Cherry Casino and the Gamblers – The Automatic Fool
Bear Family – BAF14040
Sugar Sweet Baby – The Automatic Fool – This ain´t me little baby – Shake me up baby – Gotta learn to dance – Sweet party – This Is My Dance – Easy Baby – It ain`t no big thing (but it´s growing) – I´ll try – Baby Malonka – You Tell Me
When Bear Family, a label almost exclusively dedicated to reissues, decides to release an album by a contemporary artist, it’s always for a good reason. In the past, the German label has released albums by artists as talented as Russell Scott, James Intveld, and Marcel Riesco, to name just a few. It’s therefore not surprising to see Cherry Casino (Axel Praefcke, his real name) added to this prestigious list.
This is Cherry Casino and the Gamblers’ first album since Hi-No-Love, released in 2014, meaning a wait of over ten years. One could complain about such a delay, but listening to these twelve tracks (eleven original compositions and a cover of It Ain’t No Big Thing, popularized by Elvis), one realizes that every minute that separated the two albums has been justified.
There are magical moments when all the stars seem to align to give birth to a masterpiece (there, I’ve said it!), and this is one of them.
First, there’s Praefcke’s talent as a composer. His songs, seemingly simple rock ‘n’ roll (but appearances can be deceiving), never sound like they’ve been played a thousand times before, but strangely enough, it only takes two listens to consider them old friends, classics that have been with us for years. Even stranger, on the first listen, I found myself humming the songs as they played, not because they were predictable, but because they were so obvious. Talking about that, it seems so obvious that I almost forgot to mention it: Praefcke is one hell of a singer, with a deep and varied voice. Then, he knows how to surround himself with the right people. The Automatic Fool is the meeting of a great singer, accompanied by excellent musicians (Ike Stoye on saxophone, Michael Kirscht on guitar, Gregor Gast on drums, and Kevin Weber on double bass) playing period perfect arrangements in a suitable studio (the famous Lightning Recorders in Berlin) placed in expert hands (part of the sessions were co-produced by the late Randy Richter).
This album is not a future classic. It doesn’t even need time to judge its worth; it’s an instant classic, the kind you rarely glimpse, which makes it all the more precious.
Once I tell you that Bear Family has chosen to release this record as a magnificent 10-inch LP, you’ll have no excuse not to rush out and buy it immediately.
Buy it here.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis
Cherry Casino and the Gamblers – Hi-No-Love
Rhythm Bomb {2014}
Let’s Have A Crazy Ball – A Kiss From You – Breakfast – Don’t Let Them Know – Big Wolf – Hi-No-Love – I’ll Find A New Love – Dream Boy – Kiss Me – Happy Daddy – Just One Look – Where Can I Put The Junk?
I love classic Rock’n’roll and rhythm’n’blues and recently I was lamenting that, though we have plenty of Rockabilly bands on today’s scene, very few were actually playing straight rock’n’roll. And all of sudden landed on my desk via the fine folks at Rhythm Bomb record who do an excellent job the answer to my prayer : Cherry Casino’s third release. A rare case of a flawless album. Everything here is perfect. Look at that cover. Don’t you want to hold a 180g cardboard copy with a beautiful vinyl inside of it ? And now listen to the music… Axel Praefcke (vox, lead guitar), Ike Stoye (sax), Roland Ploog (rhythm guitar), Michael Kirscht and Carsten Harbeck (bass) form a super tight combo. They jump, they rock, they roll and they even croon (with such a singer they’re right to do so).
Praefcke wrote all the songs and managed to do a nealy impossible task. His songs sound totally original and, in the same time, you’d swear these are timeless classics that come from the fifties. Very few can do that (they’re almost as scarce as a weak record in Carl perkins discography).
And the now legendary Lightnin’ Recorders in Berlin added their magic to the mix making the perfect casket for these twelve little gem.
By far my most played record of 2014, enjoy these 28 minutes of sheer joy.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis
