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Tower Takes Texas By Storm - Presented By Rounder Records - Various
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Texas: A Musical Celebration... 150 Years
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Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
Texas: A Musical Celebration... 150 Years at 2005-09-17
Track Listing:1. Asleep At The Wheel: Miles And Miles Of Texas2. T. Gozney Thornton: Strawberry Stallion 3. Rusty Wier: Dont It Make You Wanna Dance4. Ruben Y Alfonso Ramos And The Texas Revolution: La Bamba5. Karen Kraft: Feets 6. Mickey Newbury: Wish I Was 7. Rusty Wier: Black-Eyed Susan 8. Eliza Gilkyson: Rosie Strike Back9. Alex Harvey: Ruben James 10. Ray Wylie Hubbard: Texas Is A State Of Mind11. Mack Abernathy: Pocket Rocket Ranger 12. Roy Head: Treat Her Right13. Johnny Dee And The Rocket 88s: Why Do Foods Fall In Love?14. Skeet Anglin: So Long 15. Ray Wiley Hubbard: Up Against The Wall Redneck Mother16. Johnny Gimble: Under The X In Texas 17. Ruben Y Alfonso Ramos And The Texas Revolution: Volver Volver18. Alex Harvey: Going Home
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Editorial:
Created by Moonlight Entertainment Sales
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Snake Farm
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Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
Share this album with musician friends at 2006-06-30
Being here in Georgia, I get the opportunity to expose folks to some of the music I get to hear when working in Texas. Snake Farm, and Ray Wylie Hubbard in general, is best played for folks who know, and can hear, the talent in the songwriting and the musical licks. Grab a smoke and some brown liquor and play this one twice through.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
Middle-of-the-night music, fuel for bonfires, dice, and showdowns at 2006-07-14
Ray Wylie Hubbards Snake Farm is one evil, growling monster of a record, a finely focused muscular effort that effuses grit, malice, and funk. The sound ripples with thick, raw grooves that compliment the subject matter: the devil, women, redemption and damnation, hexes, and guitars. Clearly, this stuff is middle-of-the-night music, fuel for bonfires, dice, and showdowns. Though Mr. Hubbards considerable sense of humor and keen wit are not lost, his music has changed a great deal. To see how dramatically Mr. Hubbards, listen to Dangerous Spirits, a much more freewheeling, country-laced sound. More specifically, compare the earlier, lilting version of Resurrection with the darker vibe that runs through the same song on Snake Farm.Nearly all the tracks feature Hubbard along with a now familiar cast of characters: his producer and guitar player Gurf Morlix, stalwart Rick Richards on drums, and steady George Reiff on bass. A smattering of guests keep matters interesting without altering the focus.Time to get yourself down to the Snake Farm.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
More Growl than Growl at 2006-06-29
Ray continues move away from folk/country style music to a more roots blues sound. If you liked RWHs Growl you will love this one. Greasy backwoods roadhouse southern fried blues. Gurf Morlix guitar and production work with RWH is fantastic. RWH is an American roots music treasure who keeps getting better with age.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
Snake Farm-tastic at 2006-07-12
I thought Delirium Tremolos was the ultimate display of Ray Wylie Hubbards style and talent, then I listened to Snake Farm. Wow! I didnt think RWHs essence could be distilled down any further after DT, but with Snake Farm I was hooked from the first riff and didnt come up for air until the cd changer kicked in at the end. This stuff is 100 proof Hubbard. Honey, its all good, down to the last drop.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
Love at first note... at 2006-07-15
I cant get this cd out of my player. I love Austin music and Ray is the best. The swampy, sultry sound can take you away. The lyrics are amazing and certain lines stick in my head. Amazing stuff and a far cry from Up Against the Wall Redneck Mothers although I like that too.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Editorial:
To listen to Ray Wylie Hubbards iSnake Farm is to enter an eerie netherworld populated by dark and fascinating characters some of whom are creepy enough to give you the shivers. The sandpaper-voiced Hubbard a Texas songwriting legend works a primal greasy groove with these bluesy portraits starting with Ramona the dancing tattooed reptile-house worker of the unforgettable title track. Snake Farm hypnotically mixes slithering images of sex fear revulsion and humor especially when Hubbard lets out a shimmering and menacing shudder of disgust. (Snake farm / It just sounds nasty / Snake farm / Purty much is.) Guitar gunslinger Seth James sharpens the fine point on the stiletto that helps make these songs so lethal but throughout Hubbard strives for a tone of decadent elegance whether evoking polecat love or the sideshow thievery of Rabbit (Theres two kinds of people in the world / The day people and the night people / Its the night peoples job / To get the day peoples money). Produced by the masterful Gurf Morlix who keeps things lean foreboding and roadhouse rough the album sounds as if it were recorded in a room lit only by a naked 90-watt bulb--the perfect atmosphere in which to conjure songs of sin deceit and subterranean shenanigans. By records end redemption appears in a gonzo-ized telling of the Christ tale (Resurrection). But the Devil holds center stage until then particularly on The Way of the Fallen inspired by Dantes iInferno and on the Joseph Campbell mythology of Wild Gods of Mexico which involves a graphic canine sacrifice. Like iReservoir Dogs the Quentin Tarantino classic Hubbard references in another humorous--if complex--example of women sex and revulsion iSnake Farm is not for the faint of heart. But fans of lowlife chic and exemplary Texas songwriting should lap this up quicker than cold longnecks and hot chicken-fried steak. Alanna Nash
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Delirium Tremolos
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Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
I took a chance on this guy at 2006-06-05
I was shopping for some new music in the Americana section and I picked up this CD and I dont know, for some reason it really appealed to me, so I bought it, which I usually wont do on a whim because I dont like wasting my money on music I dont like. I loved this CD immediately and have really been drawn to it more and more. Rays voice is very haunting, the music is fantastic, and to me it has this Pentacostal-RebelReligion-Hillbilly type feel with a message and I LOVE IT, reminds me of Lucinda Williams (Get Right With God). I would highly recommend this album. I am definitely going to check out more of his music.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
Really a good recording with one exception at 2006-05-11
Ray Wylies recording of (mostly) other peoples music is a lot better than I expected. I guess Im still shaking my head over those 70s albums made by Billy Joe Shaver and Guy Clark when their record companies had them record song they didnt write themselves. But this time, it works and it works outstandingly well.The one exception is the James McMurtry song at the end. Like a lot of JMcMs stuff, it begins with a good foundation, then quickly goes to hell and then keeps on going well past the point of being an embarassment. Choctaw Bingo is the longest cut on the recording. Its also unfocused, disoriented, disorganized and certainly the weakest of the songs.But what the heck. Ray Wylies able to make anything sound good. Id even consider buying a recording of We Are The World if Ray Wylie sang it! (Not that he ever would, of course.)Four stars--coulda been five.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
cooler-n-hell indeed. at 2006-03-10
an amazing cd. not a bad song on it. i would recommendit to anyone. another great texas artist.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
One cooler-n-hell recording at 2005-09-14
Ray Wylie Hubbard together with coconspirator and producer Gurf Morlix has one cooler-n-hell recording on his hands with Delirium Tremolos. At Gurfs sage urging, Mr. Hubbard interprets seven songs of various peers and contemporaries, as well as three of his own, and hits the bulls eye on each, finding a groove and digging deep. I cant see any reason to try a play-by-play recap here, for hearing the session as a whole seems the best course, yet savoring each track for its own merits also hits the mark. The recording itself is crystal clear, allowing one to appreciate Rick Richards excellent drumming, the subtle interplay of guitars, the contrasting background vocals, or the authority Mr. Hubbard imparts to these tales of passion, hard living, and, yes, having a good time.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
A Fine Release From One of Texas Holy Songwriting Trinity at 2005-03-29
Texas seems to produce an awful lot of singer-songwriter story telling types, and Ray Wylie Hubbard ranks right up there with Robert Earl Keen Jr and James McMurtry as one of the best.I am not originally from Texas, but I have been aware of Hubbards songwriting genius since Jerry Jeff Walker introduced him to the wider world back in the mid-70s with a cover of the riotous Redneck Mother. Since that time, I have been an occasional fan, picking up a Hubbard CD here and there as I became aware of a new release.Delirium Tremolos is no different. A friend who is a regular buyer of Hubbard recordings alerted me to this about a month ago and told me how much he enjoyed it, so I gave it a shot.As you might already know from the industry blurb or from other sources, this is a collection of mostly cover songs written by somewhat obscure songwriters, some of whom are unfamiliar to me. Thats OK, I like to find hidden treasures, and there are a lot to discover on Delirium Tremolos.My favorites are Eliza Gilkysons The Beauty Way, Roger Tillisons Rock and Roll Gypsies, Gurf Morlixs Torn In Two, the Hubbard/Canada joint composition Cooler-N-Hell, and James McMurtrys epic Choctaw Bingo. That last I like specially because of its wry humor and because I know all the places mentioned in the song. Though Id yet to hear McMurtry sing Choctaw Bingo himself, the way it is written has McMurtry all over it. To add to the listeners enjoyment, Hubbard brings in McMurtry to play guitar on this rendition.I also like Dust of the Chase, though it took me a while to warm to the version here. The original is on Loco Gringos Lament, and in my opinion, is the best song Hubbard has ever written!If you are into alt-country outlaw type music, you are sure to like Delirium Tremolos whether or not you have heard Hubbard before. Give it a shot, you cant go wrong.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Editorial:
Texas troubadour Ray Wylie Hubbard offers originals and interpretations of writers such as Eliza Gilkyson Roger Tillison James McMurtry Woody Guthrie and Slaid Cleaves. Out of many voices hes crafted an album uniquely his own. Tearing down the road fending off sin or welcoming it into the living room shaking off the blues and seeking salvation wherever he can find it Hubbard understands what he calls the head of the rock n roll gypsies and no matter who wrote the tale he knows how to bring it to life with a deep-focus emotional honesty that hits the heart dead center.
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Editorial:
Though Ray Wylie Hubbard ran with the rowdiest in progressive country through the 1970s when he fronted the Cowboy Twinkies and wrote (Up Against the Wall) Redneck Mother he has since matured into one of the most reflective of Texas troubadours. Following a pair of bluesier releases Hubbard returns to his folk roots with a collection that could pass as a Lone Star coffeehouse hootenanny. He applies his warm weathered voice to Drivin Wheel (popularized by Tom Rush) harmonizes with Eliza Gilkyson on her bittersweet The Beauty Way and collaborates with Cross Canadian Ragweeds Cody Canada on the hipsters credo Cooler-N-Hell. A hallelujah chorus including Gilkyson Patty Griffin Slaid Cleaves and Bob Schneider transforms a Woody Guthrie lyric into an a cappella spiritual (This Morning I Am Born Again) while the acoustic rendition of Roll and I Tumble evokes the rural roots of the blues standard. Though this collection spotlights Hubbard more as an interpreter than a songwriter he revisits his outlaw days with Dust of the Chase and Dallas After Midnight trading verses with Jack Ingram on the latter. The album pulls out all the stops on the eight-minute closer Choctaw Bingo powered by the dual guitars of songwriter James McMurtry and producer Gurf Morlix. Its reckless spirit suggests that Hubbard hasnt totally settled down. Don McLeeseI
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Live at Cibolo Creek Country Club
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Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Review:
Rowdy tunes and dark power ballads at 2005-05-29
One of the reasons to buy this CD is to hear the only readily available recording of Ray Wylie Hubbard singing his 1970s anthem, Redneck Mother. Its the last tune on the CD, called Obligatory Encore. Rays apologetic about the song -- but he admits to enjoying the royalty checks. Another reason to buy this live recording is to get some impression of Ray Wylie Hubbard, the man. Hes a humorous, self-deprecating, down home Texan, although Id hold on closely to my wallet while talking to him and I wouldnt try to impress him by quoting Rilke or other philosophers. He might know more about the subject than I do. You might get tired of Redneck Mother after a few replays but what Ray calls with tongue in cheek the dark power ballads on this CD are outstanding. There are six of them of which my favorite is probably There are Some Days with its strong vocal and gorgeous mandolin and steel guitar backing by Stephen Bruton and Lloyd Maines. Just about as good is Ballad of the Crimson Kings with Lisa Mednicks voice moderating Hubbards low growl. Lloyd Maines dobro on Last Younger Son put it in the must-hear category. Rays own folksy, acoustic guitar playing is strong throughout. Hubbard is one hell of a good songwriter, guitarist, and singer -- although he probably reduces his claim for consideration as a serious musician with his excursions into rowdydom and humor with Redneck Mother and, more recently, Screw You, Were from Texas. I cant think of anyone whod be more fun to see and hear and, if youre into existential philosophy, you could probably write a dissertation about the religious images in his tunes.Smallchief
Ray Wylie Hubbard Album Editorial:
Mr. Hubbard has gone the independent route and come out with a self-produced almost completely self-written effort Lost Train of Thought (he gets extra points for a great title.) The songs range from enjoyable to downright excellent; the arrangements are lean but livened by the bluesy presence of another local heavyweight guitarist Bugs Henderson. Mr. Hubbard shows a knack for picking fine duet partners from Willie Nelson on These Eyes to Becky Lane on Portales. But the most striking part of Lost Train of Thought is Mr. Hubbards own voice. His songs about regret and loss are considerably better than what you currently hear on the radio on those subjects. And he sings about being in love and just plain being alive with a conviction that makes you suspect hes faced the alternative. Renee Clark-Dallas Morning News. Songs include: Here Comes The Night Sweet Lips Goodbye Basic of Love These Eyes (Duet with Willie Nelson) When She Sang Amazing Grace Runaway Freight Train Portales Rockabilly Rock Love in Vain Twist of Fate Wanna Rock and Roll
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