Thursday 5 February 2009

CRAZY CAVAN AND THE RHYTHM ROCKERS : LET'S FUCKIN' ROCK


Track listing: Groovy At The Movie / Teddy Boy Blues / Bing Bong Boogie / No Angie Baby / Be My Honey Baby / Train I Ride / Who The Fuck Do Ya Think You're Talking To? / Bye Bye Bo Diddley / This Heart's On Fire / Tailor Made / Cool As My Baby / She's All Right / Peek-A-Boo / Don't Knock What You Don't Understand.

The Cavan wagon keeps rollin’ on, and thankfully shows no sign of relenting. The kings of the Teddy Boys have been going for nigh on forty years now but continue to play with the freshness of any young buck trios, both live and on record. To keep things fresh the new album features more piano than usual and even a handful of numbers with slap bass courtesy of Lyndon needs and Cavan’s son Joe. The only thing that lets this latest release down, is the cover which looks a bit shit really.

The album blasts off with the brilliant Groovy At The Movies, a frantic piano driven bopper, that could be their best slice of piano based rock ‘n’ roll since Both Wheels Left The Ground. Lyndon Needs is having a blast and takes a massive 31 seconds before his first scream – what a legend. Teddy Boy Blues is another classic in the making – it’ll be up there with Teddy Boy Boogie et all when their epitaphs (or should that be epi-tafs) are finally written. Ping Pong Boogie is a catchy, fun number that maintains the standard in an explosive opening trio.

Guest pianist John Jenkins works in tandem with Needs to lay down a relentlessly hypnotic boogie on Peek-A-Boo. Train I Ride is moody and is as exotic as they get, the beat laying the foundation for a menacing Cavan vocal. He slurs to great effect on Who The Fuck and I love the way he sings She’s All Right. Lyndon and Joe Cavan play the Scotty and Bill card on the Mystery Train re-write Be My Honey Baby – “I’m a modern man don’t you know”.

Bye Bye Bo Diddley is a marvellous tribute to the late, great Elias McDaniel. The Diddley beat is relentless and suits Cavan to a tee. Lyndon plays some great Bo licks. The only cover here is Don’t Knock What You Don’t Understand, as good a tribute to Johnny Cash as the Bo one. There’s no end of fans on the scene who moan about Crazy Cavan and the Rhythm Rockers - well this is for you guys!

A feature of their earlier albums was a couple of great ballads, something this one doesn’t really have. The slowest we go here is with a couple of strollers, No Angie Baby being particularly cool with Lyndon stretching out. Despite a ballad a two, this CD is a classic that lives up to the title and keeps them at the top of the rockabilly tree. While it’s right and justified to drool about Cavan and Lyndon, the contribution of the rest of the Rhythm Rockers shouldn’t be overlooked – they’re as solid as they look. Listen how tight they are on the closing number. Long live Cavan and the boys.

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