Outlaws-Its About Pride

Its about pride

If you like Southern Rock or love great vocal harmonies and blistering guitars than this album is a must. I bought it that night because this line up was phenomenal in concert. You have to see them in concert your jaw will drop! I have been an Outlaws fan since 75 so I wasn't expecting too much from the album, but was I surprised. I have not listened to an album this much probably in at least 15 years. It brought back memories of when I was a kid. Remember when you would buy a new album and then play it over & over again until the grooves wore out? That's how this album was for me. The opening track gets me pumped up. I listen to it on my way to play my sporting activities. It's kind of a history of the Outlaws. My son even figured out how to play it on his guitar, but not the solo's yet. Too fast! The lyrics on this album are very good too, especially the title track where the Outlaws pay tribute to Southern Rock. Every song on this album is very, very good. There's 3 different lead vocalists on this album. I always loved that about the Outlaws. Variety! I'll stop there, because I can easily go on & on about this album. One more thing... The Flame is a great song written in honor of the late great Hughie Thomasson. Green Grass & High Tides Forever!!!

Poco-Forgotten Trail

Forgotten Trail

Poco became more successful in the late seventies, but this collection covers their equally interesting formative years. During that period, their success was modest, so a double-CD seems somewhat generous, but it's all good stuff - and I love the cover picture too.Poco were one of the earliest country rock bands. Most such bands placed the emphasis on the rock rather than the country, but Poco included a steel guitarist in their band to emphasise the country. This may explain why they struggled - rock fans have long regarded the steel guitar as a symbol of what is (to them) everything that is wrong with country music, while country fans (at the time) wouldn't touch country rock. Throughout the period covered by this collection, the steel guitar remained a feature of Poco's music, but it never dominates, always being used effectively and well in just the right places.
The albums represented here are Picking up the pieces (5 tracks), Poco (4 tracks), Delivering (3 tracks), From the inside (3 tracks), A good feeling to know (3 tracks), Crazy eyes (4 tracks), Poco Seven (2 tracks) and Cantamos (3 tracks). The other 11 tracks were recorded during the same period, but did not appear on any album. Some were released as singles, while others were not released at all, or are remixes.
Poco's influence is obvious but hard to measure. Two of their members later joined the Eagles, the most successful country rock band of them all, while other country rock bands of the seventies all owed something to Poco. Today, there are many bands who mix rock and country in various ways, but they also owe something to Poco, either directly or indirectly via other bands.
This mammoth collection, with mammoth liner notes, provides a fascinating insight into the early evolution of country rock. Unlike the mammoth, the music is alive and flourishing.

Black Oak Arkansas-Street Party

Street Party

Arguably their best effort, Black Oak Arkansas was one of the hottest groups around in the mid-70's when they released their sixth album entitled "Street Party" in 1974. Following up on their excellent 1973 release "High On The Hog", "Street Party" continued the pattern of mixing blistering rock tunes with down-home bluegrass-country numbers that was both satisfying and frustrating at the same time. The rock-only crowd (most of my friends at the time) considered tunes like the Caribbean/calypso flavored "Good Good Woman", the chain gang dirge of "Sure Been Workin' Hard", the doleful country offering "Going Home", the odd spiritual pair of tunes both entitled "Brink Of Creation", and the bluegrass-tinged "Everybody Wants To See Heaven" to be novel distractions at best that disturbed the momentum created by the smokin' rock numbers ("Dancing In The Streets", "Sting Me", "Jail Bait", "Son Of A Gun", "I'm A Man", "Dixie", and "Hey Y'All"). Then there were those like me who found this mixture to be an enriching experience and extremely effective inasmuchas it came from a group of seriously good musicians who decided to have some serious fun while putting out a seriously good musical product that didn't have to be taken so seriously to be enjoyed. Thanks to releases like "Street Party", I developed the ability to appreciate other musical genres beyond rock and roll at an earlier age than many of my teenaged counterparts.

And here's a nod to reviewer "mdavis255" from San Antonio for bringing up the comparison to the Darlin family on The Andy Griffith Show. Good call as the scenario you described is quite valid. However, let there be no doubt that BOA are rockers first and foremost who just happen not to have any reservations at all about slipping into their bib overalls and breaking down on some hot and nasty bluegrass and country when the mood hits them.

Bruce Springsteens-Nebraska and Nebraska Demos

Nebraska

 Bruce did a complete 180 and released the dark, brooding Nebraska. Bruce at the time was listening to Woody Guthrie and other depression era folk & blues artists and this album reflects those sounds. The album consists basically of just an acoustic guitar and harmonica and explores subjects such as murder, crime, loss and loneliness. The songs are all sung in the first person and that gives them an intimacy that is rarely felt from an album. Bruce would explore dark subjects on later albums ("Born In The USA" was original recorded for this album), but he never recorded them in such a bare and stark nature. On this album, Bruce asks alot of questions and dares you to search for answers. The search is well worth the time and effort. This album is for true fans only...It was recorded basically in a farm house with an acoustic guitar and a 4-track cassette recorder but the quality of lyrics are SO Springsteen; so stark and simple yet the complexity of the story-telling is truly Springsteen. From the title song "Nebraska" to the beautiful "Mansion on a Hill" each song tells a story in only Springsteen's style. "Johnny 99" is haunting tale of desperation and every man's thoughts and fears. "My Father's House" is a lonely tale weaved between thorns and lonliness. "State Trooper" and "Highway Patrolman" obviously bring thoughts of Springsteen's anguish in his past to song. But in the end, Springsteen does bring a ray of hope through "Reason to Believe."
I love this album - it forces you to be introspective in a high quality, Springsteen kind of way.

Alone at Colts Neck-The Nebraska Demos (Bootleg)

ALONE AT COLTS NECK
While determining the canon of rock n' roll involves a lot more push and shove, Nebraska belongs on that list of great works. Nebraska was a fatal blow to the critical theory that bands must develop by adopting an ever-more-bloated sound (a.k.a. The Sgt Pepper Imperative), it's middle-finger to the music industry's ideal of each album selling more than the last plus it's one of the bleakest critiques of American exceptionalism ever put to tape. In short, it's a sorta like a punk rock album disguised as a set of folk songs. If you've played the damn thing as many time as I have, you'll revel in this bootleg of tracks recorded in and around the same time and place. Some tracks are fragments, other were re-recorded for later albums but all have the spooky intensity that makes Nebraska both a push and a shove.

Outlaws-Diablo Canyon

Diablo Canyon

I'm rarely blown away the first time I hear a CD... in fact, mostly I'm disappointed that the material isn't consistently top-shelf. But, occasionally, my faith in the purity of the music is rewarded. It happened with Travis Tritt's "Down the Road I Go", and lo and behold, it happened again with "Diablo Canyon". How in the world did it happen that it took me 10 years to find out this CD even EXISTED? That's a sad commentary on the big music labels, and another story entirely. Let's get to the main picture here... I could write this review in many different ways. I could say a) Diablo Canyon proves that Hughie Thomasson was the driving talent behind The Outlaws, or b) Diablo Canyon is the missing link between country/southern rock in the 70's/80's and the 21st century, or c) Simply, this CD kicks ass and is the logical progression of The Outlaws into the 21st century, or d) all previous answers are correct. I'll choose d). How rare is it that there are NO weak tracks on a CD? You have it here. Two (of 10) may be "different", but they are solid in their own right. My God! How could it be that there was no followup to this CD?!?!!?? What a damn shame!!!! Where would this music have evolved to in 2004? All I can say is... this CD has my HIGHEST recommendation. It's where Southern Rock should be, it's where Country should be, and it's where YOU should be by 2004 and beyond. If you're a Southern rock fan, a Country fan, an Outlaws fan, and you don't like Diablo Canyon...? Turn in your membership card, 'cause you must be below ground!

Marshall Tucker Band-Still Smokin'

Still Smokin'

This follow-up release to their 1990 offering "Southern Spirit" has the same members of MTB working out on a new batch of tunes.Almost a four star effort falling just shy of the mark on a couple of tunes but generally on target. Not recommended as the starting point for those looking to get to know MTB. There is plenty of that Tucker magic sprinkled throughout this release but it may not connect with everyone in the Tucker fanbase. It all depends on how much "freedom" you are willing to give the guys to play it the way they're feeling at the time. I'm certainly happy to own a copy of this hard to find disc.

The Band-Moondog Matinee

Moondog Matinee

I have seen this record get two stars from rock critics, and for years avoided it despite the greatness of the Band's earlier records simply because I did not believe it to be on a par with the Band's classics. Finally I noticed that it had been remastered and was generally garnering good reviews from those who had bought it (see the other reviews here). So, I sprung for it and couldn't have been happier with the result. Like Lennon's "Rock N Roll," it's a seriously underrated attempt to explore an older style of music after the creation in years past of groundbreaking new work. The Band tackle a style of rock that came about in the 1950s and largely had ended when the psychedelic sound changed rock in the mid-60s. It's lively, bluesy and raw, but with enough polish and musical sophistication to make it interesting. My favorite tracks are the outtakes, like "What am I Living For" and "Shakin'," which I think are significantly better than some of the album tracks and push the disc into solid 5-star territory. If you dig "Get Back" era Beatles, earlier work by the Band, Chuck Berry and very early Elvis, this will likely be a favorite for you as it is for me. Uncertain of their direction and what they were going to do after "Cahoots" The Band did a series of casual sessions recording a variety of oldies some of which they had played when they were Levon and The Hawks and some from further back when they backed Ronnie Hawkins. A small handful were songs that they had never played but admired and had fun playing such were the circumstances that generated "Moondog Matinee"--it was about the fun and if the song felt right.
Perhaps this was an attempt by Robbie Robertson and his bandmates to rediscover their roots and, perhaps, regain some of the inspiration that had made their first three studio albums so memorable but, more than likely, it was ALL of these things. The Band chose carefully covering a wide variety of stuff but picking more obscure songs to remake for the most part (and Robbie Robertson added a bit to "Mystery Train" with Sam Phillips permission).