Customer Reviews

Reef Madness

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The "Texas Beach Music" we have learned to love has returned in it's full glory with 13 delightful songs! So good to hear the special sounds of the beach on a live CD. Mike nails it when he says in the opening song "The name (band) has changed but the song remains the same".

Close your eyes, imagine you are in Margaritaville and take a journey to the Gulf Coast, "Beach People, Beach Music" will surely take you for a nostalgic journey. The CD has something for everyone, some Buffett cover songs like Pencil Thin Mustache, some beach favorites and some songs that I had not heard before. There is even a song with a strong Cajun flavor and sailing music for those so inclined. Sunday Morning in New Orleans is a smooth ballad that alone is worth the price of the CD.

A great band making beautiful "Beach" music for all us Buffett/Parrothead/Island people.

Billy Peoples AKA The Old parrothead

This CD, "Reef Madness", is one of the liveliest, fun albums I've heard in a while. It reminds me a lot of Jimmy Buffett's, "You Had to be There" CD from 1979. The band Hanna's Reef performs several of their own original songs here, as well as a few Buffett cover tunes. Their original music, is catchy, and every bit as good as the cover songs that are on the album.

As for the review directly before this one, I don't think that guy has even heard this CD. He couldn't have. First of all, he mentions that the band Hanna's Reef sounds like a garage band trying to play Buffett. Well, there's not a whole lot of Buffett here, and what they do cover is excellent. I've heard that another band out there called "Key West-the Band" used to be comprised of several of the members of Hanna's Reef. Rumor has it that KWTB is so childish that they write reviews of Hanna's Reef CD's, (anonymously)and put down their album. I don't know if that's true or not, but I don't see how anyone would rate this album a 1, on a scale of 1-5. For the record, I do have a copy of the one CD from Key West-the Band that is available here on amazon, called "Americana". It's really hard to review, since almost all of the songs on it are cover tunes. Why put out an album to sell to the public, if it's mainly just remakes of songs by other artists?

Regardless, this is my review of the Hanna's Reef album, so I'll not digress again. This CD has some great tropical stuff on it, including my favorite track, "Beach People, Beach Music". An equally fun song is "Let the Good Times Roll", with a great Cajun beat to it. And the cover of Buffett's "One Particular Harbor" is the best I've heard by anyone other than the Coral Reefer Band. I saw these guys live at the Shrimp Festival in Gulf Shores in 2002. They were as good live (and in person) as they are on this album!

This album is like having a party in your CD player! It is a live CD, recorded at some "beach bar" in Texas. I had never heard of this band, Hanna's Reef, until a recent trip to New Orleans, for a party there. These guys were awesome. They have great original material, and their covers of Jimmy Buffett songs are the best I've ever heard.

If you are in the mood for a fun album, this fits the ticket. About the only "serious" song on here is "Sunday Morning in New Orleans". It is excellent. And so is the rest of the album.

I don't normally take the time to write reviews, but after reading the one before this one, I just had to. I bought a copy of this album, "Reef Madness", and frankly, I am very pleased with it. I heard Hanna's Reef in Key West, Florida last November, when they played at the Meeting of the Minds party down there. I was so impressed with their live show that I bought a copy of their album. They do an excellent job on the 4 cover tunes thay have here on the album. But more than that, their original songs are extremely good. They really seem to have captured the "Texas beach sound" that they talk about in the liner notes.
As for their claim that they are the original members of "Key West - the band", I only have one comment. I saw Key West the band years ago in Pensacola, and it seems like these guys actually are exactly the same ones that were onstage with the band then. Ironically, when I recently saw the band Key West (in Key West, Florida), I didn't recognize a single member except the bass player. I don't really know what's going on with that situation, but frankly, I don't care. I really like this album from Hanna's Reef, and I can't wait to hear their new material.
As for the current ensemble of Key West the band, I don't really care for them too much. They play a lot heavier music now, and they all look like they just got out of jail. I think I'll pass on them...next time.

What a great combination of coastal/western/cajun music this band delivers! They take you to the beach, New Orleans, and a Texas honky tonk all on one CD. Having seen Key West, The Band, numerous times, it is obvious that the driving forces of that band are now Hanna's Reef. And it's all live...just like being at one of their concerts. Buy the CD, take a mini-vacation while listening, and go see Hanna's Reef live when you can!

It's amazing how these guys can get back together and sound just as they did years ago without missing a beat. It's so great to have them back together. As I listen to it, I feel like I'm back at the beach having a great time. So if you want to feel like you're at the beach when you can't be there, get this CD. If you like Jimmy Buffett, you'll love this CD.

THE WORST CD I'VE EVER BOUGHT.

I BOUGHT THIS CD BASED ON ALL OF THESE RAVING REVIEWS THAT YOU'LL READ BELOW.

I TRIED TO DOWNLOAD THE MP3 SAMPLES, BUT PROBLEMS WITH HARDWARE/SOFTWARE/AMAZON/AOL OR ALL OF THE ABOVE KEPT ME FROM FROM SAMPLING THIS PURCHASE.

IT WAS VERY DISAPPOINTING.

SOUNDS LIKE MY SONS GARAGE BAND TRYING TO PLAY BUFFETT SONGS.

Like the first words on the CD "The name has changed, but the song remains the same", this band sounds just like the original Key West - The Band. Actually, except for a new bass player & harmonica player, it is the original band! I had seen Hanna's Reef play a few times (once at the venue where the CD was recorded) before they recorded this CD and it was like hearing from old friends. For only having been reunited for a few months, this band was tight. They picked up right were they left off! The production crew did a great job capturing the band's real sound without losing the party athmosphere that breaks out at all Hanna's Reef shows. The only downside is that there were not more of the "not quite released" songs of Jerry Diaz like: "Rum in Pennsicola" and "Watch the Young Girls Dance". Guess I'll have to wait for the Studio CD rumored to be coming out in 2003!

The cover art, by local artist Huanna Glass (see James, Sunny Jim, White's "Sandbar Serenade" & "Tropical Trader") is great and from what I hear inspired from the cult movie Reefer Madness.

If you can't make it to a Hanna's Reef show and even if you can, this CD is a must have!

I had the pleasure of receiving the very first pre-production CD of this live album, followed by one of the first production CD's. Jerry Diaz has done it again, a mix of his own upper Texas Coast music (sort of Buffet style), mixed with a little Buffet and others. It is amazing what these guys put together weeks after the band was formed.
Of course part of that success comes from most of these guys playing together in the original Key West the Band. If you ever listened to and liked the original Key West the Band albums, you owe it to yourself to move up a notch.
I highly recommend Reef Madness !!

This group bills it's self as the original Key West the Band so I tried it out because I like that group.
No contest!
If I were Key West the Band I would sue for misrepresentation!
I tried listening to this music but it was tough to make it all the way thru.Bad, clique lyrics and songs.The singer is good but can't make up for the horrible songs and grainy recording techniques.
Maybe next time -- but I doubt it.