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Now Playing on Roots Radio: Marah - Wild West Love Song
Chip Taylor and Carrie Rodriguez
05.26.2005 -- Review by: Stephen Hug If so, “Red Dog Tracks” by Chip (Wild Thing, Angel of the Morning) Taylor and Carrie Rodriguez may be it.
Mr. Taylor, in case you didn’t catch the reference, composed the songs “Wild Thing,” a hit for the Troggs and notably recorded by Jimi Hendrix, and “Angel of the Morning,”a hit for Merrilee Rush and, in more recent years (though not that recent), Juice Newton.
Plus he wrote a bunch of other songs covered by many others, and he produced albums as well. Plus, he happens to be actor Jon “Midnight Cowboy” Voight brother, making him the uncle of actress Angelina Jolie..
Plus he wrote a bunch of other songs covered by many others, and he produced albums as well. Plus, he happens to be actor Jon “Midnight Cowboy” Voight brother, making him the uncle of actress Angelina Jolie..
That said, what does he bring to the recording? Plenty, including solid song craftsmanship, inspiration and a pleasant, even comforting singing voice. He makes it sound so easy, strumming away with an occasional harmonica break, although sometimes I think he over-acts just a bit in his vocal delivery, as he wrings out love, loss, humor and other emotional nuances from every single syllable leaving his lips.
Carrie Rodriguez is Texan and puts her melodic twang all over the tracks, along with her fiddle, giving it even a greater rootsy feel. (The CD, by the way, was recorded in New York City and mastered in Boston. We Northerners know a thing or two about roots!) Guitarist Bill Frisell, on loan from Nonesuch Records, Jim Whitney on upright bass, Richie Stearns on banjo, and Kenny Wollesen on drums add to the rootsiness.
Chip and Carrie are a couple in love (Or they sure know how to fake it!), and it’s evident through much of this recording. Sometimes it’s as if one is listening to intimate yet often playful conversations that are supposed to be private. Even the Hank Williams, Sr. tune “I Can’t Help It If I’m Still In Love With You” sounds like it was written just for them. (Everybody go “aaaah.”)
“Red Dog Tracks” will likely be a candidate for record of the year in the Americana genre. It’s romantic, playful, cute, sad, toe tappin’, relaxing and more, all in under an hour. It’s being officially released in late May.
Chip and Carrie travel to my neck of the woods, the Narrows Center for the Arts, in Fall River, Massachusetts, on Friday, June 10th. It’s their second visit, and promises to be a memorable performance, particularly with the sort of material that’s sure to move the audience.
Learn more about this Americana power couple at www.backporchrecords.com. Or you can click here, too!
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