Customer Reviews

Romeo's Escape

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4 star:		(2)
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In 1986, the LP was called "Romeo's scape". In 1987 it was called "Every night about this time". In 2001 and now, we are back to the original title.

One of the best records ever. Each song a classic. Dylan and Townes are Dave Alvin's peers.Just incredible.

I bought this CD at a Dave Alvin concert. Based on the material he played in concert, I would say this is the best of his solo albums. Of course he has the luxury here of recording some of the best of his non-solo stuff.

Dave Alvin was the song-writing part of The Blasters, one of the most enjoyable bands playing American music ever to put out a record. When they were in their prime, nobody did stuff like this better. With his brother Phil doing the singing, they had a distinct sound, and you had to see Phil perform to fully appreciate the whole Blasters experience.

Alas, people don't get along and Dave and the Blasters parted ways. Dave has set off on a solo career that hasn't seemed that successful, and at last checking, the Blasters continue to tour without Dave. Problem is, without Dave to write good songs, the Blasters are probably doomed to being an oldies act.

What makes this album interesting is that you get to hear Dave's songs SUNG by Dave. He will tell you in concert that the idea was strange to him when first proposed, and if you followed the band, you might think the same. No, Dave does not have a smooth voice at all. In fact, it's downright gravelly from countless cigarettes.

But what you do get is the author of some songs singing them the way he thinks they should be sung. If you were a Blasters fan, hearing songs like "Long White Cadillac", "Jubilee Train", and "Border Radio" might take some getting used to, but they come out as equally good interpretations after awhile.

There is feeling to the singing, too. "Border Radio" is slowed down a lot, and you look at it a different way. And you will be hard-pressed to find a more heart-rendering performance than what he does with "Every Night About This Time". He also rocks hard on the album with "Romeo's Escape" and "New Tatto", which balance it out nicely.

There are not that many bands doing this kind of music anymore, so catch Dave or the Blasters if they come to your town.

Dave Alvin shows off his song writing chops-- and they are in fine form on this album. Bumming out on a lonely night? Try listening to "Every Night.." or "Border Radio". His words paint a head-filling picture. Wonderful album.

This album is one of the best American roots music offerings since Bob Dylan's "Highway 61 Revisited". If you ever wondered what some of the Blasters tunes would sound like with an acoustic guitar, this is it. Even the electric guitars have an acoustic feel and the result is magical. A must have album for folks who think American music ends with Petty, Mellencamp and Springsteen. Dave Alvin achieves sounds and feelings that everyone who lives and loves this country can appreciate.

I know it sounds hyperbolic, but Dave Alvin's debut album, Romeo's Escape (also called Every Night About this Time) is simply one of the best roots-rock/Americana/country albums of the past thirty years. Alvin had played in the Blasters and then, briefly, with X before striking out on his own with this collection. And music lovers everywhere should love him for it.

Alvin benefits from having years of unused songs to fall back on (like so many other debuts from people formerly in groups), including reworks of "Fourth of July" (sung by John Doe on X's See How We Are) and "Long White Cadillac" and "Border Radio" (sung by brother Phil on the Blasters' Testament: The Complete Slash Recordings (1981-1985), along with a couple of others). While the original recordings are just fine on their own (terrific, actually), to hear Dave take on his own material with the vocal chops and gusto that he brings to these compositions (even when the arrangements aren't reworked very much) is nothing short of a revelation. These are the songs as they were first heard in the artist's mind, and that's really something to hear.

I don't want to overthink anything, here, but the simple fact is that this album has it all: Strong Songwriting? Check. Awesomely expressive vocals? Check. Perfect arrangements for the songs with tight playing? Rock? Roll? Rave-ups? Ballads? Check, check, check, and check.

Again this is one of the best LPs since Americana became a genre (a bit before, actually), and if you don't have this one, you're missing a very important chapter. Highly, highly recommended.

This 1986 release by Dave Alvin backed by the Allnighters and featuring guests like Al Kooper and David Hidalgo is firmly on the road between his Blasters and X days and his more recent folkier work like Blackjack David and Public Domain. The cool part is he's been great all along the way and this outing, his first solo work, is great, too. It has cuts that showed up elsewhere like Fourth of July which X did and Alvin redid himself on King of California. They're strong songs, and hearing them recast is a treat, and those unique to this disk are fine, too..

In the liner notes Alvin says this is his first time out singing his songs. Why he waited so long I don't know, but he does fine.

Strong songs, good singing, and inspired playing. Next best thing to saturday night.