the week of August 31, 2002, just two years after Bonamassa's debut album A New Day Yesterday had debuted at number 9. The album was Bonamassa's first to top the chart when it reached number 1 later, during run spanning a total of 30 weeks. Critical Media response to So, It's Like That was mixed. Guitar World magazine awarded the album four out of five stars, with writer Ted Drozdowski describing it as "breathless" and praising Bonamassa's "strong musical personality" and vocal and guitar performances on the album. Billboard magazine's Chuck Taylor praised the album for its range of musical styles, including "down and dirty ... Southern rock paeans" such as "Lie #1" and "Sick in Love", and "melodic triumphs" such as "My Mistake" and "Unbroken". Taylor highlighted Bonamassa's "grimacing lead guitar" and "gruff vocals" throughout the release, concluding that "This is no regular Joe." Miami New Times writer Shawn Bean praised the album's optimistic take on the blues as being "closer to daybreak than midnight in its shade of blue". AllMusic's Jesse Jarnow was less positive, damning Bonamassa's songwriting and claiming that the album is "filled with subpar tunes bloated with clichés". Jarnow also criticised the performance of Bonamassa's backing band members, which he dubbed "far too generic", and claimed that "Pain and Sorrow" is "the only thing that clearly separates Bonamassa from generic boorishness". Reviewing the album for The Austin Chronicle, Maragaret Moser was also critical of So, It's Like That, describing many of its songs as "solid but undistinguished", although praised Bonamassa as "a more than adept multi-instrumentalist" and offered him "extra credit for the heartfelt effort". Track listing Personnel Chart positions References External links 2002 albums Joe Bonamassa albums