Electric country rock at its very best
Tommi Hietavuo | Vantaa, - Finland | 02/02/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The Daredevils' misfortune was that "Don't Look Down" came out a couple of years too late. Country rock was already going out of fashion, and many of their peers faced the same destiny: too rock for rednecks, too country for rockers...
Still, the music on this album is second to none. "Don't..." is not only the band's possibly finest work ever, but it also rivals the country/southern rock masterpieces like "Desperado" (Eagles), "Hurry Sundown" (Outlaws), Toby Beau's debut, Poco's best works - and so on.
Many original Daredevils fans may have found "Don't..." sounding a lot more modern than the earlier albums. It's also fair to say that this rocks more than any of their earlier or later works. Comparison to Poco's equally mighty "Under The Gun" isn't too far-fetched, although the albums are otherwise quite different in style. Despite the modern sound and less country-oriented overall style, there are all the Daredevils elements present people have always loved, plus some quite new ingredients.
The album starts with mighty country rocker "River to the sun", one of band's all time greats. What follows is a equally stunning: "Crazy loving", "Snowbound", "Love makes the lover", "True believer"... and, of course, the ending fiddle instrumental "Stinghead". There is no single weak or even average tune on this album. Every single song here could be put into any Daredevils' "Best of..." compilation. The variety of styles is also breathtaking, from mountain country to great electric rock to beautiful acoustic ballads to... well, anywhere. Several of the tracks might well have been major hits, in luckier conditions.
The lyrics, as always in this band's case, deserve a special note: some are truly hilarious ("Backroads"), some a bit mystical ("True believer"), some just great observations of a winter's day ("Snowbound"). They all tell a story worth listening to, which is quite a rare feat of any band.
As the production is also flawless with great sound, there's really nothing to complain about. It doesn't get much better than this. Listen to yourself. The songs just get better with time..."
Another Ozark Classic
S. M. Engel | Amsterdam Netherlands | 08/24/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"With Don't Look Down The Ozarks released another classic album in 1977. This is once again country/pop rock at it's very best.
Any album with a song like "Giving it all to the wind" on it is a classic. Everytime friends of mine who don't know The Ozarks hear this beautiful Larry Lee song they are completely blown away by it. The rest of the songs are far above standard country rock quality. Why these guys weren't as popular like The Eagles is still one of the great mysteries of the 70's !! There are 3 bonus tracks on this cd version: "Sweetwood" is one of them and is one of the best ballads ever to have been released by The Ozarks. Talking about quality control.......this track was never released until now !!
So once again.........go out and buy this album !!!
PS; Some more good news; The CBS album from 1980 will als be released by the good people of New Era in november 2005 !
Greetings to all Ozark fans,
Martin from Holland"
Don't look down rocks!
Michelle Siconolfi | Teasure Coast, FL | 10/20/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Every song, every word and note, it all makes sense. Good for the soul."