Customer Reviews

Pizza Deliverance

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Drive-By Truckers stand out in the current crop of indie rockers...they don't play whiny college rock and they don't fuse hip-hop and metal as current fashion dictates. They are throwbacks to the dinosaur rock of the 70's, yet their lyrics are far more inventive and meaningful than those that came before them.

Pizza Deliverance is a great way to get to know the Truckers. Live staples like "Bulldozers and Dirt" and "Uncle Frank" are here but it's a few of the lesser-known tracks that stand out for me. "Love Like This" is the coolest Southern Rock/ballad ever written (sung by guitarist Mike Cooley, who you don't get to hear often enough) with its tales of abuse and codependancy. "The Night GG Allin Came To Town" made me laugh the first time I heard it, but it's the portrayal of Southern boredom ("might as well drink until we pass out again") that stays with you after the more obvious lines roll by. And "The Company I Keep" is the track that makes this officially a drinkin' record. "Sometimes I'm so high that I'm scared to go to sleep/ Sometimes I'm lower than the company I keep," it's a reminder that sometimes you turn into the one that your mother warned you about.

For lovers of heavy music, you can't go wrong with the Truckers. Don't let the Southern rock descriptions turn you off if you're wincing and imagining .38 Special rockin' out with Black Oak Arkansas. These guys are like Crazy Horse...heavy as hell and intelligent to boot. If they don't get their due it's a sin.

The music they perform sort of a mixture of Uncle Tupelo, Bottle Rockets and other energetic country bands. Don't be driven away by the cartoonish cover and their choice of song titles for behind all of that is real quality and a sincere appreciation for music. It is their fine musicianship and an intelligent song writing that stands out from so many bland "middle-of-the-road" Alt-country bands out today. Plus, their live shows are louder than hell and they never take breaks (except for PBR).

This album is just like its title -- it gets better each time you hear it.

When I first bought the album, I thought it was the weak link of my Truckers collection. But one year and about 100 listens later, I found myself in a Tuscaloosa coffee shop asking Patterson before a concert to play more from it. You don't find much more Southern honesty than from DBT, especially in Pizza Deliverance. His stories of a great grandmother who was "too mean to die," a desire to use his roommate's gun to get rid of some of the annoyances in his life, relations with an older woman and his sister-in-law, and attending a G.G. Allen concert with fellow DBT singer Mike Cooley are too good lyrically not to hear. And by the way, if you think this guy can tell a tale, you ought to hear him elaborate on some of the songs in concert. Still, Cooley's the best lyricists of the three singers, and Jason Isbell was a perfect addition starting with Decoration Day.

This was the Trucker's second album, but was pretty much the songs they toured on when they first started out. In the liner notes, Patterson Hood states that they basically wanted to capture all those tunes even though "Gangstabilly" was the first release. This album has a lot of songs on it. As a result, the album seems kind of long to me, but really, there's only maybe one annoying song on the whole album. So, 13/14 ain't too bad.

First, the annoying one: "The President's Penis is Missing" is basically a jokey-jokey song not only about Clinton but a whole bunch of former U.S. presidential affairs. Might have been funny at the time, but seeing as how I got this CD in the middle of Bush's second term, it's outdated, and the music sounds like it belongs in a circus act. And for those of you keeping political score at home - it's neither defending or condemning these affairs, but just basically says it is what it is.

I'm not going to do a blow by blow of the rest of the tunes. They're all pretty great in their own way, and my favorites change depending on the day of the week. One notable is "The Company I Keep." To me, this is classic Patterson Hood. Just like Robert Plant claims "Kashmir" is the quintessential Led Zeppelin tune, "The Company I Keep" is THE ANTHEM of the DBT. Again, it's not my favorite tune, but the chorus is catchy as all get-out.

Mike Cooley's tunes, "Uncle Frank" and "One of These Days" are always in my head. If you google the Tennessee Valley Authority you'll find tons of sites discussing how great it was for Alabama. "Uncle Frank" tells the story from a different opinion. "One of These Days" seems to be about a rite of passage to me, or at least how different places and events can change a person.

"Pizza Deliverance" should have been an indication that these guys were destined for great things.

These guys are the real deal. They prove that southern rock can rawk, without being corny. Excellent, hilarious songwriting combined with searing guitars and Patterson Hood's winsome, world-weary vocals evoke memories of skynryd, but with a very modern sensibility. They write songs about swingers, prozac and paranoid vietnam veteran uncles - all with a healthy dose of humor and the feeling that they know their subjects all to well. If you get a chance to see 'em live you won't be sorry.

I picked up an advance copy of Pizza Deliverance, and it's a step forward from the Truckers' excellent first album. New guitarist Rob Malone is on board to punch up the sound. The songwriting and raw guitar playing are as good as ever, which means outstanding. The boys' remake of "Nine Bullets" from the first album is great. This a very talented band that deserves to be heard.

I purchased "Pizza Deliverance" after buying Drive By Truckers' INCREDIBLE 2001 album "Southern Rock Opera". I'm here to report that "Opera" represents a quantum leap forweard from where DBT was previously, at least based on this album.

As implied by the title, "Pizza Deliverance" is a wiseass recording that makes fun of the south in a way that only true southerners could. Songs like "Bulldozers and Dirt" and "Nine Bullets" tell tales of down-and-out trailer trash types and the follies they get into. Unfortunately, the members of the band are far too intelligent and creative to play dumb over an entire disc. In the end, "Pizza Deliverance" is a decent effort that would have been more effective had it been just a tad less smart-alecky.

I would recommend it, but "Southern Rock Opera" is by far the better album. In fact, it may have been the best rock album of the year.

Listening to this CD is like pure heaven. From the first track to the very last, your hairs will stand up straight. It will inspire all you young country or folk singers to be the best you can be. It was the kind of album when I first heard it, that discouraged me because, frankly, I can't imagine music much better than this.
Highly recommended! And if you're a DBT fan and don't have this, make it your next purchase. You won't be disappointed.

The good news is there's a Southern rock band that writes, sings and plays great music and that of course, is Drive-By Truckers. The better news is that their later albums are even better than Pizza Deliverance.

And Pizza Deliverance is a very good album. Full of small vignets of Southern life at the bottom, there's not a bad song on the cd. In fact there are some fantastic songs here, especially Bulldozers and Dirt, Nine Bullets and Margo & Harold.

If you are a fan of Marshal Tucker Band, Allman Brothers or Lynyrd Skynyrd you'll love Drive-By Truckers. They are that good. Hell, if you like good music you'll like them.

Highly recommended.

The title of track 4 says it all. Drive by Truckers have a way with words and can capture the quirks of life within their masterful lyrics. Or maybe they have a quirky way of looking at life. Musically sound, these guys are a great band to listen to live and "Pizza Deliverance" is pure art from the first track through the fourteenth song. Highlights include "Nine Bullets", "Margo and Harold", "The President's Penis is Missing", and "Zoloft". Often introspective and melancholy in nature - although much humor is interspersed, the songs demonstrate great musicianship and are delivered with a unique voice that grows on you after each listen. Give the album a try, you'll be glad you did.