Five and Dime Waltz

Dime Box

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 5, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Avebury Records
• ASIN: B0016K9XU6
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #616,077 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Long ago in Texas, a small town didn't have a post office. So the people left a dime in a box to get a letter delivered. And the town became known as Dime Box. Just a little while ago in California, a group of musical women got together on the singer's back porch and made some sounds that echoed small town Texas life. So they called themselves Dime Box. You don't need electricity to make the sounds Dime Box makes. You just need some strings for the mandolin, the fiddle and the guitars, and maybe some brushes for the drummer. And a fine country voice like Dolly or Patsy. Dime Box singer Kristi Callan has one of those voices. You know, the kind that floats effortlessly over the lyrics. The kind that yearns and reminds you of some faraway place where you always wanted to go. And the songs... Well, they've got ten heartfelt originals and a Dolly cover here. Bone to Pick is an old fashioned country toe-tapper with tangy barbeque sauce poured all over it and great biting lyrics: 'I want you up and gone by the end of this song.' During 'High Road' the bass and brushed drums chase each other in a galloping rhythm. 'Mama' is surrounded by smooth harmonies and plaintive violin figures that echo the song's theme of regret. Some of the songs are about women escaping and coping. Take the kids post-divorce and start over. The title song is about living a life somewhere between homelessness and normal society. Collecting scraps and leftovers and making them work. But the song makes it more bearable by comparing it to a dance: 'doing the five and dime waltz.' The wistful 'Up to Here' is another post-divorce escape, but this time it's balanced by remembering the joys of being naive. My favorite song is 'Betsy,' which longs for the return of a much missed old friend. It has just the right touch of pensive mandolin playing and wondering lyrics. The best way to hear the music of Dime Box is to sit out on your back porch around dusk and listen. Or pick up this CD. Just be sure to leave a dime in the box for the postman. --Joe Beine's Dream Watcher blog - 3/26/08

Product Description
Dime Box is hell-bent on saving animals, righting the wrongs of this world and making good American music. Smooth sweet vocals meet lightning-fast picking, Dime Box are the girls next door, if the girls next door just happened to have a damn good country band. Sounds Like: Tammy Wynette singing Gram Parsons songs if Roy Acuff was backing her.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 11 Rootsy Country Gems, April 10, 2008

By	Joe Beine (Denver, CO United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is the band Kristi Callan was born to be in. She's got the right style, the right voice and most importantly, the right boots. Her earlier bands, like Wednesday Week and Lucky, were cool in their own way, but Dime Box has just the right down home country sound for Kristi's voice.

Five and Dime Waltz has ten spicy originals ranging from the bounce of "High Road" to the plaintive "Somehow Somewhere." And one Dolly Parton cover that fits right in. Every song is a highlight, every detail is in the right place. The finely picked strings on the guitars and mandolin. The gentle brushes on the drums. The mournful violin playing. And Kristi's passionate singing.

If your taste in country music leans toward Dolly Parton, Hank Williams and Johnny Cash, then you'll probably love this. And any album that mentions the dollar store in two different songs has got to be just right.