Dann Huff | When Words Aren’t Enough | Album Review 

Dann Huff has a new album out, and believe it or not, it’s the very first solo project for the 65-year-old juggernaut guitarist.  Huff’s collaborations over the last few decades reads like a “Who’s Who?” of Rock and Roll and Country Music Hall of Famers.  He has played with the likes of Juice Newton, Whitesnake, Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, Whitney Houston, Madonna and Michael Jackson to name a very very few.  I could write 1,000 words just listing all the incredible artists that Dann has sat in with over the years.  It’s amazing that this is his first record, but then again, he was kinda busy for the last forty years.   

Dan started as a studio musician as a teenager, and it all took off from there. Now, Dann has time to reflect.  He has five grandsons and it’s time to leave a legacy of his own work. “That was the carrot”, he told Zak Kuhn on his podcast The Zak Kuhn Show.  He also needed to scratch that itch of putting together a collection of songs that he says he probably should’ve done a while ago. “I’ve been encouraged, for I’d say decades,” he continued.  

When Words Aren’t Enough is the project that has just dropped on Baked Alaska Records in Dann’s hometown of Nashville, Tennessee and it is a phenomenal piece of art that transcends the musical journey that Huff has been navigating.  He has played so many different genres over the years and they are all on display in ten tracks.  I told someone who was not familiar with Dann’s work that I was going to be reviewing his album, and they asked, “What kind of music does he play?” and I answered, “All of it.”  From the early formation of a Christian Rock band call White Heart -to his days with the Melodic-Rock ensemble Giant, he has gleamed the cube of musicality.  

I must imagine that putting together a record of this magnitude would be daunting.  That is, to say what you want to say in one short playlist, oh, and it’s all instrumental.  I am not a guitar player or a musician of any sort, but I do understand the complexities of music to a degree.  I can hear the storytelling and grasp the imagery of the bard. I can close my eyes and be swept away sonically, as easily as the next and I know what I like.  I really like this record. 

Dann Huff is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to his instrument.  On this disc you will find jazz, rock, blues, country and anything and everything in between played mainly on his 1964 Stratocaster. He is to this day a student, a professor and a master in the industry.  His constant ability to watch and adapt, as well as create, have allowed him to be at the pinnacle of his game throughout his illustrious career.  Without using any lyrics, Dann has formulated a way to surmise his feelings of joy, love and struggle into singularity that satiates our wants as listeners. When Words Aren’t Enough could not be more aptly named.  I have a hard enough time telling people how I feel with my words (despite being a “writer”), but to do it through riffs, melodies and tonality is the mark of a savant.  

The album starts off with a song titled, ‘Colorado Creepin’’ and the sound has already penetrated my soul with the first lick. It’s bluesy from the jump and I get this Terry Kath (Chicago) style vibe bouncing in my head. There is a deep-rooted twang that arcs throughout the track, and it puts me in a state of gratitude and surrender.  It’s good place that I don’t visit enough.  I can see a rainbow filtered highway as I give myself to the song.  I can cognitively feel Dann’s passion and although there are no vocals, the message is being relayed.  The entirety of this record is such.  Huff wants to frame the vastness of his career and open the doors into a treasure trove of everything that he has collected. To do a mere concept album that is strictly linear would put tremendous constraints on the monumental nature of all that he has in his pockets, so the album moves and breathes like the twists and turns of life. He has changed, so his playing style shifts too. 

Track two is a five-minute ditty called ‘Waiting On A Whisper’ that slows in tempo after the first.  It is grittier and more reflective, and Dann’s grooves extend far down to create a cathedral of wonderment. It winds into a pattern of discovery and acceptance that I am exactly where I should be and hopefully its creator is there too.  It’s hard to believe that this sound is coming from the same man that once produced Megadeth.  But that is the story of our hero, Dan Huff, in the simplest of forms – he can encapsulate all of it- twist it up – and give you brand new work. 

While I will not go through every single track, I do want to speak on song five from side A, ‘Runaway Gypsy’.  A jazzy intro with an up-tempo drum fill spikes into a flaring riff that showcases a vibrant skillset from Huff.  I am enamored by the propensity of his feverish playing that also includes cosmic control and streamline vision. Here’s the best thing I can say about the frontside of Huff’s debut work – I was so enthralled by the music that I missed two exits listening to the CD in my car.  His music can truly deliver you to another place. 

Dann is a giant in his field, and I mean that quite literally. In 1987, alongside his brother David, they formed a group called Giant, who received commercial success with the song “I’ll See You In My Dreams”.  However, the group broke up in 1990 and often cite bands like Pearl Jam and Nirvana for shifting the paradigm of the landscape and ending the run for bands like theirs. So, in the early 90’s, Dann went back to session work and jammed with just about every southern A-lister he could find and a ton of rock n’ rollers as well.  Then he began his producing career, however, he never stopped shredding and thinking about putting together a solo record. Which brings us to side two. 

‘Slow Dance to Goodbye’ is infectious and draws us into somewhere, possibly forgotten.  I can’t help but think that it is heartache that pushes this song along. The bluesy nature of this piece really is quite beautiful and features Paul Franklin on steel guitar. The two blend a storyline that is remarkably engaging.  This song is empathic and offers me therapy and a feeling that I am not alone in this world. Then there is a change on the following song, ‘Indefatigable Strut’ that brightly pops off the heels of the former.  More buoyant and targeted towards the light, it is the perfect follow up.  The two tracks are both the sun and the moon, and it showcases Huff’s ability to tell both sides of the story with just his fingertips.   

‘When Words Aren’t Enough’ is the title sonata and the words “For Sherri” are scribed next to the tenth song on the backside of the jacket. Inside there is script that reads, “To my dearest Sherri, this is where “When Words Aren’t Enough” really applies. It’s almost impossible to communicate with mere words the depth of our shared life of 40 plus years. I’ve loved you since you were 13…and because of you, music, colors, nature, experience and meaning were all more vibrant.  Thank you for loving me.” 

You can hear all these feelings with every string that Dan Huff plucks.  He takes raw emotion and thought that we generally internalize and creates patterns that say so much.  The album is constructed incredibly well, and you can sense the years it took to make. This is a lifetime etched in wax, and it must feel so good to have a tangible item amongst an already fantastic discography. Thank you, Mr. Huff, for all you have given this world.  Your art will live on forever. 

Track Listing:

Track #	Track Title	Duration
1	Colorado Creepin	4:34
2	Waiting On A Whisper	5:00
3	Dixie Jive	4:20
4	Southern Synchronicity feat. Stuart Duncan	5:01
5	Runaway Gypsy	5:19
6	Slow Dance To Goodbye feat. Paul Franklin	5:41
7	Indefatigable Strut	4:16
8	Giant Free Fall	3:54
9	It All Belongs	3:05
10	When Words Aren’t Enough (for Sherri)	4:46

Credits:

Guitar: Dann Huff
Drums: Jerry Roe
Bass: Mark Hill
Keyboards: Gordon Mote
Percussion: Eric Darken
Steel Guitar on Slow Dance to Goodbye: Paul Franklin
Fiddle on Southern Synchronicity: Stuart Duncan
String Arrangements on Waiting on a Whisper & Runaway Gypsy Train: Kristin Wilkinson
Copyist: Sammy Sanfilippo
Violin: David Angell, David Davidson, Alicia Enstrom, Annaliese Kowert
Viola: Kristin Wilkinson, Betsy Lamb
Cello: Austin Hoke, Alex Krew

All songs written and produced by Dann Huff
Recorded & mixed by Justin Niebank
Assistant engineering & string recording by Michael Walter
Second assistant engineering by Jordan Reed
Recorded at The Castle Studio, Franklin, Tennessee
Mastering by Adam Ayan at Ayan Mastering, Portland, Maine
Photography by Nathan Chapman — yes, the producer/musician
Art direction by Ashlyne Blue — formerly Ashlyne Huff

Album Release Date: May 30th, 2025

Buy The Record Here