From Texas To Nashville

Tony Peyser
Mirror contributing writer
  
   Los Lonely Boys — Henry, JoJo and Ringo Garza — are from a small town in West Texas. (Do they have any big towns in West Texas? Just asking.) Willie Nelson is a fan and their self-titled album is produced by John Porter who’s worked with Taj Mahal. It’s like Carlos Santana and Los Lobos made an album with Stevie Ray Vaughn at a roadhouse bar, meaning there’s plenty of Tex and Mex to go around.
   “Senorita” will swirl out of your CD player — like a hot wind on a cold night. The upbeat “Heaven” back-burners the somber mood and plays up Los Lonely Boys pop side. Henry Garza’s guitar here is so sweet that it recalls the heyday of The Allman Brothers. This mesmerizing first album is made only more so by the fact that the Garzas are just in their twenties. You go, hermanos.
   I stopped in at the Buccaneer Lounge in Sierre Madre because I heard they’d been booking bands lately. Some barflies told me the Cain Enablers had played recently but weren’t good; they were great. In a bit of perfect timing, their debut album soon landed on my doorstep. It’s pretty great, too. This blues, roots rock bar band has been kicking around a while but haven’t lost a step. “Teenage Beat” is a choogling instrumental and “Bare Naked Wire” has enough electricity to jump start an old Buick. With guitars and harmonica leading the way, the Pasadena-based Cain Enablers are dinged up humdingers.
   Like Bay Area honky tonker Jill Olson, Nashville-based Nancy Apple has a knack for tag-teaming London pop and Southern twang. The title track of Shoulda Lied About That shows Apple can put over sass as well as regret. When she sings the words “shoulda lied about that,” there’s a weary undertone of wishing she could undo what she did. And when she sweetly intones “Hey hey” before launching into the endearing “This Time Around,” you can’t help but like having someone like Apple tug on your sleeve.
   Little Dog Records’ A Country West of Nashville is chock full of talented up-and-comers. Eugene Edwards’ “I’ll Be True Someday” is in the classic Brit Pop mode, Cisco’s “Say A Prayer” sounds like Rod Stewart in his prime, Mike Stinson’s “Virginia” could have been written and recorded in Bakersfield and Jody Evans’ “Chances” might have been sung by an Everly Brother or two. More cranked up is Reckless Kelly’s “I Saw It Coming.” It’s reminiscent of Steve Earle, who’s a big enough fan to have once lent the band some of his guitars. This is a collection with a percentage of hits that struggling major leaguers would envy.
   Amazon has Los Lonely Boys for $10.99. You can get Cain Enablers at Tower Records for $13.99. Miles of Music has Shoulda Lied About That and A Country West of Nashville for $12.99.
   * Because of Bush’s unserved main dish in his infamous Thanksgiving Day photo, The Goofy Band Name of The Week is …Jive Turkey.