Hot Club of Cowtown - Continental Stomp (13 tracks) +Album Reviews

Continental stomp

Richard Albert | camden, ar. United States | 07/19/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"thanks to prairie home companion i was introduced to hot club of cowtown. they are positively wonderful with their fusion of jazz, country and standards. it's so great to hear young people breathing new life into "old" music! cowtown's hard driving energy is nicely balanced by their quiet finesse. may these people entertain the world for at least another hundred years."

Irrepressible swingers rip it up in Austin, Texas

N. J. H. Ratnieks | West Clandon, Surrey United Kingdom | 11/16/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you listened to a Western Swing band and didn't shake a leg or two, or worse still remained unmoved by the infectious exuberance of the music, the chances are that you were dead, but had not yet registered the fact!!So here we have the Hot Club of Cowtown, three of the most talented young musicians to come along and distil the incendiary brew, that swing music becomes in the hands of talented and enthusiastic musicians, since time immemorial. Looking at the past, swing bands had more players than a dog has fleas- you could fill a bus with them- Bob wills did, AATW nearly do!!. To recap, there are just 3 players in this band, and they work overtime running the gamut of a whole bunch of songs, that yes, we may have heard before (perhaps except for the bonus track 14!!!-see the track listing above) but haven't heard done before with such verve and panache!!So Elana Fremerman, she of the winning smile, seductive vocals and fiddling prowess, Whit Smith, archtop Gibson guitar genius and lovelorn vocals, Jake Erwin, bass spanker, vocals and expansive smiles, take this delightful music by the scruff of the neck, and unleash a wildcat of a performance onto the good citizens of Austin, who have the supreme good fortune to be neighbours to this exceptional band.
Production credit goes to the imperturbable super-steely Lloyd Maines- sorry mate, this band don't need a steel man.Whit's Gibson does the whole guitar thing with an ease that's remarkable for its combination of spareseness and complexity with no hint of extraneous guitar flash-just the right lick in the right place, all the time!!Buy this record, better still if you can, see the band and smile with them."

Direct to the tail-bone!

Alastair Blakey | Federation Jupiter station | 03/02/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Hot Club's music bypasses all the complicated analytical bits of the brain, sneaks round the back, slides down the spine, and curls warmly round the coccyx. It's not sitting-still music, you just have to move.Just sooo good. Listen to the samples; if they don't get you in the tail-bone, you must be dead."

One of my favorite CDs!

music fan in California | 10/04/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Though the style of music is quite unlike anything else in my collection and I stumbled across the CD on a fluke, I adore it! In fact, upon discovering it, I was so pleased with it that I played it for my whole family (ages 16 through 57), and it got a thumbs up from everybody. The songs have an old time traditional American feel to them and the musicianship is fantastic. (I hope to see these three perform live someday!) I love many of the songs, but I think my favorite is track 9, "After You've Gone." The best thing about the CD is that it makes me happy every time I listen to it, without fail. Highly recommended!"

Live is Best!

Gary Peterson | San Diego, California USA | 07/09/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"My wife and I go to a series of house concerts put on by Dark-Thirty Productions of Lakeside, California. The acts are quite excellent in quality, but are still lesser known and willing to give concerts before 50 to 120 people in a small venue. I was told, when I first started to attend, that one of the best acts to catch was The Hot Club of Cowtown. Well, I've now attended three Hot Club concerts and wouldn't miss the chance to attend more. What a terrific musical entourage!

The Hot Club consists of Whit on guitar, Jake on stand-up bass and Elana on violin. All serve as vocalists with Whit and Elana carrying the greatest workload. Their music is generally billed as "Western Swing" or "Hot Jazz." It's somewhat old-fashioned sounding and some of the songs go way, way back. However, the Hot Club can turn this music into a fresh new sound that has everyone singing their praise. All three concerts I attended resulted in standing ovations with the crowd begging for more.

The Hot Club has several things going for it. First, all three persons are very engaging personalities in themselves and they react wonderfully together. When you listen to them playing their music, you cannot help but feel that they genuinely are having fun. That makes them a great act to watch live and in my concerts I've sat no more than 20 feet away. Secondly, all three are excellent musicians. Any of the three can give a solo and bring applause to the point that the music is almost drowned out. Did I mention that they work well together? Like a well-oiled machine! And, they play real-fast high-energy selections and never miss a note. They're just a terrific band and they play wonderful music. If you ever see them posted for a concert, don't miss it.

I purchased the "Dev'lish Mary" CD and I've enjoyed it very much, but it has some of those things that record producers are prone to do and it's not totally true to the concert experience. Now, the "Continental Stomp" recording is out (not present when I purchased "Dev'lish Mary") and it comes truer to the Hot Club experience. Believe me, it's best to see them live, but if you can't the "Continental Stomp" CD comes closest to the live experience. All of the selections are excellent, but my personal favorites include "Deed I Do," "Chinatown," "I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby," Exactly Like You," and "I can't believe You're in Love with Me." Elana is my favorite vocalist and has a personal charm that simply can't be captured on a recording. Otherwise, it's an outstanding CD.

Gary Peterson"

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