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| For a completely instrumental album, there is a lot of sweet-talking (but not squawking) going on here. Utilizing only a collection of various guitars, an unobtrusive bass (played by Keith Power) and a snappy drumkit (played by Scott MacCulloch), Boobie Browne and his Onions offer the listener a musical Rorschach inkblot test incorporating elements of reggae, funk, rumba, rock�n�roll and blues. My imagination was allowed to roam free in fantasizing visualizations to correspond with each track, no doubt completely different from the composer�s and anyone else who listens to it. Because there are no sad songs here, only pleasant images come to mind, and that�s what makes this CD so much fun. A groovy little funkster called �Two Eggs Any Style� gets your head bobbing and feet tapping right off the bat. Then there is the skating glide and strut of �Tele Savalas� followed by the happy-go-lucky hop-skip-and-jump of �Sweetpea�, nailing the image of Popeye and Olive Oyl engaged in a lively waltz. It�s a brilliant guitar composition that displays Mr. Browne�s virtuosity on this instrument. �Toe Jam� just sort of went around in circles, so I wasn�t too keen on that one, but �Captain Beano� had more twists and turns than your average Mario video game in its quirky rhythms and blending of �50s rock and roll and �60s surf guitar. The boy knows how to command a note to stretch or shrink. �Precious� offered serenity in its laid-back Tex-Mex feel. For some reason, it reminded me of �Maelstrom�, performed by Greg Douglass [correction] on Steve Miller�s Living in the 20th Century album. �Pink Chicken� is a crazy little anthem that blends straight-ahead rock�n�roll with funk attitude. I could just imagine go-go dancers weirding out on this one! Pure party music! �East Village Afternoon� shows some gypsy jazz influence and it�s followed by a mid-tempo funk-blues number called �Patrick Takes Out Life Insurance�. Overall, the CD is very pleasant and its happy, upbeat tempos are enjoyably busy without being cluttered Throw away your seratonin supplement and pick up a copy of Birth of the Chickenpick - it's an instant "upper", with no harmful side effects. |
| BIRTH OF THE CHICKENPICK - BOOBIE BROWNE & THE ONIONS |
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