Vermilion

Continental Drifters | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 12, 1999)
• Original Release Date: October 12, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Razor & Tie
• ASIN: B00001T3G0
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #189,577 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Their roster reads like a one-shot all-star combo: ex-dB Peter Holsapple, Susan Cowsill (of those Cowsills), and Vicki Peterson, the former Bangle. But the Continental Drifters are for real, an all-embracing, seemingly effortless marriage of rock, pop, and country unveiled in an awesome songwriting spectrum. Recorded near an isolated bayou in the band's Louisiana homeland, Vermilion has no MVP among the three heavy hitters. Each writes alone and paired with another: Peterson and Cowsill's stunning harmonies carry "The Rain Song"; Holsapple offers a Neil Young-styled romp in "Don't Do What I Did"; Peterson contributes the highway-blues rocker "Christopher Columbus Transcontinental Highway"; and "Drifters," by Holsapple and Cowsill, boasts this chorus: "We are all drifters / Singers and sisters / Brothers and lovers and mothers and confidantes." All those, yes, and a damn fine band, too. --Scott Holter

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still the PERFECT album, November 30, 1999

By 

"rockchalk-mbs" (America's Heartland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vermilion (Audio CD)

Wow, there's so much more to say than in my first "review". This group features members that were once in, or have played with the likes of, the dB's, the Cowsills (and here I'm supposed to say, yes, THOSE Cowsills), Bangles, Dream Syndicate, Lydia Lunch, REM, Hootie and the Blowfish, Tom Petty, Cyndi Lauper, Jolene, Steve Wynn and too many more to remember them all. That's an incredible pedigree. All of the songs on this album evoke memories or feelings that run the gamut, from heartbreak to joy to everything in between. Other than the ones I mentioned before, there's "Daddy Just Wants It To Rain", Peter Holsapple's wonderful family story that hits you square in the heart (every child of the 50's or 60's will see their own family in this song), Vicki Peterson's "Christopher Columbus Transcontinental Highway", a rollicking 'driving' song with seriously dark undertones, not to mention the longest title on this or any other album. "Anything", which harkens back to the classics of the folk rock 60's with its accoustic guitars, mandolin and great harmony vocals by Vicki and Peter, the wonderful "Drifters", the band's title song, led by Susan Cowsill's fabulous voice, and "Way of the World", featuring the melding of Vicki and Susan's voices in some of the best two-part harmony around. There's the rocking "Don't Do What I Did", Susan's "Spring Day in Ohio", "Darlin Darlin", and "Meet Me in the Middle", a great song to sing along with, once you get all the words down. I LOVE THIS BAND, they're great musicians/singers/songwriters (absurdly talented, one reviewer noted), and they're wonderful people. This group did not garner mountains of critical acclaim based solely on their past histories, it's simply that they are one of the most talented bands working today. More people should be hearing their music.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One word - PERFECT!!, October 26, 1999

By 

"rockchalk-mbs" (America's Heartland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vermilion (Audio CD)

From beginning to end this album is simply PERFECT. One great original song after another, 14 in all, each filled with wonderful lyrics, exquisite harmonies, solid musicianship and unparalleled talent. While there is absolutely no filler on this disc, highlights include "Watermark", led by a wonderful mandolin; "I Want to Learn to Waltz with You", a lush beauty; the luminous "Heart Home", an incredible love song; the rocking "Who We Are, Where We Live", dark and moody, completely solid; and "The Rain Song", a fantastic song that would be at home on any Top-40 radio station. This is, quite simply, the best album I have ever heard.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Granite-Solid Musical Alliance, July 24, 2000

By 

dev1 (Baltimore) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vermilion (Audio CD)

The Continental Drifters are group of six family members who have been sharing same house and making music together since they were children. OK, that's not at all true, but Vermilion sounds like result of a twenty-year musical alliance: the band is granite-solid with each member playing off the nuances of the other.

It's not unusual that such an intimate group would pursue the subjects of romance and family, but most surprising is their ability to convincingly cover such a wide spectrum of popular music. The jingle-jangle guitar rhythms and vocal harmonies of `The Rain Song' sounds as though they came from a `Best Of Badfinger' album. The menacing `Don't Do What I Did' is a no-limits rocker. Listening to `Watermark,' I'm tempted to visit the Appalachian Mountains, drink moonshine from a jug, and do some serious clogging. When I close my eyes, I can imagine Keith Richards and Ron Wood trading blues riffs while Susan Cowsill and Vicki Peterson strut about the stage. Perhaps unintentional, `Heart, Home' pays tribute to Richard and Linda Thompson. With its lonesome lyrics ("This heart needs a home"), tender accordion melody and weeping guitar solo, the similarities are difficult to dismiss. Ordinarily, "classics" require a few decades to age; however, the Continental Drifters have composed a "brand new" Folk classic (Anything) hearkening back four-decades to the heyday of Peter, Paul and Mary.

The six members of the Continental Drifters share writing, vocals and instrumentals: Vermilion is not a Peter Holsapple Pop album. Although the CD rocks, the overall mood is breezy and relaxed. It's impossible to miss their "we're having fun" making music attitude. Vermilion - a spirited gem from 1999.