This came out in 2001 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
The music biz ranks are filled with guys like Jules Shear, Chuck Prophet and Jim Dickinson — superb songwriters, inspired players and gifted songwriters who never quite managed to grab the brass ring of full-fledged stardom.
These are the guys who all too often end up being for-hire songwriters, session cats, sidemen and producers, paying the bills by selling their talents to make other folks sound good. Here, they finally get to do something for themselves. Teaming up with a handful of similarly unsung musical heroes like Harvey Brooks and Sean Slade — artists whose resumés would mean far more to you than their names — these seasoned vets jam their way through 10 cuts of primo Americana roots-rock a la Ry Cooder, John Hiatt or Tom Petty. The Memphis soul of Candy From a Stranger and the Stones-y guitar chopper Post-Apocalyptic Observations weren’t written for radio formats or target demographics, just for the sheer joy of playing ’em. Which is just what it’s like to listen to ’em. So what if they’re too old for MTV? I bet they’ll still be in heavy rotation on your CD player.
