Customer Reviews

Stubborn

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Having been priviliged to follow Mr. Womack's career for a little over fifteen years now, first with south central Kentucky's answer to the Replacements, Government Cheese, on through his fine book, the Cheese Chronicles (you should read this...), and also on the fine CD collaboration with Brad Jones, the Bis-Quits (one hell of a good cd-look for it), and finally through his solo career, Tommy Womack is one indie musician that is well worth checking out.

Womack has a sound that's reminiscent of mid 70's Stones, late 80's John Hiatt, and probably the most prevalent strain, Alex Chilton and Big Star; his lyrics deal with mostly down-to-earth subjects, but with a Randy Newman-style twist and Paul Westerberg-ish attitude.

There's nothing here that's as resonant as the winning title cut from his previous effort, Positively Na Na, but there is plenty of stuff to engage the mind and feet. The only misstep is the umpteenth version of "For The Battered" from the Government Cheese canon (which I'm sure he reasons that no ones heard, so what the heck), which has a worthy enough message, but is not helped by a flat new arrangement and slightly altered lyrics. I prefer the original (actually I prefer the demo I heard years ago), myself.

But hey, that's just one out of thirteen, so do yourself a favor and take a flyer on Tommy Womack. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

You cant go wrong buying Tommy Womack's music. Great lyrics to go along with his brand of rock & roll twang. Throw in some blues element and you've got some damn fine foot stompin' crack you up music that you just dont tire of. What rock is all about.

It's hard to pin a genre label on Tommy Womack's music in this CD. Roots rock, alt country, blues country, smart ass humor -- you'll find bits of all those styles here. The latter, for example, is in the short cuts Rubbermaid (where Womack sounds like Dylan on Subterranean Homesick Blues) and Christian Rocker. Blues country is I Don't Have a Gun. Jason Ringenberg, who was doing alt country in the early 80s before they invented the name, duets on Going Nowhere, earlier available on a Jason and the Scorchers release. Roots rock would be Up Memphis Blues. Willie Perdue and For the Battered are two more strong cuts. On the other hand, I can't figure out what a Ray Davies song (Berkeley Mews) is doing here and the ringing guitar hooks of the anti-war They All Come Back for More fail to overcome the weak lyrics of a song that goes on about ninety seconds too long. Womack tries hard, he's good, he's funny, and yet I don't think much of this CD will have the staying power to get it off my CD stacks and back in the player time and time again.