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David Olney: One Tough Town
ByNo doubt, Olney surfaces as a man of wisdom here, but his entertaining parables equate to an artist who is clever and keenly observant. On "Who's The Dummy Now, the singer and his band convey a roadhouse-like Dixieland motif, where he communicates an after-hours nightclub groove, littered with empty beer bottles and dank cigar smoke.
Olney's a mystic and means business when he declares his intentions of knocking some sense into the local town-folk. During the low-key acoustic guitar driven "No Lies, he's seemingly writing a love-letter, proclaiming his intent upon drowning his sorrows in whiskey, to complement his opaque delineation between honesty and deceit.
The fun continues on the gospel-hued Delta Blues vamp "See How The Mighty Have Fallen. But the album's secret is uncovered during the country-folk title track, where Olney globalizes the "One Tough Town insinuation into the vastness of planet earth. Witty, humorous and slightly cantankerous, Olney's at the very top of his game.
Track Listing
Whistle Blow; Sweet Poison; Who's The Dummy Now?; Little Mustang; No Lies; Oh Yeah (Dead Man's Shoes);Snake Song; Panama City; Sweet Potato; See How The Mighty Have Fallen; One Tough Town; Postcard From Mexico; Rainbow's End.
Personnel
David Olney: guitars, ukulele, bones, laughter,harmonica, vocals; Dave Roe: bass; Craig Wright: percussion; Bill Huber: tuba, trombone; Jim Hoke: clarinet; Jack Irwin: slap box, piano; Richard Bailey: banjo; Sergio Webb: electric guitar; Bobby Daniels: vocals.
Album information
Title: One Tough Town | Year Released: 2007 | Record Label: Red Parlor