Do the Albequerque Turkey - Bad Bad Whiskey Album Review

I interviewed the Bad Bad Whiskey boys last year at Vintage Nation, (you can watch that here - skip to 3.33 for the interview).   Now they are back with a new drummer and a new album - 'Albuquerque Turkey'.  It's been almost two years since their debut 'Home Cookin'' was released, so it was about time that we heard from the Godfathers of Skifflebilly.

Along with Don Gio on drums, Bad Bad Whiskey is comprised of Citizen Lane, (singer, guitarist and handy with a harmonica) and The Moocher, who rounds off the trio on the double bass.  Together, they play a mixture of rockabilly, skiffle (et voilà- skifflebilly), rhythm & blues and jazz, all with a skiffle edge.  The album was recorded as live, with the band all gathered around a microphone in Gio's shed - it gives the whole recording a slightly homemade quality that really suits the music.

'Albuquerque Turkey' is a mixture of original material and reinterpretations of songs from artists such as Woody Guthrie, the Memphis Jug Band and Hank Williams.  In my humble opinion, all the best albums have a least one song dedicated to a dance craze, so the tradition of songs such as The Twist, The Madison and The Hucklebuck, the title track is all about the Albuquerque Turkey.  Such is the physical response this song is set to illicit from those that hear it, Bad Bad Whiskey are even calling on their fans to send footage of them bopping and jiving to be featured in their next video(email your footage to BadBadWhiskey@ymail.com).

 

One of the three original tracks, Give Her Back, really stood out.  It's really upbeat and features some great vocals from frontman Citizen Lane - it could only be improved by being slightly longer than 85 seconds!  Another stand out track is their rendition of Hound Dog as is unlike any other version I've heard.  Closer to Elvis than Big Mama Thornton, its somehow darker tone puts an interesting, and very well executed, spin on the classic song.

 

Alongside the trio, the album features a few well-chosen guests, including Anthony Hodgson on the fiddle for  I Ain't Got Nobody and piano from James Farebrother on Move That Thang.  Also featured is Col. Spencer from MFC Chicken playing the 'yakety sax' on versions of Vince Taylor's Brand New Cadillac and Roy Brown's Hip Shakin' Baby. These additions give Bad Bad Whiskey the opportunity to try out a greater range of sounds with considerable success.  Overall, 'Albuquerque Turkey' is a strong follow-up to their debut, albeit with much more of a rockabilly feel than its more rhythm and blues influenced predecessor.  It goes some of the way to capturing much of the spirit of their often raucous live shows.

The band are launching 'Albuquerque Turkey' on November 9th at The Great Eastern in Brighton, details can be found here.  As well as seeing a couple of sets from Bad Bad Whiskey, there will also be special cocktails and food deals from Brighton Burger.

You can download 'Albuquerque Turkey' (and their previous offering, 'Home Cookin'') from their Bandcamp site, or head down to the launch on Saturday.