"...His songs casually flow off the guitar bearing the mark of the blues, country, and rock, assimilating with ease disparate influences that include Jimi Hendrix, Ry Cooder, and Duane Allman."

"...Now on his fifth Black Hen solo record, this sideman, producer, record label owner and gifted multi-instrumentalist has so adeptly woven the threads of multiple musical interests into his records that they sound like addendums to his productions for other people."

"...Steve Dawson comes to the table with seasoned professionalism that can’t be bought with pocket change."

"Nightshade is the kind of album that seems to transcend just simply comparing it to a bunch of different genres. To be sure, it got the blues on it, but there is so much more to this album, which makes it uniquely Steve Dawson's and uniquely very very good."

"From gutbucket blues to free-form instrumentals, Steve catapults the listener thru a maze of brooding, deep characters that will stick with you long after you listen."

"Nightshade is yet another resounding success from this incredibly prolific producer/writer/arranger/singer/songwriter. Dawson's vocals have never sounded better..."

"One thing about Steve Dawson is that he is a Jack of all trades, and a master of all! Dawson has worked as a musician, mixer, and producer for many artists, including the likes of Oh My Darling, Jim Byrnes, The Sojourners, Old Man Luedecke, The Mississippi Sheiks Tribute Project, The Deep Dark Woods, and many many more."

"Whether he’s fretting gritty solos, playing burning bottleneck blues, laying down wicked Weissenborn licks, or soaring on pedal steel, his timing, tone, and dynamics are impeccable."

"Canadian blues-roots veteran Steve Dawson has wrapped work on his fifth solo album Nightshade..."

"Tracking himself in layers, Steve weaves a sometimes-haunting sometimes-vivacious always-expert three-dimensional matrix pregnant with rural sophistications that are often deceptive despite any number of fascinations."