“Woodie Guthrie was a huge influence for us and we truly believe in the power of song," said Taxi front man Vince Herman in a recent interview. Songs about hard luck times tend to “hold a man up and make him feel stronger than he is—and they make him feel good about his community. We want to address the issues appropriate to our times, while making music that gets people up and moving."
Great American Taxi is at ease when it comes to touching upon a serious subject in a song. The New Millennium Blues, a track from the band's latest album, Reckless Habits, is about the sad state of the U.S. economy. “It's about how we can't afford our pickup trucks and how our jobs are all gone overseas," said Herman.
But no one can accuse Taxi of crying the blues. Even Great American Taxi protest songs are generally up-beat, containing Cajun, calypso, and bluegrass melodies and a retro, '70s feel—think the Grateful Dead, Wilco, and the Byrds.
“We like to get as much dancing going as possible," said Herman, who enjoys experimenting with traditional Southern boogie and swampy blues-rock sounds. Herman says of festival crowds, “People are at their best at festivals—maybe because they can get away from the rest of the world and feel like they're on holiday."
Taxi's latest CD release Reckless Habits climbed to # 3 and remains in the top ten for spins on both the Jambands.com radio chart and the Colorado radio chart, complemented by two months in the top 25 on the Americana radio chart.
Great American Taxi's latest video for the track “American Beauty" is here:
The band's also recently donated a track, “Appalachian Soul" to raise awareness of the coal miners' relief fund.
