We Walk This Road

Hooking up with the jam-band scene may have been the worst thing Robert Randolph could have done. Though amazing live, he has never recorded a great album — until now. Randolph puts overcooked funk on the back burner and offers up his specialty: pure gospel spiced with steel guitar. Producer T Bone Burnett works subtly, using old samples of standards like "Traveling Shoes" as segues into Randolph's songs, and Randolph finds the sweet, soulful spot covering tunes by three rock legends: Bob Dylan ("Shot of Love"), Prince ("Walk Don't Walk") and John Lennon ("I Don't Wanna Be a Soldier Mama").