JazzTimes (p.92) - "King makes his guitar gently weep on the minor-key dirge 'St. James Infirmary,' and he strikes a poignant note on 'When Magnolias Bloom'..."

Living Blues (p.38) - ""[T]he steely spirit of survival, as well as the hard-eyed anger at injustice, that underlies every note and every word here imbues this disc with what can only be called a deep blues sensibility."

No Depression (p.121) - "RISE tells the tale of outrage, fear, sorrow, cynicism, and hope for the future of the home Chris Thomas King lost."