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This is another phenomenal album. That having been said, to call this album the weakest is like picking the weakest between Tony Atlas, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and early-80's Stallone. It has one of my favorite renditions of Devil's Dream ever recorded and is, in true HCOC fashion, a genuinely good album. The only reason I give this album four stars instead of five is that it is probably the weakest album out of the five albums they have released. yeah, Stallone would be the weakest, but he's still lightyears tougher than the rest of the folks out there. The point of that little ramble was this: Buy the album, you will be impressed.
They all were veterans of large real sized Western Swing aggregations in NYC and California and Texas. Particularly on the initial records, we are seeing straight up Bob Wills music. Their musical achievement is to do this with a trio. It is simple about which Hot Club CDs to get.
You'd swear there was the usual lineup in Western Swing with a rhythm guitarist playing behind the guitar leads, a drummer, and maybe a rhythm banjo player too and maybe people in a horn or fiddle section playing rhythm riffs when they aren't playing lead. This almost reaches the quality of rhythm reached on the best Western Swing recording in history, the combined work of Eldon Shamblin, Smokey Dacus, and Tommy Allsup on "For the Last Time." That's saying something. They were hotter, looser, and with a fuller repertoire than the recordings they were making for Columbia during these years. The Tiffany transcriptions were records made to be played on radio stations (back when radio stations usually did not play regular retail sold records). The Hot Club of Cow Town is a great band.
She stays hot, but puts a lot of bow into her fiddling and is the apparent star of this band. However, the real greatness here is in the rhythm section. However, Elena gets a bigger richer more musically fluent sound. The Hot Club picks up this music so well, and in such a lively spirit without being directly imitative that on some selections here I expect to hear Bob Wills, Joe Holley, or Tommy Duncan singing. They were true to life Western Swing bands, but there aren't a lot of venues that are going to pay enough money for a 7, 8.
Being an inspiring wannabe baby steps fiddler, I really in love with Elena's work on all the albums. After hearing the wonderful version of Sally Goodin here, that almost measures up to the version Bob Wills put on his Tiffany Transcriptions, there was no way I could live without this CD. How do they do it. Just a guitarist and bassist.
Yet, it is just a bassist and a guitar player. Their rhythm is not merely good as what Wills had during his Tiffany recordings, it is much better. Buy them all.
The sound and most of the selections come from Bob Willis's great Tiffany Transcriptions of the mid 1940s. Maybe you might even get one or two extra. or 9 piece bands to support its members, a factor that helped Rock and Roll get rid of lots of Western Swing, Big Band swing, and R & B groups in the 1950s, a trio or foursome is just cheaper to hire than a mini orchestra.
She takes a lot of her lead from the great Joe Holley's solos and obligatos with Wills in the 40s and when he rejoined the Playboys in the early 1960s. The guest appearance of cornetist Peter Ecklund and late 1940s, early 1950s Bob Wills steel guitarist Bobby Koefert on some cuts here is wonderous. Buy, em, hear em send em money
It's really impossible to go wrong with any of the Hot Club's CDs, but I think Dev'lish Mary still ranks as my sentimental favorite since it was the first one I bought. There's also some frenzied gypsy music thrown in for good measure. The sound is equal parts Bob Wills and Django Reinhardt. This album is a good mix of mid-tempo swingers (It's My Lazy Day and When the Bloom is on the Sage stand out), and barn burners (like Little Liza Jane). It's all played flawlessly with great energy. My personal favorite is their take on Stardust which really ranks as THE most beautiful version of this song I have ever heard.
Fun new swing group - this album is one that will run for a while without getting tired.
Play it in your car and you'll be rollin' down the wide open road with your foot a-tappin'. The fiddle/guitar interplay on several of the songs is very nice as are many of the guitar and fiddle solos.
3 pieces - swinging fiddle, hot guitar, and rock-steady upright bass. Part Django and part Western Swing, Hot Club of Cowtown brings it all home with arrangements including "Dev'lish Mary", "When the Bloom is on the Sage", and the classic "Stardust".
Hot Club of Cowtown is an amazing band. If you ever get the chance to see Hot Club of Cowtown live, go to their gig by all means.
The band is joined by first rate sidemen. The trumpet (used on a few songs) provides a great traditional jazz feel.
This is music that is rarely heard on the radio, so do yourself a favor and buy this CD. Perfect for that big Route 66 roadtrip that you've been thinking about.
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