Page 10-The Michigan Daily, Friday, July 31, 1987
RECORDS: A country, comeback

4

The Mekons
Honky Tonkin'
Twin Tone
Dwight Yoakam
Hillbilly Deluxe
Reprise
Once, America was the country
in "Country/Western." Once, the
West was Arizona, Nevada,
Wyoming. Los Angeles banished
tumblin' tumbleweeds long ago.
Sure, the Lone Ranger rides into
Hollywood every now and then, but
these days, he's hawking Amoco
Silver®TM gasoline.
These records are already the best
Country/Western records of the

Glitz
... out with the old ...
year. They render the very notion of
Ricky Scaggs obsolete and
laughable. But dammit, they're not
from Nashville, they're not from
Memphis, these songs didn't
stagger blind drunk from a tech-
nologically impure converted Texas
warehouse/studio. L.A. and the
U.K.?
Dwight Yoakam stares from the
cover of his bright white record
cover, wearing clothes that cost too
much. The Mekons lurk in a dimly
lit Budweiser bin wearing "cowboy"
shirts that they bought far from
Leeds. They are pretenders, or ought
to be. They've probably never even
seen outhouses.
And yet these artists possess the
verve and soul that have been
beaten out of modern country
music. Marie Osmond can no
longer claim that she "is a little bit
country." Not while Dwight
Yoakam is selling lyrics like
"You've got your little ways to
hurt me / You know just how to
tear me up / And leave me in small
pieces on the ground" with an
effortless half-yodel that plays
perfectly off of Brantley Kearns'
reeling fiddle. The record label,
Reprise, is fitting, as Dwight and
his band, the Babylonian Cowboys,
recall the glory days of Sun
Records, daring to challenge the
Almighty King's "Little Sister" and
finishing off with a surprisingly
heartfelt song called "This Drinkin'
Will Kill Me."

The spectre of Sun Records
hangs over the Mekons album as
well, materializing first in a clever
parody of the label's distinctive
logo. Yet while Yoakam succeeds
in resuscitating the genre, and
finding ways to write new old
songs, the Mekons mutate the
genre, bending it to their industrial
English landscape, injecting a
healthy dose of Celtic soul, and
then drinking enough to believe
they're recording at a Nashville
hootenanny.
Some may fault the Mekons for
being a little too smart about it all,
at times spraying graffiti across the
landscape which inspired them, and
somewhat pretentiously listing the
books which inspired the songs.
But the melodramatic mournfulness
of "Sleepless Nights" is genuine
enough, as is the moment in "If
They Hang You" when the
condemned.man's lover intones, "I
always like a man who says what's
on his mind."
The Mekons substitute industrial
England for what ought to be the
West Texas town of El Paso, and
the result is often jarring. Their
mining disaster occurs in Trimdon
Grange, their sheriff is a chief
constable, their honky tonk a Gin
Palace, the "Dandys, the Fops, and
the Goths" stand in for the James
Gang. This is Country music from
the wrong country, but the Mekons
get it right.
Then again, maybe a country
which sustains Opryland U.S.A.
doesn't deserve Country music.
-John Logie
Steve Earle and
the Dukes
Exit 0
MCA
Earle walks the line between
country and rock. It would be easy
to call this album "country rock"
but that phrase conjures up images
of wimpy California rock like the
Eagles or the Southern boogie
guitar assault of the Allman
Brothers or Lynyrd Skynyrd, while
Earle's roots lie much closer to
Nashville. Let's call it "rockin'
country."
Lyrically, Earle has been
compared to Springsteen and he
surely walks some of the same
dusty blue collar roads as the boss.
"No. 29," the anthem of a small
town middle aged man reminiscing
about his days as a high school
football star, is not far in theme
from "Glory Days." But while
Springsteen sports Nautilus biceps,
Earle's got himself a pot belly.
He's fresh from 12 years of scuffing
and knocking on record company
doors and you can hear it in both
his voice and his lyrics.
Earle is a fine songwriter,
penning songs about life on the
road, small towns, politude, hard

Steve Earle
... and in with the new.
pressive follow-up to Earle's 1986
debut, Guitar Town.
This is the best country album
of the year.
-Alan Paul
Bruce Cockburn
Waiting for a Miracle
Gold Castle
Waiting for a Miracle contains
22 songs covering 17 years of
Bruce Cockburn's career. In the
United States, many people would
be surprised to hear there was
someone name Cockburn who
could release a double album edition
of "greatest hits," but the Canadian
singer-songwriter has loyal fans
worldwide.
Cockburn's two songs that
received the most airplay in the
States were "Wondering Where the
Lions Are" and "Rocketlauncher,"
which represent the two poles of
Cockbum's development.
"Wondering Where the Lions
Are" is a beautiful musical tapestry
with spiritually-tinged lyrics. As
one listens to this album and the
milestones of his career, one can
hear Cockburn slowly shift away
from his spiritual roots. From such
introspective soul-searching,
Cockburn turns his gaze out upon
the world, finding both horror and
inspiration as his lyrics undertake a
more political tone.
Perhaps the greatest
accomplishment of Cockburn's
political period i s
"Rocketlauncher." This masterpiece
evokes the righteous desire for
vengeance felt upon encountering
the brutality of military massacres:
"when I hear the stories of the
survivors/things too sickening to
relate/if I had a rocketlauncher/I
would not hesitate."
Lyrically, Cockburn's songs
takes on a sharper edge. There is
somewhat of a trade-off between the
beauty of innocence and power of

times, and fast cars. The Dukes are
a tight and hard rocking unit. Mike
McAdams' guitar and Bucky
Baxter's steel guitar are particularly
noteworthy. Exit 0 is an im-

sophistication.
Yet the beauty ofC
songs remains. The i
Cockburn's later songs:
his ability to mesh the p
political. Using hims
medium, he shows the
tragedy and heroism
hardship.
Cockburn's two new
tained on Waiting for
indicate that the politic
will continue. One
"Stolen Land," is a com
and disturbing remind
injustice done to Native
while being musically
enough that it may mak
radio.
It would be goo
American public to disc
Cockburn. But expecti
recognition of Cock
beWaiting for a Mirac
better buy the album as a
introduction to what y
missing.
KoKo Taylor
An Audience With th
Big Twist and
Mellow Fellow
Live From Chicago!
Alligator
These live albums ar
Chicago's most veteran
blues belters. Both ft
excellent production val
come to expect from All
Taylor is far more
rockin', featuring onl
edged quartet of two gu
and drums while th
Fellows are an eight
including keyboards and
Taylor's voice
amazingly strong, as de
at her frequent Rick's a
and she is still light y
from Vegas. The albu
Taylor favorites like "L
Times Roll," "I'm a
"Come to Mama," and:
version of "Wang Dan;
her signature, and only 
The band plays tigh
funky with the guita
Michael Robinson and
really standing out. A
Taylor continues to co
albums like this, anyo
hard pressed to cha
"Queen of the Blues" tit
The Mellow Fellow
little too clean for hart
fans. They are however
and very well arranged.
a misplaced note on the
Twist has a deep rumbli
well as a good sense
evident in songs like"
Barbeque" and "300
Heavenly Joy." The alb
eludes a version of "S

borne of -Alan Paul
songs con- Five Summer Sizzlers
a Miracle A brief exercise in reco m - 4
:ized trend mendation: five relatively recent
of them, recordreleases.
npassionate Robyn Hitchcock's cult
Ier of the might be growing by leaps and
Americans bounds; however, his new LP
mainstream Invisible Hitchcock (Relativity) is
:e it on the probably best appreciated by those
who "knew him when..." It's true
d for the that Hitchcock has never written a
:over Bruce bad song. But as this album of
ng popular previously unreleased material
burn may proves, not everything England's
r, so you'd most eccentric songwriter creates is
tn excellent brilliant. Nonetheless, Hitchcock's
ou'xeebeent weakest stuff still outshines most
ou've been other artists' best.
Perhaps even more likable are
-Tim Huet England's Pastels, a quirky band
in the Jesus and Mary Chain
tradition. Their debut LP, Up For A
Bit With the Pastels (Big Time) is
Queen a humming, swirling, joyous ball
of noise with a distinctively happy
the feel.
S One will never confuse Thin
White Rope with such happy
noises; that's okay, though, as
"demented" suits them much better.
Their second Frontier album,
e by two of Moonhead, picks up with the same
and popular wicked guitar slink that
eature the characterized their eerie debut.
ues you've Fronted by demon vocalist Guy
igator. Kyser, the Rope can be refreshingly
rough and twisted (and extremely tight
y a sharp musically) for some, while too
iitars, bass, weird to take for others. Take a
e Mellow chance.
piece unit, New York City's hottest party,
horns. The Fleshtones, are back with a
remains new album. Fleshtones Vs. Reality
:monstrated (Emerge Records, 225 Lafayette
ppearances, St., Suite 709, NYC 10012) is no
ears away surprise. it's standard great
ii includes Fleshtones fun, and is one of their
et the Good tightest, funkiest recorded sounds to
Woman," date. Vocalist?/I.R.S. Cutting Edge
a scorching hostPeter Zaremba leads the band
g Doodle," through another round o f
hit, song. '60s-inspired pop that's
t, hard, and not-so-straight out of the garage.
r work of Finally, The Meat Puppets'
Eddie King new SST LP Mirage is the next
As long as logical step in their musical 4
me up with evolution. Having completely
ne will be slowed their speed from their
llenge her hardcore beginnings; this Phoenix,
le. Arizona trio plays a refreshing
s may be a hybrid of roots rock and
dcore blues country/western. This band can still
, very tight work up a good sweat though;
There's not "Quit It" and "Liquified" are
album. Big sizzling high points while "Get on
ng voice as Down" plunks into a mere
of humor, traditional feel.
'Too Much Five not so new LPs; five good
Pounds of reasons to spend those summertime
um also in- savings.
5teamroller -Beth Fertig

Cockburn's
impact of
stems from
ersonal and
elf as the
listener the

Blues" that would turn James
Taylor purple.
Throw the Big Twist album on
at a barbeque and party away but
beware of KoKo Taylor in such
situations. Her intensity-demands
attention.