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The Reverend Horton Heat
Recently, Reverend Horton Heat bandleader Jim Heath had something along the lines of what he calls an epiphany.
He's a little tired of being taken so seriously-well, maybe not
seriously, exactly, but you get the idea-and lately he's noticed that some of his funnier, country-tinged songs were his biggest crowd pleasers. Besides, being entertaining is what this is all about, right?
So, ladies and gents, roll your smokes up in your sleeve and hold on to your cowboy hats, it's time to take a trip back to a time before slick, over-produced country became the norm-a time when outlaws wrote songs about being without a pot to piss in-or at least about psycho ex-boyfriends and deadbeat girlfriends that spend your paycheck faster than you can say Lone Star.
Welcome to
Laughin' and Cryin' with the Reverend Horton Heat a record full of country-heavy tunes about bad habits, well-meaning but clueless husbands, ever-expanding beer-guts and, well, Texas. It wouldn't be a Reverend Horton Heat record without a song or-in this case, two-about the Lone Star State. And, while
Laughin' and Cryin' marks a detour from the hard-driving punkabilly of the Rev's last record, 2004's
Revival, this time tending toward honk, there's still some shit-kickers ["Death Metal Guys"] to let you know that Heath and crew still mean business.
"I really wanted to capture the feelings of recordings of the late '50s, early '60s," Heath said of the songs on the new record.
Exhibit A: "Beer Holder," a honky-tonker about a guy who finds the table by his chair a bit too far of a stretch-so he opts for a new "beer holder," his growing gut. While this guy finds his solution genius, his woman thinks otherwise.
"[The record is] kind of from a regular guy point of view," Heath said. "You know, I like to do stuff that's kind of tongue-in-cheek that makes fun of the good old boy thing as much as trying to glorify the country boy thing."
Heath originally conceived the new record as the product of an alter ego, Harley Hog, a sort of "laughing and crying" singer.
"I was trying to develop this vocal style where I was always either laughing or crying. It was really over-exaggerated," Heath said. The problem once they got in the studio, however, "we wouldn't get that far because the guys were just laughing so hard. It was really kind of ridiculous."
Without a doubt, the mighty Reverend has won a cult following around the world these past 20+ years with a nearly endless touring ethic and musical style that's equally as rooted in tradition as it is in breaking it. He's one of the lynchpins of the neo-roots movement and responsible for moving the genre forward and garnering it a whole new generation of fans. Mix that with a mythic stage presence and you've got a live act that turns rock clubs into psychobilly tent revivals across the country 300 days a year.
Heath, who personally loves good old, mid-20th century country music, cautions that the record was not born out of a desire to introduce his audience to a new set of influences-it's just meant to have a little fun. Besides, he warns, his next record may just be a set of "avant-garde versions of Swahili folk songs done on homemade instruments."
"Never say never," Heath said.
The tracks from
Laughin' and Cryin'... in the Rev's own words:
Drinkin' and Smokin' Cigarettes: This one is about a guy who keeps forestalling the inevitable day that he'll have to quit these ugly habits. But for now, he's content with them and he's got a woman who's doing the same thing until he finds someone better. This song is about 'some guy' since I don't really have any personal experience with these terrible and bad habits.
Ain't No Saguaro in Texas: This one is about how Hollywood and misinformed artists made a type of cactus a Texas icon, one that doesn't even grow within a thousand miles of Texas. Well, maybe four hundred miles or something from El Paso, but it doesn't even grow in New Mexico. The Saguaro cactus only grows naturally in the Sonoran desert of Arizona. Still, even in Texas, you see this cactus along with all of the other 'Texan' icons. I felt it was a song that needed to be written. The music's got a good Tex-Mex type of feel with Tim Alexander playing some great Bajo Sexto and accordion. Tim also plays various keyboards on a lot of songs on this album. We do have many types of cactus in Texas including peyote...yee-haw!
Aw, the Humanity: This song was intended to be, at first, an Eddie Arnold sounding ballad - it didn't quite get there. It's a love song based on the crash of the Hindenburg. I must be a sick SOB to make light out of something so tragic. That's really very, very funny now that I think about it! Tim Alexander plays some cool Floyd Cramer sounding piano on this one. I still wonder what that announcer, the one who witnessed and commentated on the explosion and crash of the Hindenburg meant when he said, "Aw, the humanity!" I kind of know...I think...maybe not.
Crazy Ex-Boyfriend: This is about a problem with your girlfriend's old boyfriend who just won't let go, even though they quit dating about two years earlier. I've had experience with this as Ive gone through it as the new boyfriend and as myself being the crazy ex-boyfriend. No, I've never had a crazy ex-boyfriend myself, not that there's anything wrong with that. Wrong with, you know, being crazy. I really don't know what the hell I'm saying.
Oh God! Doesn't Work in Vegas: This is a barn-burner of a rock and roll song about how crying out for God doesn't really help you at the blackjack table. And, of course, if he did, we'd all be religious and millionaires. However, if you've got a gambling addiction, he's chompin' at the bit to go to work right now. One time, in Tahoe, I got the brilliant idea that I'd play blackjack, bet small starting out and double my bet until I won it all back. This way, I would slowly amass a fortune winning the small bets here and there. I lost all of my money as well as the whole band fund and had a lot of 'splainin' to do the next day. Don't ever try that.
Just Let Me Hold My Paycheck: I can't write a song that's as sexist as this one is without any underlying meaning. I mean...this guy shouldn't complain that his wife spends his whole paycheck at the mall, when he'd just blow it all on beer and betting on the horse races. You get what you deserve, buddy. Pathetic! Again, it's a song about 'some guy,' not me personally.
Oh by Jingo!: This is a cover of an instrumental by Chet Atkins. Not really that funny.
River Ran Dry: This is one that's about a pathetic guy who wonders why his girlfriend left just because, as the line goes 'had to quit my job, temporarily un-employed.' A lot of my songs, once you listen closely and evaluate them, are about how problems are really brought on by the 'victims' themselves who blame everybody but themselves, including God. Hey, wait a minute - that's not very funny! And, oh yeah, in this form, this song may rock a little bit too hard to be called country. However, slow it down a little, put a Cajun beat to it and voila, it's a country song.
Please Don't Take the Baby to the Liquor Store: This sad and funny song is about...well...the title says it all. Moreover, it's not that kind of bottle he's been crying for.
Beer Holder: This is one about a guy who's proud that his beer holder gets bigger with every beer he puts away, and he's perplexed that his wife doesn't see the genius in that. Also remember, it's about 'some guy'...not me...I've got rock hard abs and my wife thinks that everything that I do and say is hilarious as well as genius.
Rural Point of View: I'm not sure how funny this song is really, but it reveals my theory that a lot of what is wrong with modern philosophy is that the philosophers themselves live in the city and don't have the slightest idea about what the rural point of view would be. So this song kind of makes fun of 'urban thinkers' who get great ideas like, "The pickup truck should soon be obsolete." Anyone who's ever lived on a farm, or a property that's more than about two acres, knows that you almost have to own a pickup truck...Sorry, it's just a fact. This is a good up-tempo song with some fun and fast country licks...funny cowbell too.
Death Metal Guys: This song describes the juxtaposition between rockabilly guys and death metal guys. Sweet! Wasn't it the death metal band Mayhem whose lead singer blew his brains out, then the other members of the band ate his brains? And people call Jerry Lee Lewis insane!? Hey, what's funny about this? This is country? Well, this is more of a rockabilly song.
There's a Little Bit of Everything in Texas: This is a classic cover song by one of my all-time favorite country artists-Ernest Tubb. It brags on Texas, but still talks about California and Tennessee. You'll hear our drummer Paul yelling in the background when I sing that line about Tennessee (I can't believe that he could be so proud of a place that's not even somehow associated with the Saguaro cactus). I know...again...that's not funny-but it is real country. As of this writing, I'd still like to get Lynn Owsley (former steel guitarists for Ernest Tubb and the Texas Troubadours) to play a little steel guitar overdub. It's going to have to be overdubbed as we'll have to wait for him to get back to Nashville. He's a bus driver now who's driven all the stars - Fitty Cent being one of them. Is that cool that I spelled it 'Fitty' or am I just a moron? Don't answer that.
Spacewalk: This is a slow instrumental that is...well...not that funny, and not that country. This is kind of a bonus track I wrote to be a tribute to the Santo and Johnny song 'Sleepwalk' even though it's an entirely different melody and arrangement. Not funny.
