Customer Reviews

Talkin Honky Blues

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Seriously, I find that "Roses And Blue Jays" make this album a worthy purchase alone. It's ****ing aesthetic! I haven't listened to a Buck 65 (**** that, a hip hop) song so much since "Pants On Fire" (Track 13) off his "Man Overboard" album. Lucky for me (and everyone else, I guess) that this album has a bunch of other really good songs. A consistency that I found he lacked before on previous albums.

Buck 65 has mostly been hit or miss for me, more often miss. I want to like him; his lyrics are some of the most intelligent you will find. But his delivery and voice are often hard to sit through. On this album however, I find his delivery and voice are at their most accessible. And of all Buck albums I feel this has the best production.

While "Roses And Blue Jays" is my clear favorite, there are a bunch of other good songs. "Craftmanship" is my second favorite of the album. Very straight forward song, excellent production and lyrics. On "Exes" Buck dwells over old relationships with again great production, but emphasis is as usual on his lyrics. "Wicked And Weird" is one of the first hip hop songs I've heard (and liked) with aspects of folk. It's actually done quite nice, and hearing Buck on it just seems unusual and funny. "Tired Out" is another notable folk/hip hop song on this album. Really though, there are a bunch of other songs worth mentioning, but you should just buy the album and listen to the songs rather than reading about them.

A reviewer at Pitchforkmedia.com (who rated this album too low in my opinion) called Buck 65 the most "eccentric emcee" out there. And I've thought about it, and I can't think of anyone else I'd label that before Buck 65. But being weird isn't necessarily a bad thing. As with Buck, it's sometimes serendipitous.

I absolutely loved Buck's concept album 'Square', which was atmospheric and made up of four extremely long, flowing tracks, and a lyrical focus. 'Talkin' Honky Blues' is far more song-based and clearly produced and produces an interesting alternative. Sporting quite possibly some of the greatest lyrics you've ever heard, this album is just a pleasure to listen to, a classic, weathered, world-weary album. 'Roses and Bluejays' is a wonderful example, filled with poignant imagery, and produced with powerful, evocative electronics and almost country-ish guitar licks. The album has a lyric reference point of baseball which it keeps coming back to, which endears me to it very much.

'Wicked And Weird' is one of the few more upbeat songs, powered along on a bouncing bassline; 'Sore' sounds dub-influenced; 'Protest' is more conventionally hip-hop, with chipmunk-ish backing vocals, an excellent guitar lick and a memorable chorus. The sheer melange of sounds here is incredible: everything from electronica to acoustica to soul to country to dub is here in the sound of the album. '50 Gallon Drum', a slow trip-hop number with dark piano and a gruff delivery, harks back to the sound of 'Square'.

'Killed By A Horse' is an electronica instrumental and finally, single '463' is an extraordinary combination of a gothic harpsichord, a relentless beat, an aggressive, almost scary chorus and, strangest of all, a metal rock guitar riff that could have come straight out of an AC/DC song, in marked contrast to the subtle, atmospheric guitar of the rest of the album. The album is enormously consistent and never flounders over a long playing-length. An extraordinary, incredible and essential album.

because of its consistency...

I love this record for so many reasons. How often do you hear blues/country-style guitars mixed in with phat hip-hop beats, with intelligent and fun storytelling? Right. The correct answer is never.

All of Buck 65's music is completely ahead of its time. It's thought-provoking and fun... great rhymes, great storytelling, and man, how could you not love the guy's voice. Some have compared it to Tom Waits but I think it's far more listenable! Ha.

Standout tracks are:

"Roses and Blue Jays"

"Craftsmanship" (man, if this isn't THE BEST song about keeping things real in whatever you do, especially hip-hop... I don't know what is)

"Wicked and Weird"

"Leftfielder"

"463"

The list goes on and on...

I have to mention that in addition to Buck 65's awesome music... he is seriously THE NICEST and most humble musician I have ever talked to. I hung out with him for a half hour the other night in Philly when he played with Sage Francis and Alias, and during Sage's set, I just hung out and talked with him... he was running the merch booth by himself and no one was around because everyone was rocking out to Sage. He was talking to me about all sorts of stuff from books and movies to the tour and music in general... all of this while he was on his Mac powerbook, making bootleg CDs (his own) for sale at the show (tour-only CDs). Busy with that, but plenty of time to talk with me at great lengths about all sorts of stuff. Awesome. Again, how cool is that.

I bought everything he had for sale at the show, t-shirt plus the four tour-only discs... even though I lost my job the week previous. I am still unemployed as I write this. I have to support the guy. He is hands-down my all-time favorite hip-hop artist/turntablist/lyricist. And the fact that he's as down-to-earth as one can possibly get, makes the investment all the more worthwhile.

Unconvinced about this record? Buck has a page at myspace, and it is simply /buck65 after that popular domain. He has plenty of audio to hear and/or download, plus more on his official site which is his name dot com. Plus, you can find more audio if you do a basic internet search... most interviews with him have accompanying audio.

I really wish Amazon would get on the ball and put up some audio for this guy's work... there's only one album with audio clips.. but there needs to be soundclips for all of his releases.

I hope this review helped, if you were unsure about buying his stuff. You really should... no one sounds like him and no one is as down-to-earth as him. Completely influential in every possible way.

Everything about "Talkin' Honky Blues" screams originality. This could be the rebirth of alternative music, as Buck 65 has deliciously spliced together innumerable styles of music here into one great hip-hop fusion. With influences spanning from rap to country to folk to blues to rock, there is something for everybody here. Fans of hip-hop will be happy, because this is a great record for that genre. But it is the extras here that make this so amazing. Lyrical references to Johnny Cash and musical influences by the likes of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds make this album ulike any other you will hear.

This is different, that is for sure. Never has there been a fusion of country/folk and rap, but here it is. This is nothing like the tired combination of rap and metal. Buck 65 deserves the acclaim he is receiving for this disc, and he even won a Juno for best alternative album, also much decerved. Lets hope that he continues to produce material that is not mainstream, not in the normal range of what we expect from a hip-hop disc. I am a big Swollen Members fan, and always had claimed them as the best of Canadian rap, but I think they have just been unseated by Buck 65.

Since there truly is something for everybody here, I strongly reccomend this album, filled start to finish with cool, different songs.

Once again this artists blows me away with his versatile and genre crossing music. Secret House...blew me away, and Talkin Honey does the exact same thing. Talkin Honkey seems to be a concept album about travelling and crosing river beds. Buck 65's flow is so original and his blending of hip hop, country, blues and spoken word is unique and inoovative. His lyrics are personal and deep and his lyrical style is simplistic yet straight to the point and heartfelt. I would recommend this album to those who are not afraid to listen to hip hop that defies genres. Such a great album. Buck 65 is one of the definitive artists of our generation, no doubt about that. Talkin Honey has a heavy country influence as well and generates such a creative vibe. I am very impressed and inspired by this album and by Buck 65.

I've been a fan of Buck 65 ever since I heard "Vertex" (1998). I became a huge fan after hearing "Language Arts" (1997). The set-up for those two albums are quite similar (they are both part of a the series known as "Language Arts"). There, we hear Buck 65 boasting a much different flow, one reminiscent of a child. I for one find it completely original, and very alluring. You won't hear another emcee quite like him. The production is a whole different story. It's very dark, disconnected, and there wasn't much structure to it. Although the production was very minimal, it was also highly stylized. At the time, it was some untouched ground in hip-hop. "Talkin' Honky Blues" is completely different. Here we see a beautiful transition. There's structure, progression, and (gasp) songs. At first listen, you may think that Buck has made a country or folk album. Although I can't pin it down to a specific genre, this is as close Buck 65 has ever gotten to a singer/songwriter formula. The album is filled with a variety of instruments. Several of the songs are guitar driven. Remember the relentless amount of scratching that his early recordings held? The turntable is used much less here, but it's used tastefully, and effectively. And nobody can argue about the sound quality - it's the best it's ever been. Believe it or not, his flow is just as shockingly different as the production is. He goes from sounding like a child, to sounding like a 40-year old lung cancer inflicted coal miner. The lyrics are arguably his best.

When I first heard "Talkin' Honky Blues" I didn't really like it. I was wanting the old Buck 65 back immediately. But after one honest, solid, open-minded listen, I am a true believer in the new Buck 65. The instantly catchy hooks in "Wicked and Weird", and the soothing country-esque guitars on "Riverbed 1" soon became riveting in my eyes. The shear beauty of "Roses and Bluejays" and the gorgeous story-telling of "Riverbed 3" rank as some of the best Buck 65 songs of all time.

Overall, "Talkin' Honky Blues" is an album that you could call angelic, elegant, and graceful - something you couldn't call his earlier dark and murky records. All you need to give it is one candid listen to recognize it's true beauty. This may not give hip-hop heads exactly what they are looking for, but it's a progression that anybody could find intriguing.

I MET BUCK 65 WHEN I WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL BACK IN HALIFAX. I

HEARD ABOUT HIM LONG BEFORE. BUYING HIS MIXTAPES, ALBUMS, AND

CONCERTS, GOT ME INTO HIS MUSIC. WHEN I SAW HIS CONCERT AT MY

HIGH SCHOOL, I WAS A D.J. IN TRAINING. HE MENTORED ME AND HE

TAUGHT ME THE BASICS AT CKDU RADIO STATION (DALHOUSIE; FOR

THOSE UNFAMILIAR) ON MONDAY'S FOR HIS HIP-HOP SHOW, AND HAVE

FOLLOWED HIM EVER SINCE. THAT WAS 1996.

NOW ALMOST TEN YEARS LATER, AND COUNTLESS STYLES LATER, RICH

TERFRY STILL AMAZES ME. HE HAS PERFORMED 8 EDMONTON SHOWS IN 4

YEARS, AND THE TRACKS THAT HIT HOME MOST, ARE OFF OF THIS ALBUM.

HIS VIVID STORYTELLING, AND KEEN HOMESTYLE REMINDERS, MAKE YOU

FEEL THE PAIN, ANGUISH, REGRET, LOVE, AND HUMOR, OF YOUR HOME

AND FAMILY.

WHEN I HEAR "WICKED AND WEIRD", I RELIVE THE HIGHWAY, AND

STATIONS HE CALLS OUT, AND ON "ROSES AND BLUEJAYS", I THINK

ABOUT HIM TELLING ME STORIES ABOUT HIS DAD, AND THE ACTUAL

FLAMETHROWER HE BOUGHT. "PROTEST" REMINDS ME OF THE NOVA SCOTIA

WAY OF LIFE, REVIVE LIFE ON HOPE, AND NOT THE POWDERED DOWN

WORDS OF THE CORPORATE SOCIETY.

I FEEL THAT IF YOU AS A FAN BUY THIS ALBUM, YOU WILL SEE THE

UNDERLYING FACTOR OF HIS MUSIC, AS HE QUOTES IT HIMSELF, "I

FEEL IT COMIN' ON, SO I BETTER WRITE IT DOWN, THE HIGHWAY'S A

STORYTELLER, THERE'S NO WHERE TO FIGHT NOW." IN OTHER WORDS,

HIS HOME IS THE BOOK, WHERE HE HAS TRAVELLED SAYS IT ALL, AND

HE AIN'T COMPLAINING.

ENJOY THIS

This is probably the most consistent Buck 65 project to be released. Instead of opting for a "mix tape" feel, Buck chooses a river as a point of reference for the majority of the songs which are essentially narratives about various characters and reflections on life. Some songs are heartbreaking, as they have to do with suicides, others are odes to failed romance, and even an ominous concluding track to do with a "film-noirish"-type murder scenario. But of course, this is Buck, so humour and eccentricity are part of the proceedings as well.

Sonically, Buck has never rhymed to tracks such as these. They have a definite rootsy and percussive feel to them, which works for the most part. Buck truly sounds like a lyrical folk icon on this album, and the content authenticates such a statement. Who would have thought that hip hop could ever be taken to such an extreme?? Contrast this album with Buck's work on the Sebutones project!!

Wow. I was introduced to Buck 65 by a friend while attending the Folk Music festival in the city I currently reside in. (Calgary, good fest every year. Check it out if you get the chance) Anyway, this guy dragged me over to the stage where Buck was setting up, and we sat down and waited for the show. It took a LONG time, and, as my friends and I were sitting up by the front of the stage, Buck started chatting with the audience, and we got to talk to the guy. It turned out that his turntables weren't delivered to the stage on time, so he was contemplating doing without. He did, and it was amazing. The entire audience was keeping the beat for him, and he just went. I left the stage afterwards, and bought the first CD I could find. When Talkin' Honky Blues came out, I bought it. He'd opened with Wicked and Weird at the fest, and I'd had it stuck in my head for months. In short, one of Canada's most talented artists, of any kind, and if you're even glancing at this CD, buy it. If you get a chance to see Buck live, Do It. Don't miss out on this guy.

ok this is a very kool CD. my favourite part is for sure the riverbed tracks. The reference to his trip down the river is very well done. there are lots of ways you can interpret his lyrics. He has lyrical talent comparable with Sgae Francis's Personal Journals but his style is unique from that and his instrumentals are far superior. i would have to say i favout the second half the CD better.

50 gallon drum is a mellow tune that describes a common theme in many stories today of the need for pain and work inorder for you to appreciate the good in life, however it is displayed in an anticlimatic way that shows us that he does not consider himself superior in this realization.

463 is a description of his life as a child, he compares the kids of yesterday to today. not much hits me on this track except for the quitar at the end.

Killed by a horse is an instrumental track. ive found myself looking forward for this track to coome on while im listening to the CD. Perhaps for a little break from Buck 65's voice but it has some very entertaining parts in it. for example about half way through stati appears on the track, at first i thought i got a crappy recording, but then the static started to act as an instrument itself adding to the beat. this is where i realize this was alluded to in 50 gallon drum when Buck 65 says " static fuzz hiss is just the thing sometimes" (probably misquoted). i thought it worked well whether it was intentional or not.

Tired out: a good song about his giult after cheating on his girlfriend. good however it seems thrown in at the last minute.
Craftmanship: basically he is ragging on the rap game, he is using shoe shiners who don't do the job right to do this so it could be any proffession but i think its a dis song about other rappers.

overall i really enjoy this CD there are even a couple songs you can dance to.(Wicked and Weird, 463)