Here I am, back in Brussels and with an internet connection once more. That makes for 3 countries, 5 cities and 8 homes I've lived in during the last 15 years. Bit of a nomadic existence, but you know what they say: Home is where your record collection is (or something similar). Alas this time I had to leave my collection behind in Delft. Didn't make sense moving dozens of heavy boxes when I'll probably be hitting the road again soon. At least it's only a 2-hour drive away and I made sure to have visitation rights. But I had to give up on my blind selection routine which unearthed some interesting and hitherto forgotten stuff. I took with me about 100 of my favourite CD's and another 100 of the most recent purchases, which should provide us with enough blogging material for the next 6 months. The DC's "Baby" belongs to the former category (i.e. my favourites). I could have chosen any of their albums, they're all great to listen to. This is their cleanest-sounding one, not necessarily an advantage when it comes to garage rock but I've noticed I play it more often than the rest.
Try asking people about their favorite 21st century garageband from Detroit: 80% will think you're nuts (maybe 95%, if you ask this question in Greece). Of the rest, 90% will say "The White Stripes, of course". Some may mention The Dirtbombs or Von Bondies. But if, like me, they've seen Rachel & co. live they're bound to answer "The Detroit Cobras". Very few singers rule the stage like the Cobras' Rachel Nagy. I guess a prior career as an exotic dancer helps - not that she's trying to be sensual or seductive, mind you, she's just sexy in a relaxed, self-assured way. Guitarist Mary Restrepo (the other permanent member in the band) is another super-cool female presence in this tight band which displays a deep knowledge of the 60's musical vocabulary. Which is both a blessing and a curse, since almost all their material are covers. They mostly choose obscure 60's soul, so for most listeners it will be their first contact with the songs - but, no matter how good their performance is, critics and dj's will snub them because they're not "original" enough. Except, that is, some dj's with nothing to prove: they're one of the few modern groups that Bob Dylan has played on his theme hour radio show. He chose "Hot Dog (Watch Me Eat)", incidentally this record's sole original song. As it happens The Cobras also play something from the Dylan repertory: "Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand" out of his debut. Their style throughout the album can be described as a, deeply rooted in the 60's, garage/R&B hybrid. Imagine the Detroit Wheels with young Tina Turner on vocals instead of Mitch Ryder. Add some Animals, Sonics and Solomon Burke to the mix and a dash of Amy Winehouse. Does that sound appealing to you?
The album opens with a couple of garage dynamites, Art Freeman's "Slipping Around" and Gary U.S. Bond's "I Wanna Holler (But the Town's Too Small)". The originals are so good and relatively obscure that I've decided to post youtube links for every single one. Thank you Cobras, for introducing me to them. "Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand" has been covered (with slightly changed titles) by Dylan and The Animals but the blueprint here is the Hoagy Lands version, which starts off slowly and then turns into a veritable party song after the 1st verse. Ruby Johnson's 1966 Stax single "Weak Spot" provides us with Rachel's first real soul performance on this CD, not to mention some nice Southern Soul-style guitar licks by Mary. Then it's back to garageland for a hi-energy "Everybody's Going Wild". As I previously said, "Hot Dog (Watch Me Eat)" is the album's lone original song, composed by Nagy, Restrepo and collaborator Greg Cartwright (of Oblivians/ Reigning Sound fame) who is also credited with production assistance and guest guitarwork in this album. Betty Harris' "Mean Man" is a potent soul rocker while "Now You're Gone" is given a rootsy delivery that improves on the original by Bobbie Smith & the Dreamgirls. Topping the great Irma Thomas on the ballad "It's Raining" would be an impossible feat for anyone (well, with the probable exception of Aretha), but Rachel puts on a soulful performance that does the song no injustice. "Just Can't Please You" by Jimmy Robins is another 1966 dance number and was very popular with the Mods in the U.K. The 5 Royales' "The Real Thing" was a charming 1958 R&B/Doo-Wop number, but the Cobras' version is ragged and punky. Ditto with Percy Sledge's "Baby Help Me", only this is one case where louder isn't better. But they make up for it big time with the last song, Brice Coefield's "Cha Cha Twist". The Cobras' version is not only louder, but sassier and funkier and generally kicks ass! This is actually their 2nd take on the song. It went unnoticed when released as their debut single, until it was used on a Coke commercial and people starting looking for it - so the band recorded a new, cleaner, version for their next CD with this audience in mind. Listening to this album is always fun, but writing this review got me checking the original versions of these songs and that was rewarding in a new way. Be sure to check them all out 'cause it took me quite some time to find the best available versions in youtube. Now, if only it was possible to magically extract the audio from youtube videos, one could burn an amazing compilation for the car or for an impromptu dance party. If only... Thankfully you can still buy the Detroit Cobras' "Baby", which is just as good or even better. Slip it in your CD player and try not to dance. It's impossible, I tell you...
Try asking people about their favorite 21st century garageband from Detroit: 80% will think you're nuts (maybe 95%, if you ask this question in Greece). Of the rest, 90% will say "The White Stripes, of course". Some may mention The Dirtbombs or Von Bondies. But if, like me, they've seen Rachel & co. live they're bound to answer "The Detroit Cobras". Very few singers rule the stage like the Cobras' Rachel Nagy. I guess a prior career as an exotic dancer helps - not that she's trying to be sensual or seductive, mind you, she's just sexy in a relaxed, self-assured way. Guitarist Mary Restrepo (the other permanent member in the band) is another super-cool female presence in this tight band which displays a deep knowledge of the 60's musical vocabulary. Which is both a blessing and a curse, since almost all their material are covers. They mostly choose obscure 60's soul, so for most listeners it will be their first contact with the songs - but, no matter how good their performance is, critics and dj's will snub them because they're not "original" enough. Except, that is, some dj's with nothing to prove: they're one of the few modern groups that Bob Dylan has played on his theme hour radio show. He chose "Hot Dog (Watch Me Eat)", incidentally this record's sole original song. As it happens The Cobras also play something from the Dylan repertory: "Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand" out of his debut. Their style throughout the album can be described as a, deeply rooted in the 60's, garage/R&B hybrid. Imagine the Detroit Wheels with young Tina Turner on vocals instead of Mitch Ryder. Add some Animals, Sonics and Solomon Burke to the mix and a dash of Amy Winehouse. Does that sound appealing to you?
***** for Cha Cha Twist,
**** for I Wanna Holler (But the Town's Too Small), Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand, Weak Spot, Everybody's Going Wild, Hot Dog (Watch Me Eat), Now You're Gone, It's Raining
*** for Slipping Around, Mean Man, Just Can't Please You, The Real Thing
** for Baby Help Me
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