Goodbye Rock N Roll

Derek Hoke (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 23, 2010)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Electric Western Records
• ASIN: B0030VWR98
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #390,319 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Find-, March 26, 2010

By 

G. Johnson (Bell Buckle, TN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Goodbye Rock N Roll (Audio CD)

I found out about Derek Hoke through a youtube video of one of his songs and was smitten. The whole record is absolutely solid. In fact it is my favorite release of the last year. I purchase several dozen cd's and records annually (mostly in Americana and classic country). I cannot come up with an Americana release that comes close to this except for Hayes Carll's record... And I like this record better. So timeless sounding without sounding retro or dated. Simple catchy, smart, effective songs...

4.0 out of 5 stars +1/2 - Sweet, optimistic country with pop, folk and blues shades, February 26, 2010

By 

hyperbolium (Earth, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Goodbye Rock N Roll (MP3 Download)

Georgian-born Derek Hoke opens his debut with the album's bold title declaration: Goodbye Rock `n' Roll. It's an immensely catchy song whose pedal steel and thumping honky-tonk beat underline the bittersweet lament of a man who must bid adieu to his first love. Hoke declares his never-ending affection for rock `n' roll even as he falls further into the embrace of country music. He's confused and heartsick, but like the fatalism of film noir, he can't fight the impulse to turn down the amps and turn up the twang. He leaves behind the big guitars and screaming audiences with heartfelt, sweet sorrow.

Hoke styles himself a country artist, but there are rich threads of pop, folk and blues to be found in his music. The vibraphone chime of "Hot on the Heels of Love" lay behind a melody that's equal parts Buddy Holly and early Beatles, and the whistled solo adds to a satisfied, easy-going early-60s mood. Hoke is a pop omnivore who smoothly combines Lyle Lovett's ambling swing, Marshall Crenshaw's earnest pop, Dr. John's rolling funk and Hank Williams' twang. Mike Daly's steel nods to Williams' legendary sideman Don Helms, and Chris Donohue's double bass add supper-club bottom end to several songs.

At first these seem to be songs of romantic distress, but Hoke's an optimist who dispels dark clouds with a never-ending view towards the sunny side. The frazzled morning-after of "Rain Rain Rain," delayed infatuation of "I Think I Really Love You" and unrequited longing of "Still Waiting" are voiced as hope and opportunity rather than defeat, and even the straying lover of "Not Too Late" is given one more chance. Hoke sings of small pleasures ("The Finer Things") and traipses through a litany of Southern terms of affection ("Sweat Pea," with Jen Duke singing Loretta Lynn to Hoke's George Jones) as his songs swing through buoyant rockabilly, acoustic blues and twangy country.

Hoke has steeped in the music of his youth, but also that of his parents' and grandparents'. His period influences are worn cleverly in guitar strums, bass thumps, vocal harmonies and steel bends, interweaving periods and styles rather than blocking out pieces from whole cloth. His farewell to rock `n' roll takes him back to a time when American music's roots were still tangled in the same plot of mountain soil. This is a charming record that plays like a vintage radio station hopping from one thing you love to another, alighting long enough to set your toe tapping. 4-1/2 stars, if allowed fractional ratings. [..]