BLACK WATER ROAD…
Hello again music fans.
As my old bowling teammate Wilson Pickett once sang, “The night was clear, the moon was yellow, and the leaves came tumbling down…”
That’s right music fans, Fall is upon us and the leaves definitely are coming down. I’ll tell you what’s not coming down though: your good buddy Jon Raw, that’s what. And what, per chance, has this crotchety, old-time rock ’n’ roller feeling so high as the days grow shorter and the nights grow longer? Why it’s none other than The Great Outdoors’ third release in their series of four seasonal EPs entitled – you guessed it – Fall.
Now I know the boys in The Great Outdoors rocked out a bit hard on their last EP, Summer, to the point where some of you more pansy-assed listeners out there were even filling my inbox with comments like, “I thought TGOD was a folk band,” and, “Ian Tyson must be spinning in his grave.” (BTW: Ian Tyson is alive and well, numb nuts. I just had brunch with him three weeks ago. And as folkie as he is, Ian loves the rock as much as anyone; we listened to Kyuss while he prepared us Eggs Florentine. But I digress.) The Fall EP, however,finds Adam Nation (vocals, guitars), Randy Forrester (guitars, keys), Craig McCaul (bass), Steven Wegelin (percussion), and Steve Wells (vocals, guitars) back in their wheelhouse: delivering smooth and bluesy folk rock. In fact, Nation’s and Wells’ brilliant songwriting, the band’s now unmistakable sound, Melissa Devost’s glorious backing vocals, and the magic of the East Van Eden Studios’ atmosphere all come together to create what is, without a doubt, the band’s finest effort to date. (Though, at the rate these kids are trucking, I’m betting the Winter EP will even outdo this one.)
So that, music fans, is why your Uncle Jon is so up these days. Yes indeed, The Great Outdoors’ Fall EP has me feeling higher than five billy goats. Well, that and the three drops of hash oil I put in my vanilla latte this morning.
Shine on you crazy diamonds.
Jon Raw
(owner – DDG Records)
