Howdy, neighbors!
This is the second page of reviews looking at some of the San Francisco Bay Area's best country & twangcore (and oddball roots and acoustic) bands... A-C | D-L | M-Z & Links |

Jesse DeNatale "Shangrila West" (Jackpine Social Club, 2003)

Johnny Dilks and His Visitacion Valley Boys "Acres of Heartache" (Hightone, 1999)
A powerful debut from this San Francisco Bay Area honkytonker. The most obvious comparison is with Wayne Hancock, whose Hank Williams-y whine is nearly identical, though Hancock is a more powerful and consistent singer. Thematically, Dilks is prone to novelty songs, and he zaps off some doozies, such as the hilarious barfight anthem, "Comin' On Thru," which opens the record. Almost all the tracks are Dilks originals, and range from good old-fashioned romp'n'stomps to softer, Louvins/Everly style weepers. The latter style would work better if Dilks had lined up more sympathetic harmony singers, but all in all, this is a top-notch album. Check it out.

Firecracker "Certain Things Last" (Self-Released, 2003)
Nice, melodic alt.country, very much in the Wilco/Whiskeytown/Jackson Browne mode. These San Francisco citybillies may not be plowing any new ground, but they've got the style down, and it sounds purty nice.

Dave Gleason's Wasted Days "Wasted Days" (Well Worn, 2002)
A nicely-textured, soulful alt-country jam-fest, featuring veteran picker Dave Gleason, of the now-glamorously-defunct Bay Area Mod-punk outfit, the Loved Ones. Backed by a rock-solid ensemble, Gleason blends a sleazy rock vibe into soul-tinged hillbilly romps, tipping his thrift-store Stetson towards British R&B acts like the Stones and Small Faces, and even American southern rockers like Dickie Betts and the Allman Brothers, who are normally verboten in the current canon of cool. The inevitable Gram Parsons comparisons are borne out by the inclusion of "Funky String Quartet," a rarely-heard Parsons demo tune that Gleason learned off of a friend's tightly-guarded tape. The shambolic song wards off the possible objections of rock fans or hillbilly purists, defiantly declaring, "how can you really say what's country music?" as the band performs with the relaxed assurance of savvy players who could care less whether the kids think they're cool or not -- precisely the right attitude needed to make music that matters. Pedal steel player Joe Goldmark anchors the band with an authentic country touch, delivering one of the most elegant, compact performances of his career. There are a few iffy moments, but on the whole this is a very satisfying, richly pleasant album, one of the strongest roots records of recent years. Recommended!

Joe Goldmark "All Over The Road" (Lo-Ball, 1994)
Local pedal steel luminary Joe Goldmark came back from a twelve year studio hiatus to record this excellent album, which may be the best of his career. Plenty of cover tunes, including material from Hendrix, Zappa and Nelson Riddle, including a bunch of R&B tunes and Goldmark originals... What sets this album apart is the solidity of the performance -- on other albums Goldmark frequently slips into goofy arrangements, which can be a distraction. Here, the inventiveness of his pedal steel work is matched by the fluidity of the backup, making this a rather fun record to listen to. (Anyone interested in the pedal steel are well-advised to check out Don't Quit Your Day Job Records and Goldmark's bio page on the Globe Records website, where love of the mutable note is taken to new heights.)

Joe Goldmark "All Hat... No Cattle" (HighTone, 1999)
His first album on the indie dynamo, HighTone Records, finds Goldmark trying out several kinds of world music -- steelified versions of Mexican, Caribbean and African material, as well as covers of rock tunes by the Byrds and The Dead. Yet more inventive instrumental explorations...

Joe Goldmark "Strong Like Bull... But Sensitive Like Squirrel!" (HighTone, 2001)
Another mainly-instrumental outing that features Goldmark's dazzlingly ornate brand of twangy note-bending and steel wizardry. The poppy Mussel Shoals-styled R&B arrangements which he favors throughout might not be to everyone's taste, but Goldmark's fluidity and mastery of the instrument are pretty impressive.

David Grisman -- see artist profile

Tom Heyman "Boarding House Rules" (Innerstate, 2000)
Rockified country with stream-of-consciousness lyrics which call Victoria Williams to mind. Mostly this is pretty nice -- one track with lead guitar by Chuck Prophet is a bit too bombastic, but otherwise this works for me. Sure, if you put a gun to my head and demanded that I tell you what Heyman's songs were about, I'd have a pretty hard time... but his delivery is nice.

Dan Hicks -- see artist profile

J-Bird Hosch & The Kountry Kays "Cat O' Nine Tails" (Dirty Bird Music, 1999)
I gotta say, that as far as the current local scene goes, these folks rank pretty high as far as the picking and twanging goes! Driving, upbeat material with themes both timeless and contemporary. Hosch has a wildly exaggerated Minnie Pearl-ish drawl, but it works pretty well for her material. The songwriting is strong, too -- where she could've quite easily fallen prey to the temptations of kitsch and stereotype, instead J-Bird keeps things pretty straight-ahead and above board. Definitely worth checking out.

Dee Lannon "Honkytonk Nighttime Gal" (Iloki, 1994)
Dee Lannon "Town Casino" (Blue Puffer, 1996)
An irresistibly adorable -- but sometimes uneven -- countrybilly filly with a major Rose Maddox/Wanda Jackson jones... Dee sometimes had trouble balancing out her production, but her choice of material -- especially her originals -- is always first-rate. Word has it that she has been living in Austin for the last couple of years... hey! No fair! We want her back!! (For more info, check out Dee's website.)

Laurie Lewis -- see artist profile

More Local Yokels
Hick Music Index