Archive Review: R.L. Burnside’s Burnside On Burnside (2001)

Burnside On Burnside, recorded live at the Crystal Ballroom on, well, Burnside Street in Portland, Oregon, showcases a return to an earthier sound for Mississippi Hill Country bluesman R.L. Burnside. With a backing band that includes his twenty-two year old grandson Cedric and his longtime sidekick (and stepson), guitarist Kenny Brown, the 74-year old musician delivers a red-hot set of classic raw blues. 

Burnside’s bent-note style of guitar playing, inspired by mentor Mississippi Fred McDowell, is a classic example of traditional Mississippi Hill Country blues. When matched with Brown’s looping bottleneck slidework, and the younger Burnside’s steady rhythms, the guitar creates an almost hypnotic tapestry upon which the bluesman embroiders his powerful vocals. At home while on any stage, Burnside tells jokes, wanders across various musical pathways, and generally plays what he wants to play.

This is no slick Chicago-styled blues, or the work of some studio-bred Texas guitarslinger, nosirree - this is primal, no-frills, rockin-the-Casbah, honest-to-god jukejoint BLOOZE, delivered straight up, with no chaser. A gem among blues albums, Burnside On Burnside captures the music’s threatening ambiance and fiery essence like no other live album these ears have ever heard. (Fat Possum Records, released 2001)

Review originally published by Alt.Culture.Guide™ zine...

Also on That Devil Music: R.L. Burnside’s I Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down CD review

Archive Review: Ian Siegal & the Mississippi Mudbloods’ Candy Store Kid (2012)

British blues-rock veteran Ian Siegal has spent better than two decades pursuing his own unique vision of the blues, leaning heavily towards the rootsier side of the Mississippi-bred sounds of Howlin’ Wolf and Muddy Waters. Equally enamored of the raucous North Mississippi Hill Country style of bluesmen Junior Kimbrough and R.L. Burnside, Siegal mixed up all these disparate influences over the course of five albums to create a heady blues-brew that earned him induction into the British Blues Hall of Fame. 

In 2011, Ian Siegal traveled to Coldwater, Mississippi to record with Cody Dickinson of the North Mississippi Allstars at his Zebra Ranch studio. The resulting album, the Dickinson-produced The Skinny, was credited to Siegal and the Youngest Sons and included contributions from talents like guitarists Robert Kimbrough and Alvin Youngblood Hart and bassist Garry Burnside, among other familiar names. The album gained Siegal a newfound U.S. audience that had long-eluded him, as well as his first Blues Music Award nomination. Figuring that they could capture lightning in the bottle for a second time, Siegal returned to Mississippi to record Candy Store Kid, Dickinson again behind the board and Siegal’s backing band, the “Mississippi Mudbloods,” including Burnside and Hart as well as guitarist Luther Dickinson and other friends.  

Ian Siegal & the Mississippi Mudbloods’ Candy Store Kid

Although the bulk of Candy Store Kid is made up of Siegal originals, he opens the album with the delightful “Bayou Country,” an obscure but often-covered tune by former Elvis Presley bassist Duke Bardwell. A blue-eyed soul number with swamp-rock undertones, the song’s 1970s-era influence is dizzying, offering up delicious backing harmonies, Luther Dickinson’s hot git licks, Siegal’s period-perfect vocals, and an overall Southern rock vibe that reminds of Don Nix or Travis Wammack. Siegal travels a bit further south for the ramshackle blues-rock of “Loose Cannon,” the song’s greasy construct fueled by Hart’s knowing slingshot slide-guitar and Cody Dickinson’s muddy rhythms, the band creating a down ‘n’ dirty juke-joint blues with an infectious chorus and big-beat sound.

Siegal and the Mudbloods go with a country-funk sound for “I Am the Train,” a driving rhythm pounded out by Garry Burnside’s nimble bass lines and Dickinson’s lively drumbeats rumbling furiously as Hart’s electrifying fretwork slithers beneath Siegal’s lively but nuanced vocals. Lyrically, Siegal applies a metaphysical bent to a metaphorical tale as the slightly-twangy, blues-inflected music click-clacks in the background like the steel wheels of a runaway locomotive. A cover of friend Steve “Lightnin” Malcolm’s “So Much Trouble” is delivered with the subtlety of a drunken rhino bum-rushing a china shop but, to be honest, the song was pretty much written that way by the Two Man Wrecking Crew member. Luther Dickinson’s razor-edged fretting of the sitar (an unusual blues instrument, to be sure) helps create the song’s malevolent atmosphere. Siegal’s vocals are often lost beneath the claustrophobic instrumental soundtrack, with only the three-voice female gospel-styled backing harmonies bringing any sort of sunlight to the performance.   

Strong Woman

The Ian Siegal and Luther Dickinson-penned “Kingfish” is an inspired cross between Howlin’ Wolf and Mississippi Fred McDowell. Although Siegal adds a few spirited verses, the emphasis here is on spotlighting his ongoing mastery of the Hill Country six-string drone, resulting in an electric and entirely satisfying performance. The crew gets stone cold funky for a cover of the Little Richard obscurity “Green Power,” Hart adding his vocals alongside Siegal’s to great effect as Luther’s guitar shades some of the corners with candy-flake texture, but it’s definitely the rhythm section here of Hart (on the fat strings) and Cody Dickinson that fuels this funk-fest, the two providing a deep, wide groove that you could get lost in for years.    

Garry Burnside steps up with his hard-rocking original “Strong Woman,” his soulful vocals melding with Siegal’s gruffer voice for a simply explosive performance. The song displays a nimble rhythmic groove, peppered as it is by Burnside’s Hendrix-influenced guitar licks, supported by Luther Dickinson’s heavy bass lines. The gentler “Rodeo” offers a sharp contrast, the lyrically-introspective romantic ode offering up some of the most brilliant imagery Siegal has penned to date, his melancholy vocals providing a bittersweet emotional edge to the performance as a lush miasma of swirling instrumentation – led by Hart’s shimmering fretwork – blooms like a wildfire behind his voice. The deep-fried funk of “Hard Pressed (what da fuzz?)” closes out Candy Store Kid, Luther Dickinson’s buzzing fretwork slipping ‘n’ sliding beneath Siegal’s vocal gymnastics on a spry lil’ sucker that falls hard on the Southern rock side of the blues-rock equation.   

The Reverend’s Bottom Line

Ian Siegal has always been an above-average talent with a unique eye for the blues, but with Candy Store Kid and his previous album The Skinny, he seems to have discovered a new muse. By traveling to Mississippi and recording with members of the storied Dickinson and Burnside families (as well as the equally-talented Alvin Youngblood Hart), Siegal has created some of the most vital and entertaining music of his lengthy career. Going for more of a Memphis soul heartbeat than its Delta-dirty predecessor, Candy Store Kid is a career milestone and a heck of a lot of fun. (Nugene Records, released October 15, 2012)

Archive Review: The Nighthawks’ 444 (2013)

Veteran roots ‘n’ blues legends the Nighthawks follow up their 2012 release Damn Good Time with another strong entry in a catalog that’s been 40 years in the making and littered with dozens of great albums. As shown by opening track “Walk That Walk,” the recipe the band used in baking up 444 doesn’t vary much from previous albums – a dash of rockabilly, a teaspoon of twang, and ounces and ounces of pure blues flavoring. The song swings lively, with plenty o’ founding frontman Mark Wenner’s playful harp notes, a dancing groove courtesy of rhythm section Johnny Castle (bass) and Mark Stutso (drums) and scraps of Paul Bell’s electric fretwork.

There’s more to like on 444 than the infectious opening track, though. “Livin’ the Blues,” for instance, displays a brash Chicago style, the arrangement held down by a bold walking rhythm and Wenner’s icy, Little Walter influenced harpwork. The ostensible title track, “444 A.M.,” offers up a cool cats 1950s greaser vibe with Bell’s James Burton-styled chicken-pickin’ and Wenner’s sizzling harp. “Honky Tonk Queen” is the sort of engaging twangfest one used to hear in Nashville’s Printer’s Alley back in the 1960s while “Nothin’ But the Blues” is a smoldering juke-joint romp with Wenner’s gritty vocals, blasts of mournful harp, and subtle guitarplay. 

The band goes deep into the Delta with its cover of Muddy Waters’ “Louisiana Blues,” Wenner growling out the vocals above a lusty harp line, the band’s low-key accompaniment covering the song like kudzu. Like much of the Nighthawks’ underrated back catalog, 444 is authentic American music writ large, delivered the real goods with plenty of heart and soul. Grade: B+ (EllerSoul Records, released June 17th, 2014)

Archive Review: Pendragon’s The History: 1984-2000 (2006)

For over twenty years, British neo-prog stalwarts Pendragon have bucked commercial trends in favor of exploring the classically-minded, folk-influenced style originally forged by bands like Genesis, Strawbs, and Renaissance. Unlike contemporaries Marillion, Pendragon has never achieved a great amount of chart success in the U.K. but rather are revered by loyal audiences in countries like France and Poland. 

Neither band ever made much of a splash with American prog-rock aficionados, but in Pendragon’s defense, there hasn’t been a lot of their music made available to audiences on this side of the pond. Originally released exclusively in Poland and enjoying a brief U.S. release back in 2001, The History: 1984-2000 has been compiled from a half-dozen Pendragon albums and should whet the appetite of stateside proggers to seek out the band’s other excellent work as import discs.

Pendragon’s The History: 1984-2000

The History: 1984-2000 is a fine showcase of Pendragon’s chosen milieu. Although guitarist/frontman Nick Barrett and keyboard wizard Clive Nolan, along with bassist Peter Gee and drummer Fudge Smith, are all superb musicians, it is the band’s enormous musical chemistry that drives these songs. Although some jaded U.S. prog fans may find Pendragon’s unique sound to be less aggressive than they like, with less emphasis on technical virtuosity and more importance placed on the song, these four gifted artists are incredible musicians nonetheless. 

Pendragon reminds me a lot of early ‘70s Pink Floyd, with each song’s lyrics, structure and underlying soundtrack considered above mere instrumental interplay. As such, mesmerizing tunes like “Total Recall” or the eerie medieval “The Black Knight” represent a finely crafted combination of intelligent, imaginative lyrics and unpredictable musical composition.

Pendragon’s The History: 1984-2000 includes two haunting acoustic performances of songs from early albums, “The King of the Castle” and “Paintbox,” that were recorded exclusively for this volume. Stripped of electricity, the songs are redefined as soaring folk ballads with a pastoral edge. The album also includes an ultra-cool performance video of “The Last Waltz” culled from the band’s 1997 album and DVD Live At Last! that you can watch on the old computer. The History: 1984-2000 is an excellent introduction to the many charms of Pendragon, and hopefully the band will receive its overdue welcome from American audiences so that we can see more of their work reissued stateside. (Metal Mind/MVD Audio, released 2006) 

Archive Review: Well-Matched – The Best of Merl Saunders & Jerry Garcia (2006)

Lost amidst the mythos that continues to build around the Grateful Dead is a simple, undeniable fact – Jerry Garcia was a hell of a guitarist. Prone towards leading the Dead into extended onstage instrumental free-for-alls that would often redefine the sound of the song being played, Garcia is best remembered as the grandfather of the mid-‘90s “jam band” movement. However, Garcia was also a curious and intelligent guitarist, with an insatiable thirst for knowledge and the ability to assimilate and master any musical style thrown his way, from rock and blues to bluegrass and jazz.

Well-Matched – The Best of Merl Saunders & Jerry Garcia

Nowhere are Garcia’s talents as a musician and his drive to play on greater display than with Well-Matched - The Best of Merl Saunders & Jerry Garcia. When not on the road with his day job – pushing the Grateful Dead towards rock mythology with constant touring and live performances so damn enchanting that fans still talk about them today – for several years, Garcia would climb onstage with a smoking club band led by jazz pianist Merl Saunders. Saunders was a veteran of the West Coast jazz and blues circuit, playing with cats like Lionel Hampton, Miles Davis and Taj Mahal. Now you would think that after playing for months at a time on the road with the Dead that Jerry would want to kick back at home and forget the guitar for a while. But Garcia seemed to cherish working in a live environment with challenging musicians, and thus a friendship was forged with the equally talented Saunders.

Well-Matched draws its performances from the lone live album the unnamed Saunders/Garcia band released along with a number of Saunders’ studio albums where he and Garcia and a hand-picked coterie of musicians would recreate the chemistry of those live jams. Constant throughout these sessions were little-known but talented bassist John Kahn and drummer Bill Vitt, along with folks like David Grisman, Vassar Clements, Tom Fogerty, and even the Tower of Power horns. Make no mistake, though, ‘cause this is definitely the Merl and Jerry show, the two powerful musicians riffing off one another, creating an exciting fusion of jazz, blues, rock, and R&B that is breath-taking in its ambition and amazing in its execution.

The Reverend’s Bottom Line

Saunders, Garcia and pals were playing for the fun of it, and it shows in the loose, energetic performances provided tunes like the Doc Pomus chestnut “Lonely Avenue” or on their imaginative reading of Dylan’s “Positively 4th Street.” The Saunders’ original, “Merl’s Tune,” is an impressive instrumental work-out that showcases the player’s abilities while the Motown classic “I Second That Emotion” enjoys a loping groove and Garcia’s lofty vocals. A fine rendition of J.J. Cale’s “After Midnight” with guitarist Tom Fogerty of CCR is matched by an inspired, soulful cover of Jimmy Cliff’s reggae classic “The Harder They Come.” Well-Matched - The Best of Merl Saunders & Jerry Garcia shows the skills of both of these wonderful musicians in a different light, and should be a “must have” disc for any Grateful Dead fan, if only so they can fully appreciate Jerry Garcia’s range and incredible diversity. (Fantasy Records, released May 23rd, 2006)

Archive Review: Dave Cousins’ The Boy In The Sailor Suit (2007)

It’s been 35 years since Dave Cousins, singer and primary songwriter for British folk-rock legends the Strawbs, recorded a solo album. It’s not that he lacked anything to say – his band has released a dozen albums during that time. No, The Boy In the Sailor Suit is the father Cousins never knew, smiling down at him from a photograph, the album itself a reflection on the past and the fleeting nature of relationships. 

“The Smile You Left Behind” is a memoir of his parent’s courtship, a gentle musical background framing Cousins’ creaky vocals. “Skip To My Lou,” based on the familiar childhood song, is a tale of love lost, haunted by Ian Cutler’s enchanted fiddling and guitarist Miller Anderson’s imaginative leads. Cousins’ intricate wordplay is on display throughout, the album offering a balance of acoustic folk and electric rock, an appropriate soundtrack for this lyrical celebration of life and love. (Witchwood Records UK, released 2007)

Review originally published by Harp magazine...

Archive Review: Billy Joe Shaver’s Greatest Hits (2007)

Many of country music’s greatest talents have considered him their favorite tunesmith, and his songs have been recorded by everybody from Bobby Bare and Kris Kristofferson to Elvis Presley. Chance are that you’re probably familiar with Billy Joe Shaver’s songs, even if you have no idea of who the man is himself. Suffice it to say that what makes Shaver a great songwriter is that, for good or for bad, he puts a large part of himself into each of his autobiographical songs. As such, listening to Billy Joe Shaver’s Greatest Hits is like opening a book and looking at a cracked and faded old portrait of the artist.

Shaver is a Texas storyteller in the vein of Guy Clark or Townes Van Zandt. He’s grizzled and gruff, humbled by too many miles and sobered by too much alcohol, and he pours his life into every song. Greatest Hits includes some of Shaver’s best known material, like “Georgia On A Fast Train” and “Old Chunk of Coal,” as well as some of his best songs in “Old Five and Dimers” and “I Couldn’t Be Me Without You.” 

The album also offers up two previously-unreleased songs, but it’s the recent remake of the high-flying “Live Forever,” recorded with Big & Rich, that best showcases Shaver’s warm voice above his songwriting skills. Billy Joe Shaver’s Greatest Hits offers up old-school honky-tonk country with a bit of Lone Star spirit for both new and old listeners alike. (Compadre Records, released April 3rd, 2007)

Review originally published by Country Standard Time...

Archive Review: Billy Joe Shaver’s Everybody’s Brother (2007)

There’s often a fine line between sin and salvation and, like most outlaws, Billy Joe Shaver has one foot in the honky-tonk and one in the church pew. Shaver has long expressed the desire to record a “gospel” album and it’s fitting…the same weathered voice that speaks convincingly of barrooms and broken hearts is also perfectly suited for singing the praises of Jesus. And it’s not like religion is a little-traveled path for Shaver; he has typically included a spiritual song on each album through the years.

With Everybody’s Brother, however, Shaver focuses more on salvation, bringing friends like Kris Kristofferson, John Anderson, Marty Stuart, Bill Miller, and Tanya Tucker along for the joyous ride. Listeners expecting a collection of staid church hymns will be disappointed; although Everybody’s Brother has its loftier moments, much of the material approaches God from the sinner’s side of the fence, and songs like the rollicking duet with Stuart, “Winning Again,” wouldn’t feel out of place in a beer-soaked honky-tonk. 

Shaver’s performances, captured by producer John Carter Cash, are heartfelt and passionate while the album’s closer, a late ‘70s duet with Johnny Cash and a 15-year-old Eddy Shaver burning up the guitar, will put a smile on the face of any listener. (Compadre Records, released 2007)

Review originally published by Country Standard Time...

Archive Review: The Drive-By Truckers’ A Blessing and A Curse (2006)

With A Blessing and A Curse, America’s favorite cult band takes a shot at the mainstream with a musically and lyrically expansive effort. Working again with producer David Barbe (Sugar, Son Volt), who further sharpens the band’s sonic edge, tunes such as “Feb. 14” and “Aftermath USA” are replete with Barbe’s trademark soundwork of snaggletooth guitar and dense instrumentation. In terms of pure wordplay, the Truckers eschew the conceptual Southern provincialism of their previous work, pursuing a universal vibe that encompasses classic romanticism and working class blues. The songs are like eleven short stories rather than chapters in a single lengthy novel. 

Old-line fans need not fear, however, ‘cause Patterson Hood, Mike Cooley and Jason Isbell are triple-threat songwriters and songs like “A World of Hurt” prove that there’s more than enough twang and tears here to satisfy even the most diehard listener. With an embarrassing wealth of talent and musical chemistry, the Drive-By Truckers roll out a bigger, broader sound without sacrificing their endearing charm. A Blessing and A Curse is more of a lateral move than a great leap forward, the band satisfying its core audience even while trying to elevate its vision to the next level.  (New West Records, released April 18th, 2006)

Review originally published by Country Standard Time...

CD Review: Warner E. Hodges’ Absolutely (2026)

Warner E. Hodges will forever be known as the flamethrowing guitarist for Jason & the Nashville Scorchers, the rowdiest bunch o’ rockers to make a run out of the Music City. But since the Scorchers called it quits after 2010’s criminally-overlooked Halcyon Times, Hodges has applied his talents to a number of outfits, including veritable Nashville pick-up band the Disciples of Loud, his own Warner E. Hodges Band, the Bluefields, and solo albums he’s released under his own name. At this point in his career, Hodges has released more albums apart from the Scorchers than with that legendary band, but none of them have reached the peaks of Absolutely, the latest entry in the Hodges’ musical canon. 

Warner E. Hodges’ Absolutely

Absolutely was recorded with the crème de la crème of alternative Americana, roots-rock, or whatever you want to call it this week – longtime Hodges’ friends Joe Blanton (Royal Court of China, The Bluefields) and Dan Baird (The Georgia Satellites, The Bluefields), bassist Keith Voegele (The Bottle Rockets), pianist Pete “Wetdawg” Gordon (Mojo Nixon & the Toad Liquors), and drummer Mauro Magellan (The Georgia Satellites, Dan Baird & Homemade Sin). The excellent results speak for themselves. The album’s title track is a swaggering rocker co-written by the street-smart and savvy artistic conglomeration of Baird, Eddie Spaghetti and ‘Metal’ Marty Chandler of the Supersuckers, album producer Blanton and, of course, Mr. Hodges himself. Although I generally frown or dismiss committee-written songs as they, well, as a rule suck, but this is one tasty lil’ sucker that, given the rock ‘n’ roll pedigree of all involved, is guaranteed to raise the roof wherever played. 

Warner E. Hodges

The rock keeps on rolling with the Baird/Blanton/Hodges tune “Get Outta Town,” which features some stellar, razor-sharp Hodges’ fretwork and propulsive rhythms courtesy of Magellan and Voegele. The performance downright threatens to jump out of the grooves to grab you by the throat with just the right amount of musical menace. The rockabilly-tinged “Here Comes My Baby” swings like tire hanging from an oak tree, with Warner’s trembling, Duane Eddy-styled guitar licks juiced up by a jaunty backbeat and walking bass line while “When My Baby’s Blue,” a sort of sequel that amps up the guitar, pumps up the percussion, takes on a lightning bolt of confidence and draws from the energy of the jump blues to deliver a stunning tour de force. Warner’s vocals here really adapt to the song’s needs, which is a sort of metallic cross between hard rock and harder rhythm and blues, with plenty of blazing guitars and cacophonic instrumentation to launch the song into the stratosphere.

The twangin’ ‘n’ bangin’ “Good Company” is hard-edged Americana with just a hint of Scorchers sitting on the fringe, the loping rhythms complimented by a delightfully melodic chorus, harmony vocals hiding in the mix and, naturally, Warner’s incendiary guitarplay, which echoes ‘70s styled Southern rock while incorporating flashes of country stringplay. The album slows down for the first time with the mid-tempo stomp ‘n’ stammer of “North Star,” a bluesy ‘70s-styled hard rocker reminiscent of Texas rocker John Nitzinger, if only for the song’s six-string pyrotechnics, with the fluid solo around four minutes into “North Star” a thing of innate beauty. The serpentine “Carried Away” could have easily slotted into the mid-to-late ‘80s L.A. “hair metal” scene, something that Royal Court of China made a run at, with Warner’s growled, somber vocals thrown up against a semi-metallic soundtrack of dueling, swashbuckling guitars, explosive percussion, and an overall musical chaos grounded and saved from veering towards absurdity by Warner’s occasional twangy vocal lapses. 

Hottest Thing In Town

Warner E. Hodges, guitarslinger

“Individually” brings the band back to Nashville with a country-flavored rocker that choogles along like a cross between Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Scorchers with a touch of booger-rock rhythms, but an effective chorus and Warner stretching out his vocals with a challenging lyrical arrangement. By contrast, the punch-drunk “Happy Wife, Happy Life (Nothin’ Rhymes With Husband),” written by Blanton, but sounding like something Shel Silverstein or John Prine would have penned, is knocked out of the park with Warner’s tongue-in-cheek vocal delivery, which imparts timeless wisdom above rollicking throwback country instrumentation like Gordon’s piano (and accompanying old school honky tonk harmony vocals). At times, Warner’s vocals here sound eerily like his former bandmate Jason Ringenberg, which is to be expected as the two ran the roads together for a couple of decades. 

Warner had a friendly relationship with late outlaw country legend Billy Joe Shaver and his late guitar-slinger son Eddy, so it makes perfect sense to cover “Hottest Thing In Town,” from Shaver’s 1993 album Tramp On Your Street, as a sort of tribute to the pair. Hodges affords the song a raucous, country-rock performance with a red hot guitar solo that surely would make the younger Shaver smile. Magellan’s drums cascade through the speakers like cars piling atop each other in a trainwreck, and the overall dense squalls of instrumentation make for a helluva good time. Absolutely closes out with the slower-paced “Still Got A Ways To Go,” a searing sorta-ballad with emotional vox, bluesy guitars, syncopated percussion, and an overall Allman Brothers/Creedence Clearwater Revival vibe that finishes up the album with a sizzling slow-burner of a performance.

The Reverend’s Bottom Line

Hodges may be best-known for his genre-bending, forward-thinking performances with his former band, but put aside the onstage gymnastics and the larger-than-life persona and consider the man’s imaginative and creative guitarplay and you’ll find an artist that stands quite tall on his own merits. An overlooked instrumentalist, and a dynamic performer, Hodges’ recordings – none of which have been released in the United States (save for the first, self-produced and limited edition Disciples of Loud CD) – have only found an advocate in Mick Brown and his U.K. based Jerkin’ Crocus (JCPL) label, which is likely why Hodges has found an enthusiastic European audience. Wake up U.S. labels – there’s a market for these guitar-driven roots-rock sounds that eschew autotuned vocals or A.I. generated soundtracks. Absolutely is the stone cold real deal, hand delivered by Warner E. Hodges and a gang of creative collaborators that are musically unimpeachable. (JCPL Records U.K., released February 5th, 2026)

Archive Review: Blue Cheer’s What Doesn’t Kill You (2007)

Although they’ve influenced everything from Seattle grunge to modern “stoner rock,” Blue Cheer has always been nothing more than a humble ‘60s-era Frisco hippie band. Hard to tell, really, with the amps turned up past eleven and the band’s trademark blues-based, psychedelic candy-coated, acid-drenched hard rock sound. Forty years after the “Summer of Love,” Blue Cheer has bounced back with a brand new album featuring a streamlined old sound. 

Although not as crude as the band’s earliest output, What Doesn’t Kill You rocks every bit as hard, Dickie Peterson’s callused vocals pitched against Andrew McDonald’s strangling riffs, with drums that sound like a demolition derby. The songs are all sandpaper grit and diamond flash, showcasing a hard-won instrumental finesse and unflagging rock spirit, and what the band does to Albert King’s classic “Born Under A Bad Sign” is just downright sinful…which is exactly as it should be. (Rainman Records, released 2007)

Review originally published by Harp Magazine...

Book Review: Apocalypse Omnibus: The Adam Parfrey Reader (2026)

In the early 1980s, after serving a two-year penance in Detroit, I returned to Nashville and landed in a rooming house in the Belmont area near downtown. It wasn’t a bad neighborhood, but it was surrounded by pockets of dodgy housing that stubbornly refused to be gentrified into over-priced apartments for the university crowd. The tenants largely kept to themselves – Philly Tom, Vic the Dick, and others whose fleeting appearance and subsequent departures were barely worth remembering. 

One warm summer evening, I strolled down the block to the 7-11 store for a package of Slim Jims and a beer, walking in on an armed robbery. A young black man was holding the lily-white teenaged cashier at gunpoint with what appeared to be a .357 Magnum revolver. He looked at me, in my greasy biker garb, and asked “you don’t see nothing, do you brother?” “I’ve been blind since birth,” I replied, and walked right back out the door. A year later, at the same store, I walked in on the same guy, robbing a different cashier. “You again?” he asked. “Still blind,” I replied, and stumbled back out the door… 

Apocalypse Omnibus: The Adam Parfrey Reader 

That’s the world that writer and publisher Adam Parfrey inhabited. A world of petty criminals, prostitutes, junkies, killers, gamblers, hustlers, otherworldly religions, free thinkers, fringe artists…the flotsam and jetsam of waning capitalist glory, all provided a glimmer of dignity via his words, a consideration not provided by the police blotter or with newspaper ink. I knew Adam – we conversed by phone, by email, and he offered some helpful publishing tips – but I didn’t really know Mr. Parfrey. For that you’d have to turn to the written word, and even then you’d have questions. 

Feral House, the independent publishing house launched by Parfrey in 1989, recently published what may well be the culmination of nearly four decades of the founder’s intellectual obsessions in Apocalypse Omnibus: The Adam Parfrey Reader. A monster 456-page trade paperback, the Omnibus collects the best of  Parfrey’s writing from previously-published tomes like the notorious Apocalypse Culture (1987, Amok Press) and the even more controversial Apocalypse Culture II (2000), Cult Rapture (1995) and Ritual America (2012) as well as various assignments for publications like Penthouse, Hustler, and the Village Voice. 

After co-founding Amok Press with Ken Swezey in 1986 in New York City, Adam moved to L.A. after splitting with Swezey and formed Feral House. Parfrey had gotten a taste of intellectual freedom when Amok published Michael, a novel by Nazi Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbel, which was reviewed by The New York Times and sold well enough for the imprint to follow it up with the Parfrey-edited Apocalypse Culture, which became an underground cult classic resulting in multiple printings. The Manson File, an anthology of writings by Charlie Manson, considered “one of the last true heretics of our time,” followed in 1988. Amok’s last book was 1989’s Rants and Incendiary Tracts, which was edited by Parfrey and anarchist Bob Black (who actually introduced me to Adam) and co-published with Mike Hoy’s libertarian-leaning Loompanics Unlimited.* 

Feral House Explores the Taboo

Parfrey launched Feral House with much the same sort of free speech philosophy that he pursued with Amok. Feral House titles included The Satanic Witch, and other books by Church of Satan founder Anton LaVey; Bob Black’s Beneath the Underground (typeset by yours truly); Steven Blush’s American Hardcore: A Tribal History (later turned into a documentary film); and Lords of Chaos: The Bloody Rise of the Satanic Metal Underground, a 1998 book by Michael J. Moynihan and Didrik Søderlind that was also adapted to film. Sometimes Adam’s interests eerily paralleled real life; the Parfrey-edited 2001 anthology Extreme Islam: Anti-American Propaganda of Muslim Fundamentalism sold exceptionally well in the wake of the September 11th attacks of that year.

Protestations that he wasn’t really a writer aside, Parfrey’s Apocalypse Omnibus offers up some very good writing, indeed. Adam brought the same level of zealotry and intellectual curiosity he expected from Feral House’s books to his own work, and it shows throughout the book. Aside from pieces from the aforementioned Amok and Feral House books, the Omnibus includes his scandalous 1992 “Citizen Keane” essay from the San Diego Reader, Parfrey’s reporting the basis for his book of the same name that was later made into the 2014 film Big Eyes by director Tim Burton. Chapters on “Satanic Panic” and “Fascists, White Supremacists, and Their Friends” largely reprint some of Adam’s best work from the two Apocalypse Culture books and Cult Rapture, as well as interesting articles from various publications.

The “Killer Correspondence” chapter reprints letters and postcards received by Parfrey, sent by notorious figures like Manson, John Wayne Gacy, Richard Ramirez, and Ted Kaczynski, the “Unibomber,” while the chapter “At The Margins” dives deep into the wild and wooly worlds of Russian mail order brides, the cosmic religion of Unarius, the dubious celebrity of “Mr. Awesome,” and the manufacturer of lifelike sex dolls. Another chapter compiles various interviews with Parfrey by people like comedian Marc Meron, Tamra Lucid, and Stephen Lemons  which provide a bit of insight into Adam’s thoughts, history, and interests. 

Feral Man In A Feral Land

The most interesting chapters of Parfrey’s Apocalypse Omnibus are, to my mind, the book-opening “Feral Man In A Feral Land” – also the name of a painting by artist Joe Coleman included at the end of the book – and “HelL.A.,” a collection of columns written by Adam for almost five years circa 1991-1995 for the San Diego Reader, which itself comprises better than 1/3 the book. The first chapter includes early 2010s blog posts that tell of Parfrey’s years in the Big Apple, as well as essays on larger-than-life figures like filmmaker and bull fighter Budd Boetticher and director Don Siegal (Dirty Harry). I found the 1992 interview/article with Boetticher to be particularly fascinating, a glimpse into the über-masculine Los Angeles based film industry of the 1940s and ‘50s.    

The “HelL.A.” columns showcase Parfrey’s deftness with the written word, and an immense skill at conveying a story in a mere few hundred words. Writing a weekly column is hard (don’t ask me how I know) and doing it well even harder, yet Parfrey makes it seem effortless. Over the course of a couple hundred columns, Adam writes of long-gone but fondly-remembered celebrity watering holes, street hustlers, strip-mall preachers, notorious racists, and various crackpots that comprise the seedier side of Hollywood. He also writes of uniquely Angeleno characters like poet/novelist Charles Bukowski, former L.A. mayor Sam Yorty, Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt, and the Jewish Defense League’s Irv Rubin, among others. What makes the columns so interesting is not only the insight that Parfrey brings to each, but his ability to whittle each story down to a core principle that reaffirms the humanity of the subject. 

And that, friends, is the basis of Adam Parfrey’s writing, his ability to imbue his subjects, no matter how sleazy, taboo, or controversial, with a shred of redemption (yes, even punk rocker G.G. Allin). Although Parfrey has long been accused of far right sympathies, I found the man to be more complicated than a bumper sticker slogan could convey. The one aesthetic found throughout Adam’s writing is the authenticity – no matter the charlatan, crackpot, hustler, or conman he may be writing about, they were real in a way that modern celebrity fails. 

The Reverend’s Bottom Line

Parfrey may have been the free-thinking inspiration for contemporary podcasters and “influencers” but, unlike these so-called acolytes, Adam possessed a truly open mind that he constantly challenged with both his written words and with the books he published. Parfrey didn’t always agree with the most controversial and despised figures he wrote about or published, but he was a free speech absolutist that felt that a diversity of ideas – no matter how disdained by the mainstream – deserved an honest hearing. It was this perspective that makes Adam’s writing so fascinating, and helped make Feral House the most daring and interesting book publisher in America.

Feral House’s Apocalypse Omnibus: The Adam Parfrey Reader perfectly showcases its late founder’s ever-churning thoughts and obsessions (Parfrey passed away in May 2018), creating a living tribute to one of America’s foremost underground documentarians. If you want comfort, look elsewhere; if you want to challenge your pre-conceived notions of the world, Apocalypse Omnibus is the book for you! (Feral House, published July 21st, 2026)

Buy the book from Amazon ‘cause I get human monies from your purchase: Apocalypse Omnibus: The Adam Parfrey Reader
  
+++++

* Back in the 1970s, libertarians were “live at let be” styled semi-anarchists that valued personal responsibility and the freedom to live without government interference on issues like drugs, guns, and speech. When some of ‘em got together later and formed a political party, they evolved into the headline-grabbing racist asshats we despise today. Parfrey certainly had libertarian leanings, as did many of Feral House’s authors. 

 

Archive Review: Rory Gallagher’s Cleveland Calling, Part Two (2021)

VENUE: Live WNCR-FM radio broadcast from the Agora Ballroom, Cleveland Ohio, sometime in September 1972.

SOUND QUALITY: Meh…you really need to turn it up to hear it, the recording hollow, brittle, and empty-sounding. Just a step above full-blown bootleg status, really, but Gallagher’s vox are easily discernable and his guitar cuts through the muck like a surgeon’s scalpel, but his otherwise talented rhythm section is blurred and slurred into sonic roadkill on most tracks.

COVER: It’s a major label release, so the packaging isn’t too shabby – nice B&W “action” shot of Rory strangling his Stratocaster on the front, a B&W full band photo on the rear cover along with the track listing. The inner sleeve is in color with track listing and credits, and photos of the current in-print Rory Gallagher album catalog (so fire up those credit cards, kids!).

TRACKLIST: 
(Side A) 1. Messin’ With the Kid • 2. Used To Be • 3. Should’ve Learnt My Lesson

(Side B) 4. Laundromat • 5. Pistol Slapper Blues • 6. Banker’s Blues • 7. In Your Town

COMMENTS: Let’s clear up any potential misconceptions about this “Record Store Day” album from the beginning…released on July 17th as part of the second RSD “drop” for 2021, Rory Gallagher’s Cleveland Calling, Part 2 isn’t a two-album set (like it says on the RSD website), it’s a single, seven-song 12” record pressed on a thick slab of 180g wax. There’s no “download card,” as some sources claim (or else my still-sealed copy didn’t come with one…as last year’s predecessor didn’t have a download, I’m pretty sure that Universal went cheap-o again and didn’t include one here, either…). Cleveland Calling, Part 2 features a previously-unreleased radio broadcast of a promotional concert done exclusively for Cleveland’s WNCR-FM. 

Gallagher and his band performed seven songs in the otherwise empty Agora Ballroom on some day in September 1972 (no date listed, but Gallagher opened for Fleetwood Mac in Cleveland on September 8th). The album is a “sequel,” of sorts, to last year’s RSD release Cleveland Calling, a previously-unreleased in-studio acoustic performance for WNCR-FM from August ’72. That album was a resounding success upon its RSD release, peaking at #2 on the Billboard magazine “Blues” chart, a feat matched by this new archival release. Gallagher’s band at the time included bassist Gerry McAvoy (who would remain with Rory until his death in 1995), keyboardist Lou Martin, and drummer Rod de’Ath, the same talented group that would later record Gallagher’s critically-acclaimed 1973 albums Blueprint and Tattoo. 

For those of you unfamiliar with the greatness that was Rory Gallagher, he was an Irish blues-rock guitarist who, after finding inspiration in the music of U.K. hitmaker Lonnie Donegan, picked up the instrument at the age of nine and subsequently fell in love with the blues and rock ‘n’ roll music he heard listening to Radio Luxembourg and the American Forces Network (AFN) on his radio late at night. Influenced by artists as diverse as Muddy Waters, Buddy Holly, and Woody Guthrie, Gallagher taught himself slide guitar, harmonica, saxophone, mandolin, and banjo. His first band that anybody remembers was Taste, a blues-rock power trio formed in 1966 that would release a pair of critically-acclaimed studio albums before breaking up. Gallagher released his self-titled solo debut in early 1971 and followed it up a few months later with his sophomore effort, Deuce, both albums breaking the Top 40 in the U.K. 

Cleveland Calling, Part 2 features one song from Rory’s debut and three from Deuce, alongside a trio of previously-unrecorded tunes that were part of Gallagher’s concert setlist that would appear on his breakthrough1972 album Live In Europe. The Agora Ballroom was a great venue for Gallagher’s “meat and potatoes” approach to rock and blues music, the historic stage hosting notable concerts by talents like Bruce Springsteen, ZZ Top, Boston, Todd Rundgren, Ian Hunter, and many others. Oddly enough, the club’s proximity to popular FM radio station WMMS meant that the station frequently broadcast live shows from the location. Cross-town rival WNCR seems to have pulled a fast one here, broadcasting an exclusive Gallagher performance from the venue.

As for the performance itself, Gallagher and crew bring fire and brimstone to the stage. Opening with Junior Wells’ signature song “Messin’ With the Kid,” Rory does a little noodling guitar intro until the band explodes into a revved-up, amphetamine-fueled Chicago blues jam that hits your ears like a drive-by mugging. Martin’s honky-tonk piano-pounding livens up the performance by offering a counterpoint to the Gallagher’s raging guitarplay. (Note: “Messin’ With the Kid” is incorrectly attributed to Wells but it was actually written by Chief Records founder and producer Mel London, who also wrote hits for Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and Elmore James). Gallagher’s original “Used To Be” is a bit of a letdown by comparison with the album-opener, but it features some tasty fatback six-string bending by the Irish maestro against a strident, if somewhat smudged rhythmic backdrop. 

The scorching, Chicago-styled blues of “Should Have Learnt My Lesson” closes out the album’s first side, the song’s languid tempo disguising a fiery heartbeat and truckloads of emotion channeled through Gallagher’s strings and Martin’s subtle keyboard flourishes. It’s a captivating performance made all the better by Gallagher blue-eyed soul vocals. “Laundromat,” the lone song here from his debut album, roars out of the grooves to open side two, the song’s mix of raucous British blues and jazzy undertones providing a clever bit of songwriting alchemy. Gerry McAvoy’s bass and drummer Rod de’Ath are more discernable here, providing a rhythmic backbone for Gallagher rowdy performance and soaring solos. 

A cover of legendary bluesman Blind Boy Fuller’s “Pistol Slapper Blues” never made it onto a proper Gallagher studio recording, its only contemporary appearance coming on the guitarist’s Live In Europe (it would later appear as a bonus track on the CD reissue of Irish Tour ’74). Gallagher seems to have treated live albums like studio work anyway, his setlists peppered with new originals and cover songs that he’d seldom revisit. Fuller’s Piedmont blues classic is provided a spry acoustic setting here, with Gallagher’s inspired vocals rising above his elegant fretwork. The Big Bill Broonzy song “Banker’s Blues” is cut from similar cloth, Gallagher’s half-spoken vocals accompanied by melodic harmonica, subtle piano, and filigree acoustic guitar. Deuce’s “In Your Town” closes the set with a booger-rock frenzy driven by Martin’s rollicking keyboards and Gallagher’s stinging, energetic guitar solos.

While he never built more than a cult following stateside during his lifetime, Gallagher nevertheless forged an influential and modestly-successful career, releasing eleven studio and three live albums over roughly 20 years as a solo performer. Gallagher died of complications from a liver transplant in June 1995, but his unassailable catalog of music influenced artists as diverse as Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Gary Moore, and Joe Bonamassa, among many others. In the wake of his death, Rory’s brother Dónal has kept the guitarist’s legacy alive with a steady stream of high-quality live and archival releases. He may have dug deep into the vaults to find the performance featured on Cleveland Calling, Part 2 but it’s a worthy addition to the artist’s canon and a necessary addition to the collections of Rory’s avid fans. Grade: A (Chess Records/Universal Music, released July 17th, 2021)

Review originally published by the Original Live! Music Review website...

Also on That Devil Music:
Rory Gallagher’s Cleveland Calling review
Rory Gallagher’s Irish Tour review
Rory Gallagher’s The Beat Club Sessions review

Archive Review: Rory Gallagher’s Cleveland Calling (2020)

VENUE: Live WNCR-FM radio broadcast from Agency Recordings Studio, Cleveland Ohio; August 7th, 1972

SOUND QUALITY: Pretty darn good, actually, given the antiquated original source material. If you want to be overly-critical, there’s a lack of depth to the performances, which are missing the electrifying dynamic present on most of Gallagher’s records. However, the nature of an acoustic performance covers a lot of sonic flaws as there are not as many layers to capture – just the magic of a man and his guitar, his voice, and his harmonica – another gig played by a bluesman older in spirit than his young age (24) would suggest. 

COVER: Simple but effective major label quality packaging with separate B&W photos of the legendary Irish guitarist on the front and rear covers and an overall neutral greyish tone. The inner sleeve is in color with track listing and credits, and photos of the current in-print Rory Gallagher album catalog should newbies wish to discover more great music from the gifted guitarist.

TRACKLIST: 
(Side A) Pistol Slapper Blues • Don’t Know Where I’m Going • Gypsy Woman • Out of My Mind

(Side B) The Cuckoo • Banker’s Blues • Should’ve Learned My Lesson • Blow Wind Blow    

COMMENTS: 

Like many a U.K. youth in the 1950s, Irish blues-rock guitarist Rory Gallagher found early inspiration in popular skiffle artist Lonnie Donegan. Gallagher began playing guitar at the tender age of nine years old, and bought his first electric guitar (a Stratocaster) at the age of twelve. Listening to Radio Luxembourg and the American Forces Network (AFN) late at night, Gallagher broadened his musical palette with early rock ‘n’ roll influences like Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran. It was when he discovered the music of Muddy Waters that he fell in love with the blues and, throughout his teenage years, he would play a mix of folk, blues, and rock music, finding further inspiration in artists like Woody Guthrie and Big Bill Broonzy. Gallagher subsequently taught himself to play slide guitar, harmonica, saxophone, mandolin, and banjo with vary degrees of virtuosity.

Gallagher’s first band of note was Taste, a blues-rock power trio formed in 1966 when the guitarist was a mere 18 years old. That band released a pair of well-received studio albums – 1969’s Taste and 1970’s On the Boards – before breaking up; a pair of live albums were released in the wake of the band’s demise to capitalize on Gallagher’s bourgeoning reputation as a six-string prodigy. Gallagher released his self-titled solo debut in early 1971 and followed it up a few months later with his sophomore effort, Deuce. Gallagher broke into the U.K. Top 10 for the first time with 1972’s Live In Europe, which was unusual in that the album featured performances of five songs that hadn’t been previously-recorded by the guitarist.  

The eight-song Cleveland Calling LP was released for October’s third Record Store Day “drop” in a limited edition of 3,000 copies and documents Gallagher’s live broadcast by Cleveland’s WNCR-FM radio in August 1972. I don’t know how they did it at WNCR, but I do know that their crosstown rival (WMMS-FM) used to broadcast slews of live performances, and taped many (if not all) of ‘em, creating a treasure-trove of live 1970s-era classic rock that languishes in a vault somewhere (hopefully). Evidently, things didn’t work out too well as many of the WNCR on-air staff revolted against company efforts to overly commercialize the station, going on strike in late 1972. They were subsequently fired en masse by management after a late-night meeting mediated by the station’s morning DJ, Don Imus (who would soon go onto bigger broadcast markets). The station itself switched over to an automated country format on January 1st, 1973. 

But I digress…Gallagher’s acoustic performance here is stunning in its passion and complexity. After a brief intro from the station’s deejay, Carolyn Thomas, Rory starts his short, sharp set with a rowdy cover of Blind Boy Fuller’s Piedmont blues gem “Pistol Slapper Blues,” one of the previously-unrecorded tunes from Live In Europe. With spry guitar pickin’, Gallagher does an admirable job in capturing the joi de vivre of Fuller’s original performance. “Don’t Know Where I’m Going” is one of three Gallagher originals from Deuce, a harmonica-driven country-blues jam that could easily be mistaken for 1930s vintage, Rory’s vocals flowing above simple strummed chords, the overall result greater than the sum of its parts.

“Gypsy Woman” was a cover of a Delta-dirty Muddy Waters song that first appeared as a bonus track on the 1999 CD reissue of Gallagher’s debut album. Probably the bluesiest track here, Rory’s scattershot vocals and imaginative fretwork make the performance a pure joy. Another song from Deuce, “Out of My Mind” is a folk-styled rocker with impressive vocal gymnastics, nimble guitar playing, and more than a few stylistic nods to the skiffle tunes of the musician’s youth. Flipping the flapjack, second side opening song “The Cuckoo” is a traditional English/Irish folk song that wouldn’t find proper release until the posthumous 2003 album Wheels Within Wheels, itself a treasure-chest of acoustic outtakes and lost recordings from across 20 years of Gallagher’s career. 

Deceptively complex in the manner of many a rusty old song from musty, forgotten songbooks, Gallagher pours his soul into the performance, gilding “The Cuckoo” with exotic fretwork and strong vocals that help shape the song’s lyrical story. The guitarist follows up with a reading of his idol Big Bill Broonzy’s “Banker’s Blues,” which he’d record a year later for the critically-acclaimed Blueprint LP. After giving Ms. Thomas a lesson in harmonica styles, he launches into a fine approximation of Broonzy’s folkie proto-Chicago blues sound, capturing all of the tongue-in-cheek humor of the lyrics with his light-hearted vocals and intricate guitar strum. The last of the three original Deuce tunes, “Should’ve Learnt My Lesson” is another slab of old-school blues, rich with Gallagher’s elegant string-bending and the overall “high lonesome” Piedmont vibe captured by Rory’s mournful voice.       

Cleveland Calling closes out with “Blow Wind Blow,” as obscure a Muddy Waters song as you’ll find (it’s from the oft-overlooked classic 1969 LP Fathers and Sons). Fresh from playing on the Chicago blues legend’s The London Muddy Waters Sessions album, Gallagher acquits himself nicely here, digging into the song’s roots in the Mississippi Delta of Waters’ plantation-raised early days, his up-tempo guitar playing matched by syrupy vocals and a just-beneath-the-surface energy that threatens to explode with any random note. Sadly, a studio recording of the song wouldn’t be released until the excellent 2019 “odds ‘n’ sods” collection, Blues, a three-disc collection of rare, unreleased, and live recordings that would land Gallagher back on the Top 20 of the U.K. charts.
 
Gallagher move past 1972 to enjoy a modestly-successful career throughout the 1970s and ‘80s, releasing a total of eleven studio and three live albums over a 20-year span, with 1990’s Fresh Evidence representing the guitarist’s swansong. Gallagher would die of complications from a liver transplant (a tragic necessity due to decades of living a rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle) in June 1995. Over the course of his career, Gallagher had the opportunity to perform and record with musical idols like Lonnie Donegan, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Muddy Waters and was part of the band Box of Frogs with former Yardbirds Chris Dreja, Paul Samwell-Smith, and Jim McCarty. While he never rose above the status of “cult artist” in the U.S. his loyal following has supported a steady stream of posthumous live albums and DVDs. 

Perhaps most importantly, Gallagher’s undeniable talents would subsequently influence artists as diverse as Johnny Marr of the Smiths, Alex Lifeson of Rush, Glenn Tipton of Judas Priest, and fellow blues guitarists Gary Moore and Joe Bonamassa, among many others who all cited the humble Irishman as an influence on their own music. Gallagher also swayed contemporaries like Eric Clapton (who once credited Gallagher with “getting me back into the blues”) and Jimi Hendrix (who, allegedly asked how it felt to be the world’s greatest guitarist, replied “I don’t know, go ask Rory Gallagher”) and had been asked to join both Deep Purple and the Rolling Stones to replace those band’s wayward guitarists. 

While Gallagher could strangle his Stratocaster and torture a stack o’ Marshall amps as loudly and energetically as 1970s-era contemporaries like Johnny Winter, Leslie West, or Pat Travers, Cleveland Calling is a fine representation of the often-understated (acoustic) aspect of Gallagher’s talents, his between-song conversations with the station’s DJ providing the barest of glimpses into the personality of the gifted musician and performer. Cleveland Calling is a “must have” if you’re a longtime Gallagher fan but stands tall on its own for blues fans who just want a taste of this too-frequently overlooked artist. Grade: A (Chess Records/Universal Music, released October 24th, 2020)
 

Review originally published by the Original Live! Music Review website...

Also on That Devil Music:
Rory Gallagher’s BBC Sessions review
Rory Gallagher’s Notes From San Francisco review
Rory Gallagher’s The Beat Club Sessions review

Archive Review: Dave Alvin’s King of California (2019)

Singer, songwriter, and guitarist Dave Alvin is an American music icon. During a career that has now spanned five decades, Alvin was a founding member (with brother Phil) of roots-rock legends the Blasters, with which he recorded four albums. Leaving that band in 1986 to pursue other musical avenues, Alvin was a member of L.A. punk stalwarts X as well as that band’s musical side project, country-folk outfit the Knitters. Alvin played alongside fellow Blasters members Steve Berlin and Bill Bateman as part of Chris D’s notorious band the Flesh Eaters and, with the equally notorious Mojo Nixon and Country Dick Montana (The Beat Farmers), the trio toured as the Pleasure Barons.       
 
Alvin has also lent his six-string skills to recordings by the Gun Club, blues singer Candye Kane, Belinda Carlisle of the Go-Gos, and rockabilly legend Sonny Burgess, among many others and, as a songwriter, he’s had material recorded by artists as diverse as Townes Van Zandt, Dwight Yoakum, Jo-El Sonnier, Willie Nelson, and Marshall Crenshaw. Alvin launched his solo career with the 1987 major label release of the critically-acclaimed Romeo’s Escape (titled Every Night About This Time in England) but, when the album failed to sell sufficiently in an era of multi-Platinum™ country artists (rising to #60 on the country chart), Columbia Records released him from his contact.

Signed to the roots-rock oriented indie label HighTone Records (also home to artists like bluesmen Robert Cray and Joe Louis Walker and Americana pioneers Joe Ely and Chris Smither), Alvin delivered a pair of albums – 1991’s Blue Blvd. and 1993’s Museum of Heart – that enjoyed modest sales but received mixed critical response. Stepping back from the heavy production and electric instrumentation of his previous two albums, Alvin whittled his songs down to their gnarled, raw-boned roots for King of California. In the original label press release for the album, Alvin wrote “King of California is my 3rd solo album for HighTone, and it’s a bit different…for one thing, I stripped down the instrumentation. I addition to some new original songs, I’ve included a few covers, and some songs I previously recorded solo, or with my first band, the Blasters.” 

Dave Alvin’s King of California 

Released in May 1994, Alvin’s King of California album celebrates its ‘silver anniversary’ this year with a long-overdue deluxe reissue on vinyl (with bonus tracks!) by Craft Recordings. Widely considered as an influential classic album of Americana, Alvin recorded King of California with mostly acoustic instrumentation, joined in the studio by many of his usual cohorts including bassist Don Falzone, drummer Bobby Lloyd Hicks, and multi-instrumentalist Greg Leisz, who played slide and pedal-steel guitar, mandolin as well as producing the album. Longtime friends like Syd Straw, Rosie Flores, and Chris Gaffney added backing vocals to several songs. As critic Mark Deming wrote for All Music Guide, “While King of California was often lumped in with the then-fashionable unplugged craze, in retrospect it was the album where Dave Alvin’s abilities as a performer began to catch up with his gifts as a songwriter…”

The results were stunning, the predominantly acoustic soundtrack behind the songs placing a greater emphasis on Alvin’s lyrical skills and underrated vocals. “Current trends and fads aside,” Alvin writes, “I’ve wanted to do a ‘quieter’ collection of old, new, borrowed, and blue songs for quite some time. It can be difficult trying to please the people who want to hear sweaty, electric rock ‘n’ roll, as well as the fans who are more interested in contemplating the lyrics. I think King of California is mainly for the latter group. Alongside the new songs on the album, Alvin also re-recorded several songs. He explains why in the press release, writing “I wanted to re-cut songs like “Fourth of July,” from my first solo album Romeo’s Escape because, to be perfectly honest, I can sing ‘em better now.”  

The album kicks off with the title track, introduced by lush six-string work which blends into Alvin’s warm, sonorous vocals. The spry backing soundtrack provides the perfect accompaniment to Alvin’s romantic tale and wistful lyrics. The melancholy “Fourth of July” benefits greatly from the more subdued setting, Alvin’s brilliant imagery coming to life above the jangling guitars and rolling rhythm. One of the album’s better original tracks, “Goodbye Again” is a duet with the talented Rosie Flores, an Americana legend in her own right. Opening with Mexican-styled fretwork, Flores’ lighter, pastel-colored vocals provide a sparkling counterpoint to Alvin’s deeper, darker-hued voice. The natural chemistry between the two is remarkable, their performance a pure joy.   

Border Radio

The plaintive “Bus Station” offers another brilliant performance, Alvin’s half-spoken vocals telling a sad tale of hard luck romantics as Skip Edwards’ mournful accordion plays longingly in the background. Alvin’s vocals carry the gravitas of Merle Haggard while the song’s simple, effective instrumental backdrop reminds of Doug Sahm’s Texas Tornadoes. On the other hand, a spot-on cover of prolific bluesman Memphis Slim’s “Mother Earth” perfectly captures the song’s original vibe with Alvin’s rowdy, Piedmont-styled guitar-play, performed (appropriately) on a National Steel guitar. “Little Honey” features some of Greg Leisz’s best slide-guitar licks while a cover of George Jones’ “What Am I Worth,” a duet with the wonderful Syd Straw, is a hillbilly romp that displays both Straw’s show-stealing vocals and her sense of humor alongside Alvin’s equally light-hearted vox and spry rockabilly fretwork, the two coming across like a younger Johnny and June Carter Cash.    
 
King of California closes out with “Border Radio,” perhaps the best song from Romeo’s Escape and a holdover from the Blasters’ self-titled 1981 sophomore album. Unlike songs similar in subject as Wall of Voodoo’s “Mexican Radio” or ZZ Top’s “Heard It On the X,” Alvin’s song is an introspective lyrical rumination, juxtaposing the sound of the 50,000-watt radio station floating in the Southern California air against an emotional tale of love and loss. Alvin’s filigree acoustic guitar strum offers fine punctuation to his effective, somber vocals. 

Overall, the album’s melting pot of rock, country, and blues music provides a shining showcase for Alvin’s immense songwriting skills and mastery of American music forms. His penchant for story-songs shines brightly in the grooves, Alvin providing a voice for the downtrodden lovers and losers in this world. “A lot of the songs on King of California have to do with people realizing that their dreams may not come true and trying to figure out just where to go from there,” he says in the album’s press release. 

The Cuckoo

There are three bonus tracks appended to King of California. The instrumental “Riverbed Rag” is a bluesy, bluegrass-tinted rave-up featuring a duel between Alvin’s six-string and Leisz’s Dobro that was an unreleased performance from the original sessions. A cover of Merle Haggard’s haunting “Kern River” offers up one of Alvin’s most nuanced vocal performances and elegant instrumentation while a cover of songwriter Kate Moffatt’s “The Cuckoo” is provided an equally ethereal performance. All three songs are welcome additions to King of California, fitting in nicely alongside the rest of the material. Alvin’s decade with HighTone Records resulted in six studio albums and a live set, his tenure with the label culminating in the acclaimed 2000 album Public Domain, a collection of traditional folk and country songs that earned Alvin a Grammy® Award for “Best Traditional Folk Album.” 

During the ensuing years, Alvin has experienced the careers ‘ups and downs’ typical of the music lifer. He signed with the similarly roots-oriented Yep Roc Records for 2004’s Ashgrove, and has been with the label ever since, continuing to release acclaimed recordings like West of the West (2006), Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women (2009), and Eleven Eleven (2011). Alvin reunited with his brother Phil for 2014’s Common Ground, an inspired collection of Big Bill Broonzy songs, and again in 2015 for the album Lost Time, a collection of classic blues and soul tunes by folks like Willie Dixon, James Brown, and Big Joe Turner. Alvin recorded with his old friend Jimmie Dale Gilmore on 2018’s Downey to Lubbock. 

In a recent label press release for the vinyl reissue, Alvin says that he’s “real proud” of the album, “the whole process was a revelation, to record with everybody in the studio sitting roughly in a circle, sitting there on the edge of my chair with an acoustic guitar knowing that if I blow this chord, we have to start over. And I could use my voice; when I was recording electric my voice couldn’t lead the band. In this situation I could. That allowed a certain openness and freedom I hadn’t experienced before. And for Greg, this was his baby, his chance to produce me and get my voice right. His calmness in all of this led to the vibe of the record.”

The Reverend’s Bottom Line

Alvin continues to tour exhaustively, both as a solo performer and with the reunited Flesh Eaters in support of that band’s recent I Used To Be Pretty album. A quarter-century down the road, though, King of California continues to find a new audience appreciative of its earthy, no-frills sincerity; honest instrumentation; and Alvin’s intelligent story-songs and poetic lyrics. The album has proven to have legs beyond its modest indie-rock roots, influencing a generation of Americana (and country) artists and songwriters to follow. (Craft Recordings, reissue released June 14th, 2019)

Review originally published by the Rock and Roll Globe website... 

Archive Review: Dave Alvin’s Live In Long Beach 1997 (2015)

Both with roots-rockers the Blasters and as a solo artist, Dave Alvin has plumbed the depths of American music. Blues, rock, folk, and country – it’s all grist for Alvin’s immeasurable talents, and albums like last year’s Big Bill Broonzy tribute Common Ground (recorded with brother Phil) show that the singer, songwriter, and guitarist has one foot in the past and his eyes on the horizon.

Live In Long Beach 1997 captures a show where Alvin is joined by friends like Billy Boy Arnold, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, and Joe Louis Walker. Although Alvin’s solo set displays understated charms – especially his reading of “Long White Cadillac” – it’s when his guests jump in that things sizzle. Brown fiddles the house down on Hank Williams’ “Jambalaya” while a jam with Walker and Arnold on “Long Beach Blues” is worth the cost of admission alone. (RockBeat Records, released February 17th, 2015)

Review originally published by The Blues magazine...

Archive Review: Love’s Reel-To-Real (2016)

By 1974, Arthur Lee had left Love’s psychedelic roots in his rear-view mirror, forming a version of the band that had little in common with its 1960s-era origins. Love’s Black Beauty – unreleased until 2011 – displayed the talents of Lee’s new musicians, essentially the line-up Lee took into the studio to record Reel-To-Real.

Fans expecting another Forever Changes will be disappointed. Lukewarm criticisms aside, Reel-To-Real is a fine record in itself, Lee flexing his soul and funk muscles, resulting in performances that blend Sly Stone with Frankie Miller. “Who Are You?” is a red-hot slab o’ funk while “Which Witch Is Which” is a jarring trance-blues tune. The rootsy “You Said You Would” is raucous fun and, of the bonus tracks, “Graveyard Hop” stands out as a throwback rocker. Reel-To-Real provides another intriguing piece to the puzzle that was Arthur Lee. (High Moon Records, reissue released 2016)

Review originally published by The Blues magazine... 

Archive Review: Love’s Forever Changes (2008)

One of the most beloved and enduring albums in the canon of rock music, Love’s Forever Changes was initially released in 1967 to yawns and commercial indifference. The third and final album released by the Los Angeles band’s original line-up, Forever Changes barely slipped into the Billboard Top 200 albums before sinking back out of sight…until it was rediscovered by eager rock fans during the alt-rock daze of the ‘90s.

Love’s Forever Changes

Love was formed by the brilliant singer/songwriter Arthur Lee in 1965, Lee’s artistic vision often supported and complimented by underrated guitarist Bryan MacLean. In any other band, MacLean would have been the primary talent, but in Love he often toiled beneath the long shadow of Lee’s genius. After leaving the band in 1968 in the wake of Forever Changes’ release, MacLean would tinker away at songs and solo material before leaving the music biz altogether. The rest of the band provided an incredible cohesion and chemistry to Lee and MacLean’s original material.     

Love’s first couple of albums – 1966’s self-titled debut, and the following year’s Da Capo – featured a guitar-driven, folk-rock sound with waves of psychedelic candy-coloring and washes of electric-blues and jazzy flourishes. Neither album particularly lit the world on fire, but both were strong artistic statements. Originally, the label wanted session players to back Lee and MacLean, respectively, on their songs, due to the band’s growing personal problems and drug use; indeed, two tracks on Forever Changes were recorded with studio pros. When all the members of Love finally got together to make the album, nobody could have imagined what would come out of the sessions. 

A grand collection of baroque-pop with elements of psychedelic-rock, folk, and R&B with uncharacteristic horns and strings, Forever Changes is a masterpiece of musical composition and lyrical brilliance. The songs crafted by Lee and MacLean were years ahead of their time, deep tapestries of sound with lush threading of various colors. The Spanish, flamenco flavor of MacClean’s enchanting “Alone Again Or” stands in direct contrast to the trebly guitarwork of the psyche-rock naildriver “A House Is Not A Hotel.”  The gentle hippie soundscape of “Andmoreagain” is supported by a lilting melody and gossamer orchestral flourishes while the overtly cynical “Bummer In the Summer” is an old-fashioned garage-rock freak-out.

Summer of Love

Lyrically, Forever Changes provides a signpost of storm clouds on the horizon. Largely written and recorded during the “Summer of Love,” the album’s poetry frequently portrays a society undergoing change. Portending a long, dark night ahead, songs like “The Red Telephone” and the surrealistic, anti-war “Live And Let Live” deliver a forceful, sometimes frenzied message despite their lush backing soundtrack. Lee had stated in interviews that he literally felt that his life was coming to an end at this time, and his sub-conscious reflections on race and society have taken on a timeless quality.  

So, what’s the difference between this Forever Changes “Collector’s Edition” and the last time around, when Rhino reissued the album in 2001? Well, to begin with, this one is a whopping two-disc set, the first presenting the original album in all of its pristine glory. The second disc offers an “alternative mix” of the album, eleven songs, only one of which was included on the 2001 CD. To these ears, the “alternative mix” of the album sounds inferior, lacking the same texture and depth of the originally released recordings. 

Another ten “bonus tracks” replicate those on the last reissue, adding previously unreleased versions of “Andmoreagain” (instrumental backing track) and “The Red Telephone” (tracking sessions highlights), neither of which are essential, or even add much to the experience save for the hardcore believer. The lively, rocking obscure B-side “Laughing Stock” is a welcome addition, while a boisterous, unreleased cover of “Wooly Bully” is a bona-fide album outtake, and a heck of a lot of fun. A mono single remix of “Alone Again Or,” with dynamic sound and warmth, makes a strong case for taking rock back to its (mono) roots. Informative new liners notes from Andrew Sandoval are complimented by a handful of photos.

The Reverend’s Bottom Line

Should you spring for the “Collector’s Edition” of Forever Changes? If you’re a fan of the band, you probably already have. If you’re unfamiliar with Love, mildly curious, or haven’t heard this landmark work, you should give it a listen. After all, hundreds of rock critics couldn’t be wrong when they voted Forever Changes as one of the best albums of all time, could they? (Rhino Records, reissue released 2008)

Review originally published by Blurt magazine...