Customer Reviews

The Best of the Hightone Years

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Dave Alvin and the Blasters were among a handful of Roots Rock bands to reignite a national and international passion for this seminal and crucial artform, American Roots Music. It incorporates elements of folk, blues, classic country, rockabilly, r&b and Texas rock 'n roll (Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, the Everly Bros, etc.)and comes up with a unique sound that is all and none at the same time. When Dave Alvin left the Blasters to start his magnificent, if often star-crossed solo career, his influence and abilities were already established and formidable. This collection of songs he did under Bruce Bromberg's Hightone label confirms what any serious music fan or scholar knows. Here is one of the most important of American singer/songwriters, in the same league as Dylan, Petty, Springsteen, Mellencamp, Robertson, George and a handful of others. This album is essential listening and representative of the "Best" of not only Dave Alvin's work, but any musician's of the last 40 or so years. He is truly an American treasure.

I am always skeptical of the label "best of" when it comes to music compilations. Some such compilations I have heard are so sorry that you have to wonder just who made the selections! On Dave Alvin's Best of the Hightone Years, both you and I may disagree that the selections here represent "the best" of Dave Alvin's early solo outings, but you should agree with me that the songs here are a thoughtfully selected representation of that period.
There is not one lousy song on the album. One of my favorite songs, the brutally dark Mary Brown is here. Other favorites are the delightful Dry River, the classic King of California, Evening Blues, The Cuckoo, Thirty Dollar Room, Tom Russell's Blue Wing, the hard-charging Out In California and Museum of Heart, a fast-paced number evocative of early Los Lobos.
Those who already own most or all of Dave Alvin's early albums might ask why they should buy this CD. There are several good reasons, the best one being a sound quality superior to that on the original recordings. Another good reason is that you get five songs previously unreleased on any of Alvin's albums, a couple of which you might recognize as having been covered by other artists. Finally, the variety of moods and styles is such that The Best of the Hightone Years makes it a perfect introduction to Dave Alvin for those who have never heard him before. The CD comes with a booklet containing all song information, an introduction to Dave Alvin by Hightone Records owner Bruce Bromberg, and fresh commentary by Alvin himself. Don't miss this one, its a keeper.