Barn Dance Review - January 1998

From: tejas (tbsamsel@richmond.infi.net)
Subject: CCBD at Alley Katz Jan 3

The new venue for the Capital City Barn Dance, ALLEY KATZ, is plain nice. Good acoustics, a better ambiance, less expensive beverages, and some fairly comfy chairs should prove to enhance the CCBD in the coming months.

I stopped by MOONDANCE to meet Bill Kirchen, a master of the Telecaster, and chatted with him a bit, before ambling over the cobblestones to the new site of the CCBD.

The show opened with LOU FORD, from Charlotte, NC. I may be off-base, but they sure do have a lot of songs that sound alike. I'm beginning to mistrust roots country bands that allow members to wear stingy-brims. They seem to be more sub-urban than country. But that's my opinion.

The TWO-DOLLAR PISTOLS, a fine, fine traditional honky-tonk band out of Chapel Hill, came on and they were quite a surprise and were probably (again,in my opinion) the highlight of the show. Besides their originals, they played some classic covers of tunes by Earnest Tubb, Faron Young, Charlie Pride, etc. This recalled my youth in S Texas when my folks would go to a dance at a Hermann Sons hall or a honkytonk like the Texas Star Inn or Floore's Country Store and us kids would be settin' anthills on fire in the parking lot with kerosene and listenin' to Adolph Hofner's Pearl Wranglers or Hank Thompson and the Brazos Valley Boys back in the '50s and early '60s. (It should be noted that The TWO DOLLAR PISTOLS have had an extensive reorganization and sport a new lady bassist who is plumb killer).

DIRTBALL closed out the show with their songs of lucid inebriation and liquid contraband in excellent form, even though Wes Freed was nursing a cold and Peter Headley was a bit late due a gig at some swank hostelry. Michael Hurley (AKA Dr. Snock) showed up and sang PORTLAND WATER ("in the State of Oregon") with these homegrown purveyors of hillbilly soul. And to keep tradition alive, my skatepunk son was along, too and even seemed enjoy it to a degree. Them chirren.

copyright 1998 Ted B. Samsel

TBSamsel@richmond.infi.net (also tejas@infi.net)
'Do the boogie woogie in the South American way'
Hank Snow THE RHUMBA BOOGIE