Terry Allen -- see artist profile
Duane Allman "An Anthology" (Capricorn, 1972)
A fine retrospective that spotlights the late Duane Allman's session work outside of the raucous confines of the well-known Allman Brothers Band. Besides the Southern rock and blues workouts, there are some sweet, acoustic-based gems such as "Please Be With Me," by the band Cowboy, and the Allman Bros instrumental, "Little Martha," which is an eternally soothing, mellow melody. Some of the funky roots riffs and slide routines have grown stale through overexposure and imitation (if I never, ever, ever, ever hear "Layla" again, it'll be too soon...) though it's still cool hearing Allman backing up the likes of Wilson Pickett, Aretha Franklin and Clarence Carter... And as an historical testament to one of the finest whiteboy blues players ever, this is a pretty swell 2-CD set. If you're unfamiliar with his legacy, this collection is the place to start.
Amazing Rhythm Aces "Stacked Deck" (ABC, 1975)
Amazing Rhythm Aces "Too Stuffed To Jump" (ABC, 1976)
One of the best country soul/southern rock crossover bands, the Aces featured the vocal talents of Russell Smith (as distinctive a voice as you could ever hope for) and pianist James Hooker (who later became Nanci Griffith's bandleader and arranger). Although they have more than their fair share of super-goofy '70s moments, they also had plenty of solid, fabulously well-produced tunes. Their big Top 40 hit was "Third Rate Romance," with a singalong chorus that's still as catchy today as it was in '75. But there are plenty of other goodies in their catalog, particularly "Typical American Boy," one of the great dopey redneck ballads of all time.
Asleep At The Wheel -- see artist profile
Hoyt Axton "Road Songs" (A&M, 1977)
Hoyt Axton "The A&M Years" (Polygram, 1998)
The late Hoyt Axton was a uniquely likeable and intelligent performer, as well as the son of songwriter Mae Axton, who hit the bigtime with her rock standard "Heartbreak Hotel," the schmaltzy old Elvis hit. Hoyt followed in her footsteps, recording folk-tinged material in the early '60s, then had a big hit of his own when Three Dog Night recorded "Joy To The World," and eventually settled into a vaguely good-old-boy-ish, humor-filled persona that suited his warmly rounded, grandfatherly voice. The Road Songs LP is a killer best-of with only, like, two songs on it that I don't care for... And the ones that I like? Awesome! "Boney Fingers," "Flash of Fire," "When The Morning Comes," and the ever-popular "No No Song"... this album rocks! And with friends like Linda Ronstadt, Nicolette Larson and James Burton hanging out -- why not? I dunno why A&M doesn't just reissue that collection as is, but the current CD best-ofs are fine, too. Oh, yeah...! I forgot to mention Axton's acting career: he's the sweet-tempered, seen-it-all-before grandfather in the 1984 horror comedy, Gremlins.
Hoyt Axton "Gotta Keep Rollin': The Jeremiah Years" (Raven, 1999)
These are later recordings that Axton made on his own Jeremiah label (named, of course, after the famous bullfrog, who was a good friend of Hoyt's...) Plenty of good stuff here, too, ranging from Axton originals such as "Della And The Dealer" and "Boney Fingers," to oldies like "The Battle Of New Orleans." This Aussie import is currently the closest thing to the old Road Songs LP, and is definitely worth tracking down.
The "twangcore" and "Americana" boom of today owes a large debt to the shaggy twangers and no-hit wonders of yesteryear, the stoners and rowdies of the counterculture who grooved on the classic country sounds laid down before Nashville sold its soul on the altar of countrypolitan easy listening. It was the hippies and weirdos who made country music safe again and -- more importantly -- made it fun. Some of their efforts were less than stellar, but many songs were sublime, and for years they were staples of freeform radio. Sadly, now that deregulation has made radio in America so boring and savagely stagnant, it's practically impossible to hear any of these artists on the air anymore. But you can still run to your local independent record store and ask for...
