One of the things that make listening to music magical is that it can take you places. Arty Hill and the Long Gone Daddys take me back to a special place in my youth when I heard my first live band. I was on my first “big kids” hunting trip with my dad, other brother, and a couple of other dads with their teenage boys. It was tradition to always have the first night’s dinner at a local joint called the Triangle Supper Club. Having just polished off a T-bone steak (rare, like the big guys) with all the trimmings, I watched with fascination as a band started to set up on the stage. The bartender spread sawdust on the dance floor and the music started. Country music wasn’t my favorite (or second favorite), but hearing it live for the first time is something I’ll never forget.

I’m sure that the Friday night band in Podunk Montana was nowhere as good musically as Arty Hill and his boys, but that night was the beginning of my love of live music. Arty Hill and the Long Gone Daddys bring that night back because they play country/rockabilly music like music should be played – with passion. The song writing ranges from tender (I Left Highland Town, Tammerlane) to hilarious (I Ate Through the Jail, Jackson Shake). "Living on the Road Again" and "Big Daddy’s Rye" are a rollicking, sing along good time. I could list every song, but believe me, there isn’t a track that deserves the >| button!

Not only are the lyrics original, the accompanying music fits perfectly. " It Ain’t Working" cries for a honky-tonk groove and we aren’t disappointed. Whether its acoustic, pedal steel, or telecaster, Dave Chappell's guitar work on this CD is excellent. I especially like the slide work on Jackson Shake; the sweet guitar refrain of "Tammerlane" is spot on.

While I’m a rocker at heart, whenever I’m in the mood for something country or rockabilly, I’ll put on "Back on the Rail" by Baltimore's Arty Hill and the Long Gone Daddy’s, close my eyes, and take a trip back to the Triangle Supper Club.
.

--Jeff Wold