| Live At Cheatham Street - Adam Carroll | |
|
Reviewed by Jennifer Webb
Adam Carroll has released two previous albums: "Looking Out The Screen Door" and "South Of Town." His latest, "Live At Cheatham Street" showcases him in his element - an intimate concert along with adoring fans. Studio records are fine, but you really get a feel of an artist when you see or hear them live and in person, and what better way to do that without actually getting out is to listen to a live album.
After the introduction, Adam starts to play "Red Bandanna Blues," a fast song about drunken junkies that did nothing but confuse the "normal" people that lived in town. They did not have any friends, only chickens, and their style of dress was not quite happening. After their hair turned gray and another child was born, they just faded away into a memory.
In "Smoky Mountain Taxi," a man had to check out of his hotel and get to the airport, so he takes a taxicab to various places as he meet different drivers. One has a nine-year-old daughter and she talked about how she hopes the girl does not pick up her cigarette addiction, while the first driver had a tattoo of Jesus and said, "Let the Lord bless you, and keep you, my dear." As he continues his journey, he speaks of how he heard more bluegrass music than he would ever want to, and listens to the high harmonies of his driver. At the end, Adam says "And it sounded something like this," before breaking out into a bluegrass-style instrumental.
The guy in "Elvis" was feeling down and out, until he saw the legendary Elvis himself get drunk and rowdy and get hauled off to jail, where he sang "Jailhouse Rock." The officer said he better call Priscilla to bail him out, and then "Viva County Jail." When Adam says "Viva County Jail," he laughs a little bit, while a little later he jokes about a song being on a Terri Hendrix album.
A great harmonica solo starts off the uptempo, "Screen Door," which also happens to be the title of Adam's first album. It tells the story of a woman who does not understand the man's way of thinking. When he is leaving she asks him what he has to take with him, and he says "A pocket full of songs, just for you." Later, when he looks out the screen door at the smoke, it is because she was really the one that ended up leaving.
"Cane River Blues" has an understandable blues feel to it and the uptempo beat really accentuates Adam's songwriting ability. Though he does not like working out in the hot sun, the father does all he can to make the money to pay for books so that hid kids will not end up uneducated. The father's sons were arrested later on their way to a drug deal and a trooper stopped them. They ended up killing the trooper and now Virgil is down in Louisiana with the blues.
A man that wanted to be a star ends up being the "Karaoke Cowboy" because after becoming a big shot in Branson, his place burned down and then he dried out in Nashville. Luann used to be a prom queen and now she wonders how she got to be a bar maid when the future looked so promising back in the old days.
It is evident that this young man has a knack for writing songs that are humorous, without being too in-your-face. His subtle hints in certain situations make you think about what he is singing, which makes for a better audience response. You can tell that the crowd loves his music as proved by the fact that they hoot and holler for him during, before, and after he finishes each tune.
Song List:
Sound clips courtesy of Barnes & Noble
Album cover courtesy of Down Hole Records.
Click on the button below to find the best price for this CD and purchase it from a retailer on the Internet.
| More to do on this site |
|---|
| [ Country Photo Index | Garth Photo Index ] [ Content Index | Trivia Central | CD Releases ] [ Country Music Lyrics Trivia Index ] [ Country Audio/Video Index ] [ Guitar Tabs, Chords & Lyrics Index ] [ Top 500 Country Songs ] [ Top 100 Country Songs of the 1990s ] [ Top 100 Country Albums of the 1990s ] [ Top 200 Most Influential Country Albums ] [ Top 100 Country Artists of All Time ] [ Top 10 Country Artists of the 1990s ] FREE Country Music Courses [ Country 101 | Dose-a-Day Country Trivia ] [ Planning a Trip to Fan Fair ] [ Country Artist of the Day | Country Photo of the Day ] |