| DAN HICKS AND HIS HOT LICKS...BEATIN� THE HEAT SURF DOG RECORDS...**** Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks released four great albums from 1969 through 1976, which included the seminal live album �Where�s the Money� which really pulled in rave reviews. Dan Hicks hasn�t released another album since 1976, but fans can rejoice because �Beatin� the Heat� comes out August 29, and it�s great! Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks made some great music. His campy, acoustic-cabaret style presaged such acts as Bette Midler, The Pointer Sisters and Manhattan Transfer by several years. His sarcastic aura and over-grown sense of irony have made for some wonderful genre-busting songwriting, and there was always his determined deadpan attitude and wacky intransigence. Dan�s band always had a tight, swinging acoustic string virtuosity, and all of his stuff sported hot female, fast call-response vocals. Call it Gypsy Jazz, Folk, Country, or Swing, but whatever you call it, don�t call it boring. Dan was born two days after the Pearl Harbor attack in Little Rock Arkansas and grew up in a military family listening to Country and Western music. He also liked Benny Goodman and other Swing Era Jazz greats. He went on to play drums in the seminal San Francisco Rock band �The Charlatans�. The Charlatans were a little-known, yet influential 60�s Hippie band that helped Dan to develop his emerging style. Dan also earned a degree in broadcasting from San Francisco State around this time. Dan�s image graced the cover of the Rolling Stone Magazine twice and during an interview he said �I am gonna be making a slow come-back.� Well now, he�s back in the year 2000 with a really cool album that proves that Dan is still the Man. His delightful left-of-center viewpoint is still intact and his quirky, playful melodies, complex rhymes and jive vocabulary are all still alive and well. Though the new band�s line-up only has original member Sid Page on violin, the new guys and gals all hold their own. Dan has a slew of special guest stars on this outing as well, and all of them fit right in. Brian Seltzer plays guitar on many tracks, and guesting on vocals we have such greats as Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, Bette Midler and Rickie Lee Jones. I couldn�t find one cut on this album that I didn�t like, and I�m probably going to be wearing this CD out. Get it. THE McCARTHYS...SELF TITLED SIDE BY EACH RECORDS...**** The McCarthys are just waiting to become one of those bands that music critics love to compare other bands to. �Why, this new band�s CD I got sounds a lot like the McCarthys.� Well, that may not be quite true yet, but if they keep up the consistency of their debut, the comparisons may certainly be forthcoming. Their first album is a great collection of Honky-tonk (Don�t Come Crying Back to Me), truckin� songs (Stand Down, Truck Driver), Spaghetti-Western/Surf instrumentals (Oceans Eleven), and other great alt-country kickers (the rest). The band literally kicks hairy ass and the songwriting is top-rate. Lead singer Tim Emery has a great country voice and plays a mean lead and bass guitar to match. Dale Holden�s steel guitar is a beautiful thing to behold and the rest of the band does a great job too. I get a lot of stuff sent to me to give a listen to, and I have to admit that The McCarthys album is one of the keepers that will find a place amongst my personal collection. Please do yourselves a favor and pick this one up. ROLL AND TUMBLE...NOT LONG FOR DAY FLYING LADY RECORDS...**** On their second outing, this acoustic ensemble from New England once again display their true love and dedication to the Country Blues idiom. The album is comfortably split between remarkable interpretations of old classics, and penetrating originals that exemplify the band�s love and dedication to the music they make. We get talented recreations of songs that were originally written by such talents as Lonnie Johnson, Son House, John Lee Williamson, and Will McTell. Then, on the other hand, we get to hear the originals that fit right in and recall a time when music was raw and real, before technology took over. Roll and Tumble consist of Jon Ross on drums and mandolin, Curtis Jerome Haynes on Piano, Frank Corso on National Resophonic Guitar and vocals, and Justin Quinn on harmonica and vocals. These guys really know their stuff when it comes to authentic Country Blues and it shows throughout this CD. Check out the Jug-Band romps, Barrel-house rolls and Shot-gun Shack boogies that pervade their sound and take a trip back in time. You can actually feel the essence that they create with their intense respect and demonstrable musicianship. Check out Williamson�s �Million Year Blues� to see what I mean. I can�t wait for their next effort, and after you hear �Not Long For Day�, you won�t be able to wait either. |