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Hillbilly - Page 3

Ray Condo

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Ray Condo - frntRay Condo – Sweet Love On My Mind bw/ Big Dog, Little Dog
Ray Condo Records CP007
This is a posthumous single gathered by Ray’s friend. Side one is the classic Johnny Burnette tune given the Hardrock Goners treatment, something like «wild rockabilly meets Hank Williams». B-side «Big Dog, Little Dog» is a song recorded during a rehearsal by Ray and his last musical project, featuring Stephen Nikleva (The Ricochets), Ian Tiles and Tony LaBorie, just a few months before his death. I may be wrong but the only other issued song from this line-up can be found on a tribute album to Alejandro Escovedo. A great piece of wildness (imagine Dee Dee Ramone goes hillbilly).

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Starline Rhythm Boys

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starlinerhythmboys_liveThe Starline Rhythm Boys – Live At Charlie-O’s

Cow Island CIM011 [2008]
Yellow Jacket / A Dime At A Time / Heartbreak Tennessee / Charlie-O’s / On The Back Row / Life Begins At 4 O’Clock / Wine Me Up / Lonesome On’ry And Mean / Pipeliner Blues / You’re Still On My Mind / One Foot In The Honky Tonk / She Don’t Live Here No More / Dark Hollow / Live And Let Live / Get A Little Goner / Drunk Tank / Playboy / You Can’t Catch Me / That’s Where I Went Wrong / I’m A Lonesome Fugitive / Gotta Travel On / Too Much Fun / Drink Up And Go Home.

The Starline Rhythm Boys – Masquerade For A Heartache

starlienrhythm boys masqueradeCow Island CIM014 [2009]
Masquerade For Heartache / Jive After Five / Trucker From Tennessee / Workin’ Man Blues / Honky Tonk Gal / Red’s Place / A Mess Of Blues / Goodbye Train / I’m Fed Up Drinking Here / Ubangi Stomp

Here’s the cure to the stress of your everyday life and your summertime blues: the hot rockin’ honky tonk swing style of a Starline Rhythm Boys show in your living room! Recorded live at their homebase of Charlie-O’s bar, it features a typical set of the trio mixing classics from Johnny Paycheck, Wayne Walker, Conway Twitty, Faron Young, Chuck Berry, Bill Kirchen… with a couple of band’s own (She Don’t Live Here, Drunk Tank, That’s Where I Went Wrong). Add the presence of Sean Mencher (High Noon) to produce an play second guitar on one track as well as Kevin Maul on steel (both lap and pedal) and you just have to put the cd in the player and let the fun begins.

Masquerade For A Heartache is the perfect companion to Charlie-O’s with 10 more tracks recorded during the same show. Once again it’s very well balanced between originals (Masquerade…, Red’s Place, I’m Fed Up Drinking Here) and covers of Carl Perkins, Merle Haggard, Elvis. This mini album goes from straight Honky Tonk to Rock’n’roll with a good dose of Rockabilly including one of the best version of Ubangi Stomp I’ve ever had the chance to listen to!

You can buy them separately but do yourself a favor and buy both.


the Starline Rhythm Boys - Red's Place
the Starline Rhythm Boys – Red’s Place

The Starline Rhythm Boys – Red’s Place

Cow Island Music CIM05
A Fighting Chance – No Gal Cooks Like Mine – Red’s Place – It’s Anyone’s Guess – (They’re) Cutting Back the Work Force – That’s Just A Thought – The Joke’s On You – Who – The Family Farm – Drunk Tank – Sin & Salvation – Burning A Hole In My Mind – The Old Filling Station – That’s Where I Went Wrong – I’m Fed Up Drinking Here – A Memory of Fred

The Starline Rhythm Boys are a drummerless trio (Danny Coane, acoustic guitar; “Big Al” Lemery, electric guitar; and Billy Bratcher, doghouse bass) that plays in the same league as High Noon (no wonder to find Sean Mencher on the production seat) and Wayne “The Train” Hancock (Billy Bratcher toured with him by the way). But they don’t stick to the trio format and bring a couple of guests to keep things varied and surprising, and most of all highly enjoyable.
Most of the songs are originals written by Bratcher.”A Fighting Chance” is a powerfull slap bass led hillbilly/proto rockabilly (what a guitar too) with harmony vocals. “No Gal Cooks Like Mine” features a fiddle in addition to the steel and praises the simple domestic joys. The title track has more of a late 50’s honky tonk feel with a bit of Buck Owens in it, still with great harmonies, and a superb piano part. Big Al Lemery is not only a wizard on the telecaster, he’s also a poignant singer and proves it on “It’s Anyone’s Guess” a slow number in the vein of “Before The Next Teardrop Falls” with mandolin, fiddle, light snare and pedal steel. “They’re Cutting Back The Work Force” shows once again what a good songwriter Billy Bratcher is, able to write about booze or social issues ( I Got Kids to feed, but there’s no remorse, once they start cutting the work force“) with equal success. “That’s Just A Thought” is a beautiful little hillbilly bop ditty that looks toward the western swing side of things with each members of the horn section taking solos. They turn Jimmy martin’s bluegrass number “The Joke’s On You” into a uptempo rockabilly. Another cover is Little Walter’s “Who“, which becomes a “hillbilly-blues” (and reminds what High Noon did with “Crazy Mixed Up World” on their Texas Style 10″). “Family Farm” is a sad and beautiful waltz with bluegrass accents. Al Lemery wrote and sings “Drunk Tank” a nice hillbilly bop. The honky Tonk “Sin & Salvation“, on a well known theme, is another proof they never falls into facility. They bring modulation and unusual chords. Man that’s good ! Connie Smith’s “Burning A Hole InMy Mind” adds a welcome touch of 60’s country music.On “The Old Filling Station” with simple words (and a beautiful melody) Bratcher paints a melancholic picture (Do you remember when you never pumped your gas/And the man with the Star was a symbol of class). I really enjoyed “I’m Fed Up Drinking Here“, the best song George Jones never recorded. How can’t you love a band that plays right and sings “The Old Juke box that I leaned on/Was a rock for life’s hard knock but now it’s gone/When a man’s mind ain’t clear/ a lack of George Jones is severe“. The set ends with a sincere hommage to a friend of them, Fred, and you can feel both the love they have for him and the personnality of the man, even if you never met him.
Authenticity is not only a matter of music, it’s above all a state of mind. And this guys play genuine country music that speaks to your heart and your feet.
Thank you for that Boys !

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

The Big Valley Rangers

Big Valley Rangers - Bells of Amarillo
Big Valley Rangers – Bells of Amarillo

The Big Valley Rangers – Bells Of Amarillo

Hypnolab
Ridin’ Through The Valley – Sunday Shoes – Blue River – Hillbilly Swing – Doggone Blues – Serenade For An Outlaw – Old Mexico – Rev’d Up Heart – Agua Bendita – Senorita, Senorita! – Adios

It’s good to see one still plays this kind of country music, and it’s somehow weird to think they come from Seattle (though the town is known for its vivid roots music scene). The Big Valley Rangers are a mostly acoustic quartet made of Brian Ellidge (lead vocals, guitar), Johnny Mercury (guitars), Tyler Johnson (doublebass) and Liam Fitzgerald (rhythm guitar). For the recording of their debut album they invited a couple of guest musicians, among them Billy Joe Huels (Dusty 45’s) and Russ Blake (Lucky Stars), accordion, harmonica, trumpet, steel, fiddle…
Together they deliver 11 originals that already sound like timeless classics.
Ridin’ Through The Valley” is a song that’d make Gene Autry proud: nifty lyrics, good melody with yodel and whistling, you can’t find a better way to open the album. “Sunday Shoes” follows with a melody that reminded me of “Bouquet Of Rose“. It’s a solid country song delivered with class like a good ol’ Ernest Tubb tune. “Blue River” takes you back to the western tradition, with the Sons Of The Pioneers around the campfire, harmonizing sweet melodies before they go to sleep (close your eyes and hear the coyotes in the background). Never the ones to stay the two feet in the same boot, they pursue with a Western swing influenced number that wouldn’t be out of place on a Lucky Stars album, full of sizzling solos, with a special mention to Mercury’s jazz guitar. “Doggone Blues” is a cowboy blues, think Marty Robbins’ Pain & Misery meets Jimmie Rodgers.
The second part of the album is almost entirely devoted to songs with a strong “south of the border” style, and Ellidge clear and beautiful voice serves them very well. Serenade For An Outlaw is a short Spanish guitar instrumental that introduces Old Mexico. This time again you think of the great Marty Robbins but this desperado tales completed with Mariachis trumpets evokes more his gunfighters ballads like El Paso or Big Iron.  “Rev’d Up Heart” and “Senorita” take us back to the Autry style while “Agua Bendida” is a beautiful waltz with a Mexican feel and the aptly titled “Adios” closes the album. Do yourself a favor and buy this superb album right now.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Ronnie Hayward

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Ronnie Hayward - Tail Shaking
Ronnie Hayward – Tail Shaking

Ronnie Hayward – Tail Shaking

El Toro Records – ETCD 2033
Whiskey Flavored Kisses – We’ll Get High -You Can’t Tell me Why – Ronnie’s Blues – Pink Wedding Gown – One Way Ticket – No More For You – Mean Streak Mama – Lonesome Feeling – Quit My Cryin’ – I Don’t Lie It – Honey I’m – Connie lou – Adrianna – Beggin’ Time – 90 Miles An Hour
This cd from Ronnie Hayward is actually a very welcome reissue of material that was previously only available on vinyl ( “Somewhere Out There” on Tail Records, hence the title) with four unreleased tracks from a later session. For this four tracks a drummer joined the trio. You’ll find no slick production here, Ronnie’s music, a fine blend of rural blues, rockabilly and hillbilly bop, is raw and unadulterated. “Whiskey Flavored Kisses”, one of the four unreleased tune, appears here in a very different version than the one on “Too Many Chiefs”, without the slide guitar and with the emphasis put on the rhythm section : heavy strumming acoustic guitar and simple and effective drums and just one stroke of electric guitar in the middle. Simply brilliant. “We’ll Get High” sounds a bit like “Domino” with obsessive guitar and heavy slap bass. Changing mood, “You Cant Tell Me Why” has a kind of a rumba beat into it. Don’t be fooled by the name, “Ronnie’s Blues 5” is not a blues but more a uptempo hillbilly tune with Ronnie’s howlin’ vocal. “No more for you” is a country weeper with harmony on the refrain while “Mean Streak Mama” reflects Hayward’s blues side. Sure this guy in not always in tune, but the lack of exactness is highly compensated by the intensity of his interpretation, even through the stereo one can feel his presence. Isn’t that the most important with this type of music? Fans of Johnny Burnette’s Rock’n’Roll trio will enjoy “Quit My Cryin’” with its “Rock-Billy Boogie” beat. “Honey I’m” is rather different than the other one, more modern if that word has some kind of signification for a Ronnie Hayward’s album, with drums rolls that put a constant tension in the song. “Beggin’ Time” is quite close to the original version and Hank Sow’s “90 Miles An Hour”, which is originally quite soft, could be compared to the best of Wayne Hancock. This comparison is not only valid for this song, both share something really simple, something that makes great artist, something called personality.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Collector’s Choice

variouscollectorschoice_texasfever Vol 1 – Texas Fever
El Toro ETCD-CH101
1. Ken Marvin – Uh Uh Honey – 2. Fred Crawford – I Learned Something From You – 3. Leon Tassin with Charlie Stuckey’s Westerners – Get A Move On, – 4. Hub Sutter and The Hub Cats – Gone Golsing – 5. Jacoby Brothers – Who Ye Primpin Fer? – 6. Al Urban – Run Away – 7. Alden Holloway and His Prairie Riders – Woodpecker Love – 8. Lucky Hill – I’m Checkin’ Out – 9. Perry Washburn and The Rocky Mountain Canary Boys- Pocahontas Baby – 10. Earney Vandagriff – Where You Been – 1. Jimmie Walton – High As A Georgia Pine – 12. Stoney Calhoun and The Night Owls – Hot ‘N’ Cold – 13. Johnny Maxwell and The Rhythmmasters- Ole Satan’s Mother-In-Law – 4. Ken Marvin – Two Tone Ten Ton – 15. Jack Cardwell – Walking Away My Blues -16. Walter Scott – I’m Walking – 17. Chuck Ray and His Gang- I May Not Be Able But I’m Willing To Try – 18. Unknown Artist Acetate – Texas Fever – 19. King Sterling and His Blue Grass Melody Boys – Too Many Taverns – 20. Sammie Lee – Olahoma Blond Headed Gal

variouscollectorschoice_campusboogieVol 2 – Campus Boogie
El Toro ETCD-CH102
1. Jimmy Collie – I’m Not Giving Up That Easy – 2. Slim Williams – Out Running Around – 3. The Hooper Twins – You’re Always The Last To Know – 4. Leonard Sipes And The Rythmn Oakies – Smooth Sailing – 5. Ed Camp – Tie A String Around Your Finger – 6. Chuck Kyles With Excel Country Music Makers – You’ll Like Count – 7. Terry Fell And The Fellers- Smoking Cornsilks – 8. Al Runyon With The Gateway All-Stars – My Baby Left Me – 9. Betty Coral With Raymond Mccollister And His Orchestra – Chili D – 10. Jack Derrick – Rainbow Of Love – 11. Gene O’quin – You’re Gonna Be Sorry -12. Frank Evans And His Top Notchers – Barrell Of Heartaches – 13. Joyce Lowrance And Earney Vandagriff – Hush Money – 14. Don Johnson And The Mountain Wizards – Flying Low – 15. T. Texas Tyler And His Oklahoma Melody Boys – Black Jack David – 16. Al Brumley And The Brumley Brothers – You’ve Been Tellin’ Lies – 17. Hank Crowe – Love Love Love – 18. Tiny Adams – Long Gone Daddy – 19. R.D. Hendon And His Western Jamboree Cowboys – Ain’t Got A Lick – 20. Leonard Sipes And The Rythmn Oakies- Campus Boogie
“Collector’s Choice” a perfect name for this great and exciting serie launched by El Toro Records from Spain. It gathers a majority of unknown and rare recording from the 50’s that were until now only available on scarce 45’s and 78’s.
Volume 1 focuses on the Lone Star state artists. Home of musical legends, it was also full of lesser known but talented guys. The result is a 20 songs compilation filled with Hillbilly Bop (Ken Marvin, Alden Holloway, Stoney Calhoun), Hank Williams’ brand of country tunes( Jack Cardwell, Fred Crawford, Sammie Lee and Perry Washburn), talking blues (Leon Tassin’s Get A Move On Baby) proto rockabilly (Johnny Maxwell, King Sterling, Lucky Hill and Jimmmie Walton, both very close to Charlie Feathers’ vocal on tunes like Peepin’ Eyes), straight hillbilly (Jacoby Brothers), rock’n’roll (Hub Sutter’s Gone Golsing produced by Sonny Fisher). It comes with a 8 page booklet full of info including pictures of the original labels.
Volume 2 is equally good, the sole difference is that this time you find artist from the whole States. Though names like Gene O’Quinn, Terry Fell, Leonard Sipes/Tommy Collins and T Texas Tyler may be familiar you still have plenty of obscure and rare stuff. So if you’re ready for good dose of uptempo hillbilly with raw steel guitar and fiddles, don’t look no further. Like the previous one you can hear the influences of “big names” on local artists: Hank Williams is almost everywhere but also Ernest Tubb (just listen to Jimmie Collie) and Elvis Presley (Al Runyon’s cover of My Baby Left Me).
It’s also fine to hear some ladies on this selection wether it’s solo (Betty Coral) or duet (Joyce Lawrence and Earney Vandagriff). Volume 2 comes with a 12 page booklet.
Buy both, you won’t regret it, believe me.

variouscollectorschoice_firecrackerstompVol 3 – Firecracker Stomp
El Toro ETCD-CH103
1 Firecracker Stomp  – Jimmy Lane – 2 That Done It – Opal Jean – 3 Hillbilly Wedding – Shorty Long & Dolly Dimple – 4 Wild Oats – Lonzo & Oscar – 5 I’m Movin’ On – Jeanne Gayle – 6 I’m Your Man – Myrna Lorrie & Buddy de Val – 7 A Gambler’s Love – Marty Roberts – 8 I’m Gonna Comb You Outta My Hair – Bobby Roberts – 9 Store Bought – The Andrews Brothers – 10 Jack & Jill – Bill Taylor – 11 Tennessee Courtin’ Time – Opal Jean – 12 One-Two-Three Skidoo – Pete Lane – 13 Oh, I Like It! – Carolyn Bradshaw – 14 Standing In The Station – Shorty Long – 15 Cry, Cry, Cry – Texas Bill Strength – 16 Freight Train Blues – Jimmy Dean – 17 Love Me, Love Me – Eddy Star – 18 Hawk-Eye – Bobby Lord – 19 Rock Love – Elaine Gay – 20 Dig These Blues – The Rhythm Rockers

variouscollectorschoice_whatanightVol 4 – What A Night
El Toro ETCD-CH104
1 Ponytail – Muvva “Guitar” Hubbard – 2 Hoebe Snow – Benny Martin – 3 It’s A Long Road  – Nancy Dawn & The Hi-Fi Guys – 4 I Want Her Blues  – Bob Gallion – 5 Crash Out  – Jaycee Hill – 6 Blue Moon Of Kentucky – Roberta Sherwood – 7 My Honey – Jimmy Edwards – 8 Lonely Man – Jack Tucker – 9 Woody’s Rock – Jimmy Woodall – 10 Don’t You Realise? – Eddy Dugosh & The Ah-Ha Playboys – 11 One Of These Days – Tracy Pendarvis – 12 Eskimo Boogie Betty Jo & Johnny Starr – 13 What A Night! – Lee Emerson – 14 The Stop, Look & Listen Song  – Ernie Chaffin – 15 Open Up Your Door, Baby – Eddie Dean & Joanie Hall – 16 Uncle Sam’s Call – Jimmy Woodall – 17 Next – Billy Brown – 18 The Fire Of Love – Bobby Lord – 19 One Mile – Eddy Dugosh & The Red Tops – 20 Swingin’ The Gate  – Gatemouth Brown
The third and fourth volume of this excellent serie gather stuff from the collection of Dave Penny. Like volume one and two, the material compiled is mostly rare and comes from obscure artists though the names of Ernie Chaffin, Lonzo and Oscar, Gatemouth Brown and Jean Chapel are surely familiar to our readers. But once again this is lesser known recordings that appear here.
“Firecracker Stomp” focuses on the hillbilly side of things. It kicks off with a Arthur “Guitar Boogie” Smith kind of instrumental from Jimmie Lane. The rest of the selection is made of classic honky tonk, country duets (I’m Your Man by Myrna Lorrie and Buddy De Val will make the pleasure of Ginny Wright/Tom Tall fans), hillbilly comedy act (Lonzo & Oscar), muscled hillbily that just demands to mutate into rockabilly (I’m Movin’ On), hillbilly bop (Pete Lane)… The influence of Hank Williams van be vividly heard on Bobby Roberts’ I’m Gonna Comb You Outta My Hair and Eddy Star Love Me, Love Me. Also included is Carolyn Bradshaw, who’s in addition of being talented, shows that Chess record actually release some country flavored tunes too. Another of my fave here is Jimmy Dean’s rockin’ hillbilly blues version of Freight Train Blues. This song is sure to appeal fans of Ray Condo and His Hardrock Goners. The closer is a great cowboy jazz instrumental from the Rhythm Rockers, actually Nashville session musicians led by Chet Atkins.
“What A Night” is about Rock’n’roll under its different forms: instros (the strange “Ponytail” and the jazz blues of Gatemouth Brown), Rockabilly (Ernie Chaffin with a non Sun single not available on the Bear cd), Hillbilly Boogie (Eskimo Rock), Blues and Rhythm’n’Blues.
Both records come with detailed liner notes and photos.

variouscollectorschoice_5boogiewoogiefeverVolume 5 – Boogie Woogie Fever
El Toro ETCD CH105
1. Coal Miners Boogie – The Singing Miner (George Davis) – 2. Black Berry Boogie – Outpost Scotty and his Ramblers – 3. Dallas Boogie – Freddy Dawson – 4. Drop In Boogie – Bob Presley – 5. Boogie Woogie Square Dance – Jim Boyd and his Men from theWest – 6. Pisto Boogie – Dude Martin – 7. Steamboat Boogie – Ricky Riddle – 8. Ghost Town Boogie – Orville Newby and the Saddle Serenades – 9. Blue Hen Boogie – Tex Daniels and his Lazy Ranch Boys – 10. Hot Rod Boogie – Dorse Lewis “The Scared Coal Miner” and the Shadow Mountain Boys – 11. Mule Boogie – Jack Shook – 12. The Shot Gun Boogie – Outpost Scotty and his Bar-X-Boys – 13. Billy Goat Boogie – Red Sovine – 14. Food Plan Boogie – Jacoby Brothers – 15. Houn’ Dog Boogie – Sheldon Gibbs and the Arizona Ranch Boys – 16. Nail Drivin’ Boogie – Curley Smith and Blue Mt. Boys – 17. Hart’s Boogie – Curley Hickson and Band – 18. Straw Brown Boogie – Dick Spain with the Boogie Valley Boys – 19. Highall Boogie – Richard Prine and his All Stars – 20. Eskimo Boogie – Betty Jo & Johnny Starr
The new volume of this collection is entirely devoted to Boogie Woogie. It seems that, at one time, everybody and his cousins recorded boogie woogie following the path of Tennessee Ernie Ford (whom 2 covers are included here). Maybe 20 country boogie in a row would sound too much but the selection is well done and avoids as possible repetitions. Okay it follows more or less the same pattern but the instrumentations are varied (steel, guitar, fiddle, accordion, piano you name it…) as well as the tempos.
It goes from the raw sound of George Davis the Singing Miner to the more polished arrangement ala Spade Cooley of Jim Boyd, brother of western swing bandleader Bill Boyd and one time member of Roy Newman’s band and he Light Crust Doughboys.
A good overview of a major subgenre of hillbilly music, that comes with an informative booklet.

variouscollectorschoice_6boppinhitparadeVolume 6 – Boppin’ Hit Parade
El Toro ETCD CH106
1. Kaw-Liga – Delbert Barker – 2. Weary Blues – Delbert Barker – 3. Go, Boy, Go – Bob Sandy & The Rhythm Rangers – 4. Hep Cat Baby – Rusty Howard& The Rhythm Rangers – 5. Hearts Of Stone – Delbert Barker – 6. Live Fast – Love Hard – Die Young – Marlon Raimey With The Country All-Stars – 7. I Forgot To Remember To Forget – Bob Sandy & The Rhythm Rangers – 8. Cry, Cry, Cry – Bob Sandy & The Rhythm Rangers – 9. Folsom Prison Blues – Bob Sandy & The Rhythm Rangers – 10. Blue Suede Shoes – Hank Smith & The Nashville Playboys (Leon Payne) – 11. There You Go – Arkie Small – 12. Honky Tonk Man – Charlie Chain With The Gateway All-Stars – 13. I’m A One Woman Man – Jack Williams & The Nashville Playboys (Leon Payne) – 14. Uncle Pen – Al Runyon With The Gateway All-Stars – 15. 20 Feet Of Muddy Water – Dixie 508 -Uncredited Artist (Leon Payne Or Eddie Noack) – 16. My Baby Left Me – Rusty Howard& The Rhythm Rangers – 17. Geisha Girl – Dixie 526 – Uncredited Artist (Country Johnny Mathis) – 18. Invitation To The Blues – Dixie 536 Uncredited Artist (Eddie Noack) – 19. Gonna Give Myself A Party – Dixie 536 Uncredited Artist (Eddie Noack) – 20. Alone With You – Dixie 537 Uncredited Artist (Eddie Noack)

The 6th volume of this serie is a collection of top hits cut by obscure artist for budget label. The evidence forces to say that most, if not all, suffer from the comparison with the original (in a way it sounds suicidal to cover Hank Williams) but some deliver a certain charm that belongs to weird and even amateurish things (like B-movies if you want). Others are terrible failure but none the less fascinating (the musical equivalent to Ed Wood if you want to stick with the movie metaphor). Hank Smith (aka Leon Payne) plays Blue Suede Shoes with a rather unrehearsed band that doesn’t seem to know where the breaks are, Bob Sandy has a very personnal conception of tempo, too bad his band doesn’t share his view and My Baby Left Me by Rusty Howard is totally insane (but would almost make the Legendary Stardust Cowboy jealous).
It may not be the best of the serie in term of musicianship but it’s probably one of the most interesting.

Arty Hill & the Long Gone Daddys

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Arty Hill
Arty Hill – Back on the Rail

Arty Hill & the Long Gone Daddys – Back on the rail

Cow Island Music CIM12 {2005}
Living on the Road Again – Jackson Shake – Me & My Glass Jaw – Big Daddy’s Rye – I Left Highlandtown – Based on Real Life – It Ain’t Working – Drifting In – Back On The Rail – I Ate Through the Jail -Tammerlane – When The Sparks Come Falling Down

First issued in 2005, Arty Hill’s debut album is now reissued by the fine folks at Cow Island, and it’s a nice addition to their catalog that already counts The Starline Rhythm Boys, The Dixons, Nate Gibson, Lil Mo in their rank.
On this entirely self-penned album, this three piece band (accoustic rhythm guitar, twangy lead guitar and drums) mixes with success straight Honky Tonk (Me & My Glass Jaw, Drifting In), uptembo numbers with a good dose of rockabilly (Big Daddy Ryes, It Ain’t Working and I Ate Through The Jail based upon a Scotty Moore kind of guitar lick.), and country ballads with solid and intelligent lyrics.
Musically, they are a very cohesive trio : Arty has the perfect voice for that kind of stuff that reminds me a bit of Cam Wagner from Jimmy Roy’s Five Stars Hillbillies (by the way what happened to Cam?). Dave Chappell’s telecaster embellishes the tracks with tasty licks, his guitar talks, answers to Arty, makes you cry, man ! this piece of wood is alive. Last but not least, Craig Stevens. There’s no need of flashy drumming for this kind of music, Craig’s style is spare but efficient and fits completely with the rest.
This is what country music should be : real music by real people for real folks.
Available here.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis


Arty Hill - Montgomery on my Mind
Arty Hill – Montgomery on my Mind

Arty Hill & the Long Gone Daddys – Montgomery On My Mind

Cow Island CIM015 {2009}
Church On Saturday Night – Pan American – I Can’t Help It – I’m A Long Gone Daddy – Don’s Bop – Lovesick Blues – Take This Chains From My Heart – Montgomery On My Mind

Coming from Cow Island your finest purveyor of today’s true country music and Arty Hill comes this tribute to one of the greatest songwriter of all times: Hank Williams. And one couldn’t imagine a better band to do this than the one called the Long Done Daddies, don’t you think?
The good thing is that they never try to recreate Hank’s sound. They play Williams songs their own way. “Pan American” is driven by a hot fiddle (played by guest Patrick McAvinue) echoed by a solid dobro, for a very “bluegrassy” result. Their take on “Lovesick Blues” is in the same vein, almost all acoustic.
I couldn’t believe you could bring something to the near perfection of “I Can’t Help It”. But Arty Hill did, and as incredible as it may sound, it seems evident. They muscle “I’m A Long Gone Daddy” and turn it into a rockin’ number. More surprising (but a good surprise), they apply the same treatment to “Take These Chains From My Heart”.
Another proof of their talent is the three originals they wrote that perfectly blend with Williams’ songs. “Church On Saturday Night” is a tribute to the glorious days of Country Music and the Grand Ole Opry. With lyrics like “Now they can take the Opry / Make it slick and loud / slap it on a T-shirt and sell it to the crowd / but that don’t make Country” you’re sure that this culture is in good hands (and I bet Dale Watson would have loved to write such lyrics).
“Montgomery On My Mind” is a beautiful love songs that takes place in Montgomery, hometown of Williams and “Don’s Bop” is an instrumental tribute to Don Helms, steel guitar player in the Drifting Cowboys.
Hank would sure be very proud.
Available here.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis