One Saturday, when I was sixteen years of age, my dad and I had spent a good half day working around the yard. What I believed then, as a young man was the most rewarding part of the day, was our trip to town for soda and gee-dunks (a word I’m quite certain my Dad made up – it means candy) And if ever my Dad had a noble tradition, this five mile road trip to the nearest convenient store was it. So, the two of us climbed into his blue, Ford pickup. I can still see the gray interior.
Only a minute or two into the trip my Father turned on the cassette player, prepared to hear the great Merle Haggard. However, he was quite dumbfounded as gangster rap began pulsating from the speakers instead. My dad moved with great purpose, pushing eject, shaking his head, snatching the tape, rolling down the window, flinging it with great delight through his open window, without missing a beat.
I was quick to point out that I had purchased that cassette the night before with his money. My frank explanation was followed by his words, “Two rules as long as you live in my house, drive my car, eat my food, and spend my money. Rule number one: rap music will not be left in any of my vehicles, if it is I will toss it out. Rule number two: you will not buy rap music with the money I give you, only the money you earn.” After a slight pause, “And where in the hell did you put my Merle Haggard tape? Son, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll never, not ever, never ever touch Merle again”.
It wasn’t that I didn’t like Merle Haggard, because I did, I loved him. “I turned twenty-one in prison doin’ life without parole, no one could steer me right but Mama tried, Mama tried, Mama tried to raise me better but her pleading I denied, that leaves only me to blame cause Mama tried”. I’m no fool, that’s gangster rap from 1968. It’s just that I was sixteen and I thought rap music was…I thought it was…I thought…It’s because I was sixteen.
It wasn’t just Merle Haggard tapes that filled the glove box and middle console of my Dad’s pickup trucks. I remember plenty of long drives, deer hunting trips, adventures of all sorts, myself compressed in the middle, my older brother riding passenger, my Father driving, and the three of us singing along to Roger Miller, Buck Owens, Don Williams, Johnny Cash, Don Gibson, or George Jones to name a few. Great country music, the stuff of old, instilled in me a desire to continue looking for it. I’m speaking of the bluesy, bluegrass, folk, with a little honky-tonk, good ole’ fashioned story-telling kind of country music. This leads us to our next album on the list.
#24 Justin Jones and The Driving Rain - Love Verses Heroin (2006)
Love Verses Heroin is an impressive album from Justin Jones, his debut release is titled, Blue Dreams, it’s a solo effort, mostly acoustic and quite solid. Love Verses Heroin is the first album with The Driving Rain behind him, he follows Love Verses Heroin with And I Am The Song Of The Drunkards, which shows progress but as for a complete album, first track to last track, Love Verses Heroin is it.
LVH is a formidable ten songs. The opening track “Hope” is acoustic for the first minute and twenty-five seconds and when the full band joins in you’ll quickly realize the tone for this album is set. The following track “Honey I Need You” accompanied by an upbeat banjo and harmonica, with impressive guitar work from The Driving Rain will certainly have you tapping your toes as you listen. The third track softens a bit, accompanied by piano, “Need You Around” is beautifully written, reminding me of similar pain you’ll find in Johnny Cash written songs. Lyrically, Justin has plenty to say and is proof that songwriting should be about life experience, about honesty, pain, joy, and everything that comes with love…verses heroin. This album has been dependable on my play list going on three years now and I’m pretty sure if my old man was to climb in the cab of his truck and find this playing, well, he wouldn’t turn it off, that much I know.
You can stream "Hope" & "Honey I Need You" below:
http://www.myspace.com/justinjones
Learn more about Justin Jones
And his new song "California" watch him sing it live - absolutely worth the visit
You are bringing so many memories to mind...
ReplyDeleteYou Hamblin's did always love your rap music.
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