Richard Cabesa’s Music Blog

 Aaron Watson is the definition of country singer.  He and his band, The Orphans of the Brazos Band, bring the traditional honky tonk sound along with catchy lyrics, but at the same time combines a mainstream radio sound - even if mainstream radio won’t play his music.   His latest album release, Angles & Outlaws, was again produced by good friend Ray Benson of Asleep At The Wheel.  Watson wrote or co-wrote eleven of the fifteen tracks on the album.

The album cranks of with an excellent song called Tulsa.  Tulsa is a love song about an old lover who is being treated poorly by her current lover.  In the song, the singer threatens the current man in her life not to let the sun set on him in Tulsa or he’ll be going down too.  Continuing with the ex-lover them, Whiskey On The Fire is a song about drinking away a past lover.  Clever lyric “you can’t put out an old flame by pouring whiskey on the fire” is an excellent parallel to how drinking makes the pain worse.  Wake Up And Smell The Coffee is a fiddled laced song about not giving up because of a fight.  The message being that lovers can argue and fight, but still be the one for each other, and don’t lose sight of that.  Hence, wake up and smell the coffee.  Heart Of Life is a good song, but I’m not sure it was meant to be country.  I don’t think this is what John Mayer had in mind when he wrote this song.  I would probably like this better if I had never heard the original version because it’s really not that bad.  It’s just how I’m used to hearing the song.  

Love Makin’ Song is cute litte love song.  Personally, I think this should be the next radio release.  This song just has the “it” factor and Watson nails it.  Very good stuff.  Breaker Breaker One Nine is a humorous love song co-written by Jerry Reed.  Yes, that Jerry Reed, and you can definitely hear the Reed influence in this song.  Can’t Be A Cowboy Forever is a song about a Cowboy in love with being a Cowboy, similar to George Strait’s Cheyenne.  Rollercoaster Ride sings about the ups and downs of love using a rollercoaster ride as the paradoy.  Hearts Are Breaking Across Texas was the first release from the album and currently rides in the top 10 on the Texas Music Charts.  Watson wrote this song about his wife and it’s a beautiful song.  Every man should feel this way about his wife.  Unfortunately, the numbers show that Waston is in the minority.  

The titel track, Angels And Outlaws, has a nice rhythm to it. I particularly like the line “God bless angels and pray for outlaws.”  The hope is they can come together if God blesses her and prays for him.  I love Sweet Contradiction.  It is so well written.  The opening line “she’s as pure as a Sunday morning.  Just as fun as a Saturday night” is a perfect lead into this song.  Dancin’ Shoes is my least favorite song on the album.  It’s not bad, just not the greatness of Aaron Watson.  Phillipians reading by legend Billy Jo Shaver.  I’m not sure where it really fits in, but it kind of leads into the spiritual tear jerking love song Barbed Wire Halo.  The album’s closer is the fun, kick ass, That’s What I Like About A Country Song, where Watson is joined by fellow Texan greats Jack Ingram, Kevin Fowler, Roger Creager, and Ray Benson.

Watson gives a solid performance on this album and it should gain him more fans. He’s done really well considering mainstream radio doesn’t play his music.  If there is a negative to this album, it would be that it doesn’t have enough Saturday night, and maybe a little too much Sunday morning, but at least Watson’s heart is in the right place.  One can sure not find fault in that.   Overall, I enjoyed this album and when the only fault you can find in a man’s work is his faith, then I’d say he’s doing something right. 

 The Bart Crow Band burst onto the Texas Music scene in 2005 and wated no time making their mark.  Finally, the band’s first ablum release, produced top 10 hits Wear My Ring and Driftin’ In The Wind, as well as other outstanding songs All I Need and Dog House Roses.  If you are a fan of Red Dirt Country, then you too have been eagerly awaiting the release of the Bart Crow Band’s sophmore release, Desperate Hearts.  The 13 song album has a little bit of everything - country, rock and roll, ballads, you name it.  Crow himself wrote or co-wrote 11 of the 13 tracks.

The album kicks off with a rearranged version of the 2007 hit Driftin’ In The Wind.  Personally, this was one of my favorite songs of the year.  Crow somehow takes a suicide song and makes it an uptempo song.  It’s wonderfully written and just an incredible song.  Just like any relationship “when we both started out, we were the best of friends,”  he is unable to handle her leaving and asks her “can you taste that powder baby, can you taste my evil sin.”    In Back Down, the man is tired of the jealous woman, who continually tries to keep him down.  But hes’ not down for the count and he’s looking forward to her judgement day.  “You’ll be looking up baby, and I won’t even look down,” signifying that she will be in Hell.  Hollywood is the story of the girl who gave up everything to make her mark as a movie star.   It’s not the best song on the album, but it’s far from bad too.  The band’s current radio single is Understand.  The song is about forgiveness and love and how they have their own understanding about it, regardless of what everybody else around town thinks or says. 

The Jason Boland penned St. Valentine is a beautifully written song.  The man is asking for a little help from above  “I just want somebody to love, if you could find the time,” as if he’ll be sent a gift or a blessing in the form of a woman to love. Sweet Imitations is an uptemo and down tempo songall in one.  Very strange, but it’s done very well.  The song is a story about a cheating man in a bar, then a motel room.  He professes that his wife is loving a fool because even those he’s promised he’s changed, “it would kill her if she knew where her sweet love was tonight.”  The irony is that if she did leave, he says that he would be back in the bar that represents his prison cell.  Anybody who has ever suffered from a broken heart, can relate to Roses.  This song represents love in the real world, and how no matter what somebody promises, it can change in a minute, and promises are broken.  This song is pledge to try to win her back.  “Don’t be mad at me if I call you late at night.  Don’t be mad at me if I ask your friends if you’re alright. Don’t be mad at me if I cried all night ’til four. Don’t be mad if I leave roses on your door.” When you listen to this song, you can almost feel his pain, as well rehash some of your own pain from previous heartbreaks.  Once A Day in another song about dailey heartbreak, but not quite as powerful as the previous song.

Desperate Hearts is the title track of the song and I think Boland says it best when he describes this song as “a rock song in country clothing, hot on the trail of lonliness mistaken for love.”  We’ll go with that!  Change is a bit of a heavier song about the world today with a little bit of a political twist built in.  “We got the men and the women, dying with their children, for a presidential ribbon they don’t understand.”   Singing about the girl who has left him for New York, the man says “I’m so damn proud of you, even if my heart is sad and blue.  I love you, I just love you.”  Tami is a song about dragging his wife through a marriage of hell and how he’s accepting the responsibility for that.  This is followed by the opposite of that.  Forever is a song of proposal singing to the woman who has become his best friend and that he wants to becomes his wife.  “Cause I want to lay by your side.  For the rest of my life.  Today will you please be my wife.”   This is a love song that women will love, and the men will say “come on man, what are doing to us.”

Desperate Hearts is an album that has a little bit of everything, and there really isn’t a bad song on the thirteen song set.  The album has a lot of attitude about it with honest, understandable lyrics.  Bart Crow’s songwriting is exceptional and this country rock band should be in for great things in the future.  The album’s title Desperate Hearts would lead you to believe this is an album of sad ballads, but it’s rocked up country to the core.  I was worried that the Bart Crow Band’s second album wouldn’t live up to the first, but it did that and more.  I just love these and this is a recommended album for anybody who enjoys Red Dirt music.

 Sometimes you pick up a new album and you don’t really know why.  Nor do you know what to expect.  I had heard of Austin Collins from his debut album “Something Better” and more specifically, the song 22 Hours, so when I saw “Roses Are Black”, I was intrigued to see what it was about.  Collins definitely has a unique sound and songwriting ability.  I’m not even sure if it’s country, but that doesn’t really matter because I liked it.  I think some people call this “alt-country”, whatever that is.  But whether it’s country or alt or soft rock or whatever you want to call it, Collins sings with honesty, emotion, and passion that allows him to pull off this kind of sound, where the tempo of the album rarely, if ever, changes throughout the twelves songs.

Much of the credit for the greatness of this album should be given to the Collins’ band, the Rainbirds - Craig Bagby on drums, Dylan McDougall on guitars, and Troy Wilson on bass - as they provide outstanding consistency throughout.  The opening song on this album is the intoxicating, accoustic 11 Months.  The song paints a detailed picture of a doomed relationship that never had a chance.  The lyrics and the mood of the song are an excellent opener.   Following are a couple of songs about relationship and conflict - Broken and Witching Hour.  The title track, Roses Are Black is a song about how a lot of people live their lives - “you go with what’s easy because it makes you feel safe” -  taking the easy road and avoiding struggles to get places.  Collins clearly doesn’t do this as he should be making quite a mark in the music business on this album.  However, in Out Loud, Collins sings about fighting in a relationship but taking the easy way out and not fighting “out loud”.   One of my favorite lines from this song is “cuz you’re like a ghost to me; can’t be touched; can’t be seen.” 

In the emotional Unapology, Collins sings to the girl that has done him wrong.  It’s a great f&^% off song but with a nice calm musical tone.  He doesn’t play the gentleman line and act like he’s happy and moving on.  Instead he says she’s “entitled to the grace that she won’t show.”  Bridge Street Lullaby is probably the best song on this album.  Can’t Say This At Home, the soft rocking song Eight Dollar Thrills, and Today continue the emotional theme of life and consequences.  House Without Windows and Goodbye Houston show more of Collins raw emotion that he puts into his music and again the music wonderful illustrates the mood of the song.  House Without Windows has a beautiful lyrical sound, but paints a dark, cold picture.

In Roses are Black, Collins allows the listener a keen look into the singers life.  The album highlights Collins’ unique writing style and the dark, emotional passion of his music, clearly real-life personal experiences.  Collins has not compromised that, nor has he compromised his talent and style with Roses are Black.  Collins has successfully brought his emotional experiences to light with this innovative vision.  I’m not sure that Austin Collins or Roses are Black are right for everybody’s taste, because it is different, but it works for me.  I’d suggest you give it a try, go into with an open mind, be honest with yourself, and you might find that you’ve stumbled on solid gold with Roses are Black.