good About Goodbye”).  The album kicks off with a superb cover of Tom Petty’s “Room At The Top” which sets the tone and ties it all together.  While Petty himself once referred to it as “one of the most depressing songs in rock history,” Wagner found a different meaning and inspiration from the song.  “To me it’s about escaping to a peaceful place where you can forget about all your troubles and life's challenges. It’s about redemption and finding inner peace,” says Wagner.  Americana UK referred to the album as “classic, compelling songwriting that stirs the soul”

Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts are based in Maplewood, NJ and are led by singer-songwriter/ multi-instrumentalist/ producer Rick Wagner.  His journey from a tiny Pennsylvania coal town to Greenwich Village to the New Jersey suburbs has had more than a few ups and downs, but he has lived to tell the tale.  After playing countless gigs as a teen all over Northeastern PA, he headed to New York City in the early 1980’s, drawn by the bright lights and visceral sounds coming-out of CBGB, Max's Kansas City and the like.  Not long after his arrival he began playing bass with the influential alternative rock band The dB’s.  Landing a major label record deal with Bearsville (Warner), the band toured steadily sharing stages with the likes of REM, Alex Chilton and The Replacements while leading the forefront of an emerging college radio scene.  Over the next 40 years he continued to rack up touring and recording credits with bands including The Silos, Paul Collins, Swales, Emily Duff, The Cucumbers and Storytown, as well as playing in dozens of bar bands. His story of perseverance can perhaps best be summed up in the chorus of “59” from Luther Black and the Cold Hard Facts’ 2020 self-titled debut --  “I’ve been soaked by the rain/ been baked by the sun/ I’ve been cut and bruised, been royally screwed/ But my will can’t be undone/ I’ve travelled over mountains/ And I’ve crossed the seven seas/ It took 59 years getting here, and I ain’t about to leave.”