‘…Dickey aint got all day’ is the debut album from t splendidly-monikered RANDOM CANYON GROWLERS. A band that put the energy, zip and enthusiasm back into bluegrass music (imagine The Pogues as a C & W band). Formed a few years ago by Jamie Drysdale and David McMeekin, who grew up in Vermont, the heart of New England before relocating to Idaho (in the western United States), where they started making a name for themselves at the Jackson Hole Hootenanny, a venue famed for its open mic nights.
The line-up on this album features Jamie Drysdale on guitar/vocals, David McMeekin on banjo/vocals, Matt Donovan on bass, Bryan Paugh on fiddle, and Jon Carl Degroot on lead guitar, along with a few guests on a couple of songs using mandolin, and further guitar and fiddle.
The first thing I noticed about this album was that as well as being very capable musicians, several of the tracks are laced with earthy social commentary and more that a little degree of tongue in cheek humour. This was an album I warmed to from the very start.
The opening track ‘With You Beside Me’, a riot of banjo and fiddle played at breakneck pace, with lyrics that touch upon life, love and work problems: - “I lost my job in the city, my tired hands replaced by a machine/ But I know with you beside me dear, things just aint as bad as they seem/ Well, my hair’s all gone and I’m wilting, watching squirrels in a whirl outside my screen/ But I know with you beside me dear, things just aint as bad as they seem.”
This was a really refreshing start to the album, and injects a real dose of amphetamine into the bluegrass genre!
Following on from this was the equally speedy (these guys are faster than The Ramones) ‘Don’t Ask that Question’, again making good use of banjo, fiddle and guitar. No drums I hear you say? No. The main percussion comes from the slap kick on the upright bass, exactly like it should be, and it really works well. The lyrics here are directed at a nagging and suspicious wife: “Don’t ask me that question, hold your tongue/ You wouldn’t like my answer, you wouldn’t like it none/ Deep, deep down girl, deep inside. If I don’t answer, I never lied.” Once again this is a really brilliant track, the sort that immediately gets your toes tapping, and catches your attention.
|
‘Blood Whistle’ tends to slow things down a little, and gives a cautionary tale about working for The Hawkins Railroad Line. The track opens with the fiddle imitating the train’s whistle, and the lyrics strike right home: - “Well I hear that whistle blow, and the iron starts to roll/ I hear a dark hole cry inside my soul/ Because those boxcars, they are cut by the fires of my brother’s blood/ As they creak and moan on my daddy’s bones.”
Then there's the track ‘Dark As The Night’ a cover of the classic Louvin Brothers song. This opens with a bass solo, and falls into a lazy country groove which suits the song perfectly.
This is a really good value for money LP, with sixteen tracks listed, plus a further eight bonus tracks in tribute to bluegrass greats. The band are, as I write, this doing a tour of the UK and Ireland, so catch them while you can, and definitely buy this album: disappointment certainly doesn't come into it!
|
