Mike Cooley - The Fool On Every Corner

While Patterson tends to get a lot of the limelight in the Drive By Truckers franchise, those that have been around from the jump know that our dear Mr. Hood co-founded DBT a million years ago with Mike Cooley in the wake of the dissolution of their previous band Adam's House Cat (and those that aren't crazy about the DBT appellation should be informed that the band was formally dubbed Horse Pussy).

Post DBT blow-up, Patterson has dropped a couple solo records and maintained a pretty busy solo touring schedule, but Cooley has played the back, playing the odd solo show here and there, but never releasing a formal solo disc. Consider that rectified, as Cooley has released The Fool On Every Corner on his own eponymous imprint. Recorded solo, live and acoustic in front of crowds in Atlanta and Athens early last year, the record features new interpretations of 11 DBT Cooley favorites like Loaded Gun In The Closet and 3 Dimes Down, along with a Charlie Rich cover and a new track called Drinking Coke and Eating Ice.

The Fool On Every Corner is pretty decent. Frankly, I had hoped for a little more. Not for nothing, but those that are proponents of the great Sloan Simpson and his Southern Shelter web presence have arguably better versions of the tracks here. That said, the arrangements are definitely different, so completists and long-time Cooley marks should step lively if they haven't already. Cooley seems to be in good humor and his banter remains priceless, regardless of your personal feelings about banjos and the men who play them. Personally, I find the crowd(s) more than a little bit irritating, but I think we all know that JS-NYC maintains a pronounced level of old-guy intolerance in the best of times, so take that with a grain of salt and don't postpone joy if the prospect of this little bit of digital delight chuffs you.

Get The Fool On Every Corner here.

R

Live DBT @ Skyscraper

All:

My review of the record release show at Bowery for the latest Drive By Truckers record Go-Go Boots is up currently at Skyscraper.

Here's a link.

Thanks to Traci Thomas at Thirty Tigers for the guest list, ATO for the spot and Andrew at Skyscraper.

R

DBT at Skyscraper

All:

Review of the 2011 installment of awesome new DBT record, this one called Go-Go Boots, is up currently at the Skyscraper web presence.

Here's a link.

Look for a review of the NYC Go-Go Boots record release show at Skyscraper soon.

Thanks to Andrew Bottomley at Skyscraper and Traci Thomas at Thirty Tigers.

R

Drive By Truckers - The Big To-Do

Drive By Truckers are pretty funny. They tour heavily and are forever proclaiming that they'll be taking some time off after their next release. Patterson is saying it again, yet DBT are releasing not one, but two, band records this year as well as solo records from Patterson and Cooley. That'll keep them at home.

The Big To-Do is the first DBT release of 2010. It features the usual three-way split of songs between Patterson, Cooley and Shonna. I think Cooley comes out on top again, but much like The Beatles, it's choose your own adventure time when it comes to favoritism in the Drive By Truckers franchise. Birthday Boy is my pick for the Cooley high point, but the quiet closer Eyes Like Glue is another strong contender.

As far as Patterson, he can still paint a picture like no other, but there are a few moments on The Big To-Do where his vocals gets uncomfortably Tom Petty for these ears. Don't get me wrong. I'm a huge Tom Petty fan, but I don't know how much I want to hear Patterson sing like him. But maybe that's just me. It'll be interesting to see how things go when DBT and Tom Petty tour together this summer. That small niggle aside, he and Shonna more than hold their own here, and record number ten marks another great release from Drive By Truckers. They are indisputably up there with Lucero and The Hold Steady as the best American bands out there. I'm excited to hear record number eleven this Summer. While you're waiting, look out for the Eddie Hinton 7", a song on the new John Prine tribute and the new documentary The Secret To A Happy Ending (now in limited theatrical release).

R

Another Patterson Hood live set at Southern Shelter

Man, Southern Shelter is definitely giving us something to be thankful for this year. I guess we can probably thank Patterson, too. Is typical JS-NYC bass-ackwards fashion, here's a link to the first of the three Wednesday night hometown residency shows at The Caledonia. The opening night was billed as "Onward Out The Window (New And Used Songs - Stripped Down To Piano and Guitar)". Newish DBT cohort Jay Gonzales holds the piano role down for the most part, but Patterson does tickle the ivories for a song or two. Solid all around, with the inimitable Patterson banter in full effect. Peep it here.

R

Patterson Hood live set at Southern Shelter

Hey Kids:

The good folk of Southern Shelter have been posting the live shows Patterson and his Athens auxiliary have been playing during their month-long residency at Caledonia Lounge. This one features some of his more country oriented material. Patterson was sick, but still managed to deliver the goods. Get the skinny on the two new DBT records coming next year and hear some rare stuff via this handy link.

R

Drive By Truckers - The Fine Print (A Collection Of Oddities and Rarities 2003-2008)

Drive By Truckers have been pounding it out for years now with an intensity rivaling punk bands half their age, but without the benefit of rich parents, trust funds and/or showcase nightmares like Warped Tour. Their success has been at the expense of livers, lungs, marriages and record contracts, not to mention band members. The Fine Print collects most of the b-sides and castoffs from their recent (perhaps now over?) New West tenure in a single handy cd collection.

For this asshole, the record is worth it for the opening pair of songs: George Jones Cell Phone Talking Blues has floated around Hood solo shows for years now and the cover of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers Rebels has made the same Bigfoot-esque level of frequency. Having them is easily available form is a very good thing. Here's the rest of the track listing:

1. George Jones Talkin’ Cell Phone Blues
2. Rebels
3. Uncle Frank (alternate version)
4. TVA
5. Goode’s Field Road (alternate version)
6. The Great Car Dealer War
7. Mama Bake A Pie (Daddy Kill A Chicken)
8. When The Well Runs Dry
9. Mrs. Claus’ Kimono
10. Play It All Night Long
11. Little Pony And The Great Big Horse
12. Like A Rolling Stone


Personally, I wondered how much of the material would be from Jason Isbell. His "here's your hat, where's your hurry?" departure from the band and divorce from DBT bassist Shonna Tucker have resulted in Isbell's work being expunged from the DBT live canon. He has but a single track here, in the form of the stellar TVA. Tellingly, it follows an alternate version of DBT co-leader Mike Cooley's Uncle Frank. Both songs address the same issue from different sides. Doing the math, Isbell is gone while Cooley is still around, so it would appear that their differences may have run deeper than the average person could see from the outside. Interpersonal speculation aside, The Fine Print is better and more cohesive than the records most band's releases, even if there are four different singers. Pre-order it from New West here and keep tabs on the new record DBT is allegedly recording here.

R

Patterson Hood - Murdering Oscar (and other love songs)

Hey Kids:

Patterson Hood, who you should know from the Drive By Truckers, has finally got around to recording another solo record. And there was much rejoicing. Patterson is nothing less than prolific when it comes to the songwriting, perhaps to a fault. So many great songs pop up for a tour or two, never to reappear outside of the live trading set. Murdering Oscar has songs that date as far back as the end of Adam's House Cat (Patterson and Cooley's first band from the 80s) and some as recent as the last couple months. All of them are pretty fabulous. A lot of the material reaffirms Hood's love for all things Big Star. Danborn and Johnson of the mighty Centro-matic guest on a lot of the tracks, as does co-producer Dave Barbe. If you like DBT, there is very little chance that you won't enjoy Murdering Oscar. It may be a little bit less rock, and you may miss Cooley and Shonna a little bit, but realize they aren't going anywhere. There's a DBT odds and sods comp coming down the pike in the Fall, and there's always the Booker T. Jones record to tide you over. Carpe Diem, kids. Murdering Oscar (and other love songs) is out now. You can grab it via this handy link. The live show is pretty fierce , too, so stay more than a second or too and peep the tour dates.

R

Live: The Hold Steady with Drive By Truckers 11.7.8

Night two of the Rock and Roll Means Well tour and the Hold Steady were in the headlining slot. I came in while Drive By Truckers were into their first song and was staggered at how much more crowded it was than Thursday night. It made sense, as the shows a couple months ago were packed cheek to jowl. I picked out some real estate and settled in on the Neff side of things so I could be pushed in front of by as many packs of seven or more WFUV subscribers as possible. It's always a pleasure to rock with the non-profit set, let me tell you.

That said, Drive By Truckers sure are great. It had been a while since I had been really excited to see them but these shows have reaffirmed my love for the gents (and lady). Mike Cooley is one bad-ass individual. He's really been hitting them out of the park recently, especially with all the corkers he's got on Brighter Than Creation's Dark.   Patterson dropped science about Southern lithographers, Shonna took a turn at the mike and Johnny Neff killed everybody with his knee-weakening lap steel and killer guitar. I'm pretty sure Dave Marr is in school, but dammit can we get a Star Room Boys reunion already!? Make it happen, Patterson.

I was willing to endure a crappy spot for DBT, but I wasn't going to put up with that shit for a Hold Steady headlining slot. Luckily, I ran into the irrepressible John Cake and a gang of the other Unified Scenesters front and center. While I'm accounting socially, it was great to see Chris, Neil and meet Mr. Circuits from the Twin Cities. I'm not really about the talk at the average rock show, but them's good people. 

I thought that Hold Steady played it a little safe the night before. It was a decent set, but I was pretty sure we had something better than usual in store for us. Boy, was that an understatement.  Lots of b-side stuff: You Gotta Dance (!!!), Adderall, Arms and Hearts, plus the usual brace of absurdly good album cuts. It was hot as hell, and kids need to learn how to dance, but a great set that ended with How A Resurrection Really Feels. 

So then there was the small matter of the encore.  They opened with First Night, I think mostly so Tad could show off his new J-200, but settled into rock mode with Stay Positive. Then things started getting surreal. Craig started playing a familiar riff to the quiet room, then stepped to the mike and sang, "Our band could be your life...". Yep, History Lesson, Pt. 2, with Tad Kubler referenced in the Mike Watt slot. Mindblowing, and wonderfully enough mistaken for a new HS song by the internet set. Maybe that's not so wonderful. Either way, the only way it could have gotten any better was if they maybe played Burnin' For You into Killer Parties. Oh, they did that too. Seriously one of the best rock shows I've ever seen, and I'm old and shit. Just a spectacular bill from two of the best bands out there today.

As an aside, can I take a moment and speak to Dave Hause? Your band is good and you've got ok songs, but you're never going to be Patterson Hood or Craig Finn, so please stop forcing yourself into the picture. It's just embarassing and desperate. Your level of dick-riding makes Jesse Malin's attempts look classy and I shudder to think how much browbeating it took for Dusty to give you Craig's guitar. A guitar you are not fit to wield, my friend. Know your role and stay off the stage, especially when your fucking band isn't even on the damn bill. I'd love to see him try and pull that shit if Cooley was on stage.

That expunged, it was great to see all the Unified Scene kids. That was a hell of a good time. So good of a time that I almost didn't mind it too much when some Sex In The City cast-off doored me off my bike on Avenue A during the ride home. Almost.

See you at the rock show!

R

Live: Drive By Truckers with The Hold Steady 11.6.8

I had been looking forward to this show for a while. My Hold Steady obsession is well documented here, but it has been almost equalled in recent years by my love for Drive By Truckers. My dear friend Steven had introduced me to Patterson at a BBQ joint (on Bleecker Street, bizarrely enough) shortly after I had picked up Alabama Ass Whuppin at Academy. I was pretty damn impressed. It dovetailed nicely with my tenure dating the loveliest woman in North Carolina and seeing the gents in venues ranging from Antones to the house shows like the epic three hour acoustic set the gents played at Pine Hill Farm years ago. 

 I hadn't listened to The Hold Steady for a month or so to heighten the anticipation, with only a brief foray or two into the musical methadone that is the mighty Lifter Puller. The pot was sweetened by Drew and Flynn coming to their first show and the aforementioned Steven and male companion Mike making a rare appearance in NYC with their lady friends as the guest of the Brothers Johnson. Good times, plus there was no small amount of beer to foster a little crowdside bonhomie. 

The Hold Steady were on by 8:15 and played a pretty decent set. If you are a FLAC aficionado, you can get a copy of their set here.  It was most of the new record plus a couple dips into stuff like Cattle and the Creeping Things and The Swish. Terminal 5 has terrible sound, which was a mild bummer, but all in all a good time seem to had by most. Was nice to meet the lovely Joelle again and see some of the Unified Scene kids like John Cake.

Drive By Truckers are pretty great live their own bad selves. They are relentless touring machines that have only slowed somewhat in recent years due to their growing number of offspring. Patterson and Koob have had an on-line love affair for a while now and it only seemed logical that the two would hit the road together eventually. Patterson popped up during The Hold Steady set, grinning his way through a couple tunes and heightening the anticipation for their turn as the headliner. It was a pretty good cross-section of the last few records. Cooley continues to churn out great songs and he's a hell of a player, as is multi-string threat John Neff. Drive By Truckers are a hell of a live force and this night was no exception. I'd say they had the best of the Hold Steady, but both sets were as great as the company.

See you all tonight to do it all over again solo.

R