MMi/y—
"Lucky 7"
Freddie Steady's Wild Country
Amazing Records
****
The mid-1970s saw the
beginning of the watering
down of country music. Artists
like Kenny Rogers and Barbara
Mandrell were releasing
records that sounded more like
middle-of-the-road pop music
than real country.
By the mid-1980s, this
began to change, with artists
like Dwight Yoakam and
Randy Travis returning the
music to its true roots. Since
then, a number of bands
playing traditional country
music have sprung up. One of
these is Wild Country, led by
drummer and vocalist Fred
KRC.
“Lucky 7,” the debut release
by this Austin-based band, is
an album of hard, honky-tonk
country with occasional
touches of Cajun, rockabilly,
blues and rock V roll.
“Lucky 7” opens with the
Cajun-flavored country rocker
“Say You’ll Go,” highlighted
by Bob Loveday’s bayou-style
fiddle playing and Wes
McGhee’s rock/country guitar
work. “Love You Tonight” is
another example of Wild
Country’s blend of Cajun
music with rock ’n’ roll. Here,
McGhee’s guitar takes on a
rockabilly tone, while Geraint
Watkins provides
accompaniment on the
accordion.
Songs like “What I Got” and
“I Like Whiskey” are both solid
country songs that demonstrate
the band’s knowledge of
country styles. The lyrics of “I
Like Whiskey” reveal the roots
of bandleader KRC’s brand of
honky-tonk music, a sound
rooted in the styles of country
legends like George Jones,
Hank Williams and Merle
Haggard.
“High Lonesome, Country
Soul” is an excellent country
ballad, highlighted by KRC’s
wailing vocals and B. J. Cole’s
masterful lap steel work.
KRC is a talented vocalist, as
well as a gifted percussionist. At
various points on the album, he
demonstrates his ability not
only on the drums, but also on
the maracas, rub board and
castanets. McGhee’s versatility
is especially impressive, with
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his knowledge of various styles
of American music.
On the whole, “Lucky 7” is
an album that would appeal
not only to country fans, but to
anyone who appreciates
variety in their music. This
album is one of the best
country albums of the year and
gives listeners an emphatic
reminder of where rock ’n roll
first came from.
Review by Shane Hall
'£ 1. I z A tj I L k y 4 0 \
"Pilgrims"
Eliza Gilkyson
Gold Castle Records
*****
“Pilgrims” is the first album
in seven years by folk/new age
artist Eliza Gilkyson. Here, she
has recorded an album of
outstanding music with brilliant
lyrics that has to be one of the
best albums of 1987.
The record opens with
“Calling All Angels, ” which
introduces us to Gilkyson’s
unique style, a combination of
folk-style acoustic guitar and
synthesizer accompaniment
that avoids the repetitious
droning found in most modem
dance music.
Gilkyson demonstrates that
she is a gifted piano player as
well on songs like “Shadows
and Footprints” and “My Baby
is a Universe. ” On top of her
musical ability, Gilkyson has
one of the finest voices in music
today. Her vocals are of
consistently fine quality
throughout this record.
She is backed up by a
talented group of musicians
playing various instruments
including mandolin, flute,
electric guitar, bass, drums,
synthesizer and piano.
Gilkyson is also a fine lyricist.
Most of the songs on “Pilgrims”
address relationships as an
externalized example of the
imbalance between each
individual’s inner male and
female selves.
The lyrics of “Material Man, ”
the album’s best song, give an
excellent contrast to the
shameless materialism and
yuppie attitudes expressed in
Madonna’s “Material Girl. ”
Here, Gilkyson warns the
“material man” that his planet
is going under and his deadly
ways are numbered.
Despite the meaningfulness
in the lyrics, “Pilgrims” avoids
being a preachy album. Rather,
it is a very enjoyable record
that happens to have a
message in it as well.
The music is consistently
well-played, and should find
favor with fans of new age, folk
and progressive, even though it
is hard to pin down as being
any one of these. It’s just a
good example of some of the
great music in the world today
that needs to be heard.
Review by Shane Hall
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"Three Men and a Baby"
Starring Tom Selleck, Ted
Danson and Steve Gutenberg
Directed by Leonard Nimoy
Rated PG
***
“Three Men and a Baby” is a
comedy whose compelling
drama appeals to the viewer’s
sentimental side. All too often a
film maker will overdo the
handling of genuine, tender
human emotions, and will
commit the crime of
sentimentality.
In this movie, Leonard
Nimoy uses the talented acting
crew of Tom Selleck, Ted
Danson and Steve Gutenberg
to portray three men whose
ideal bachelor lifestyles are
forever changed by the
unexpected arrival of Mary,
Danson’s baby girl.
The men are roommates in a
plush penthouse apartment
designed to satisfy every want
of a somewhat cold and
detached professional life.
Selleck plays an architect,
Danson a struggling actor and
Gutenberg an artist. When
Danson lands a ten-week
acting job in Turkey, he leaves
behind a mysterious message
about a special, secret package.
When Selleck and
Gutenberg find an abandoned
baby on their doorstep with a
note from an old lady friend of
Danson, they assume Mary is
the package Danson spoke of.
Things are not so simple, of
course, as the real package
turns out to be heroin. The
resolution of this problem is too
pat to be believeable, and this
subplot is perhaps the film’s
only major flaw.
Selleck and Gutenberg
know absolutely nothing about
how to care for an infant, and
their initiation into the eating,
“doodling” and crying world of
babies keeps the entire
audience laughing hysterically.
Instead of losing patience, they
gain perspective in the act of
caring and grow to love Mary.
Meanwhile their careers are
going down the tubes. Luckily
Danson comes back early. He,
too, is overwhelmed with the
responsibility of fatherhood,
but Mary works her way into
this heart of stone as well.
Since “Three Men and a
Baby” is third in this year’s line
of baby movies, after “Raising
Arizona” and “Baby Boom,”
the public may be ready to
grow up. But Selleck, Danson
and Gutenberg complement
each other well and combine to
make this comedy a success.
Review by Matt Stewart