Customer Reviews

Continental Stomp

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If you listened to a Western Swing band and didn't shake a leg or two, or worse still remained unmoved by the infectious exuberance of the music, the chances are that you were dead, but had not yet registered the fact!!

So here we have the Hot Club of Cowtown, three of the most talented young musicians to come along and distil the incendiary brew, that swing music becomes in the hands of talented and enthusiastic musicians, since time immemorial. Looking at the past, swing bands had more players than a dog has fleas- you could fill a bus with them- Bob wills did, AATW nearly do!!. To recap, there are just 3 players in this band, and they work overtime running the gamut of a whole bunch of songs, that yes, we may have heard before (perhaps except for the bonus track 14!!!-see the track listing above) but haven't heard done before with such verve and panache!!

So Elana Fremerman, she of the winning smile, seductive vocals and fiddling prowess, Whit Smith, archtop Gibson guitar genius and lovelorn vocals, Jake Erwin, bass spanker, vocals and expansive smiles, take this delightful music by the scruff of the neck, and unleash a wildcat of a performance onto the good citizens of Austin, who have the supreme good fortune to be neighbours to this exceptional band.
Production credit goes to the imperturbable super-steely Lloyd Maines- sorry mate, this band don't need a steel man.Whit's Gibson does the whole guitar thing with an ease that's remarkable for its combination of spareseness and complexity with no hint of extraneous guitar flash-just the right lick in the right place, all the time!!

Buy this record, better still if you can, see the band and smile with them.

Though the style of music is quite unlike anything else in my collection and I stumbled across the CD on a fluke, I adore it! In fact, upon discovering it, I was so pleased with it that I played it for my whole family (ages 16 through 57), and it got a thumbs up from everybody. The songs have an old time traditional American feel to them and the musicianship is fantastic. (I hope to see these three perform live someday!) I love many of the songs, but I think my favorite is track 9, "After You've Gone." The best thing about the CD is that it makes me happy every time I listen to it, without fail. Highly recommended!

Hot Club's music bypasses all the complicated analytical bits of the brain, sneaks round the back, slides down the spine, and curls warmly round the coccyx. It's not sitting-still music, you just have to move.

Just sooo good. Listen to the samples; if they don't get you in the tail-bone, you must be dead.

thanks to prairie home companion i was introduced to hot club of cowtown. they are positively wonderful with their fusion of jazz, country and standards. it's so great to hear young people breathing new life into "old" music! cowtown's hard driving energy is nicely balanced by their quiet finesse. may these people entertain the world for at least another hundred years.

My wife and I go to a series of house concerts put on by Dark-Thirty Productions of Lakeside, California. The acts are quite excellent in quality, but are still lesser known and willing to give concerts before 50 to 120 people in a small venue. I was told, when I first started to attend, that one of the best acts to catch was The Hot Club of Cowtown. Well, I've now attended three Hot Club concerts and wouldn't miss the chance to attend more. What a terrific musical entourage!

The Hot Club consists of Whit on guitar, Jake on stand-up bass and Elana on violin. All serve as vocalists with Whit and Elana carrying the greatest workload. Their music is generally billed as "Western Swing" or "Hot Jazz." It's somewhat old-fashioned sounding and some of the songs go way, way back. However, the Hot Club can turn this music into a fresh new sound that has everyone singing their praise. All three concerts I attended resulted in standing ovations with the crowd begging for more.

The Hot Club has several things going for it. First, all three persons are very engaging personalities in themselves and they react wonderfully together. When you listen to them playing their music, you cannot help but feel that they genuinely are having fun. That makes them a great act to watch live and in my concerts I've sat no more than 20 feet away. Secondly, all three are excellent musicians. Any of the three can give a solo and bring applause to the point that the music is almost drowned out. Did I mention that they work well together? Like a well-oiled machine! And, they play real-fast high-energy selections and never miss a note. They're just a terrific band and they play wonderful music. If you ever see them posted for a concert, don't miss it.

I purchased the "Dev'lish Mary" CD and I've enjoyed it very much, but it has some of those things that record producers are prone to do and it's not totally true to the concert experience. Now, the "Continental Stomp" recording is out (not present when I purchased "Dev'lish Mary") and it comes truer to the Hot Club experience. Believe me, it's best to see them live, but if you can't the "Continental Stomp" CD comes closest to the live experience. All of the selections are excellent, but my personal favorites include "Deed I Do," "Chinatown," "I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby," Exactly Like You," and "I can't believe You're in Love with Me." Elana is my favorite vocalist and has a personal charm that simply can't be captured on a recording. Otherwise, it's an outstanding CD.

Gary Peterson

This live album shows off the dazzling talents of three dynamite musicians, revisits some excellent classic tunes, and (most importantly) makes a point of entertaining the listener. The Hot Club of Cowtown is an extremely talented trio of players (and singers) that avoids the common pitfall of talented players: trying to show off how talented they are.
Instead of trying to stupefy the audience with technical prowess, the Hot Club draws them into a synergistic musical experience, and that's why I love this album. You will hear excellent picking, soulful singing, searing solos. But most importantly, you will be entertained and have a great time.

For the past 3 years Hot Club of Cowtown has come to my city to perform in our Summer Concert Series. They have been consistantly the best performers during the entire summer. The concerts are free, but the only one I would be willing to pay for is Hot Club. Of course, I have bought all their CD's. They deserve to make it big!!!

Sublime musicianship that manages to be both cool and redhot at once. I could listen to their CDs for weeks on end (and have). If this live recording doesn't make you check their tour dates and reorganize your schedule around their next visit to your state, I'll eat my hat.

This is a great cd. First one that I bought of this group and I love it.

This group was guesting on NPR Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion Radio Show in St Pual Minnesota March 27, 2004 when we heard them for the first time. WOW!!! It was a stunning performance to behold with songs from this CD. They have a singular sound that treats your ears. To view photos and listen to this performance go the show web site. You are in for a treat!