Hershey
and the 12 Bars: "Greatest Hits Vol. 2" A NEW DAY RECORDS - AND CD 43 (2000) In the country music field the reviewers often refer to 'crossover albums' and 'crossover artists', basically meaning music which reaches far outside the rules and conventions of the established pattern, thereby (hopefully) gaining a new, often rock/pop-oriented audience. Sadly, I seldom appreciate those artists, instead regarding them as bland sellouts, leaving timehonoured traditions behind in search of the mighty dollar.... Oh well. But, being a most illogical person, when it comes to The Blues I often put on another pair of glasses (or earphones), instead praising bands who dare to modernize the sound and the lyrics - without entering the Terrible Land of the Never Ending Guitar Orgy. Hershey and The 12 Bars "Greatest Hits Volume 2" is therefore a prime example of excellent crossover blues, being crammed with 70 minutes of inventive music. Sure, there's lots of solid blues fare here, but my mind also wanders off in the direction of two favourite bands of long standing: Roger Chapman's amazing Shortlist and the brilliant Steely Dan crew. Add to this a vocalist (Mr. Shirman) with lots of personality and a distinct talent for songwriting: how could they go wrong? "Lonely Town, Lonely Street" (Withers) delivers tough and jerky modern stuff, semi-psychedelic guitar lines, great piano tinkling. I realize the CD's title is a bit tongue-in-cheek. If life was fair it COULD have been a greatest hits album. It can still be: it should not be left tucked away on a 'stone blues' record shelf in the shop, it should be flaunted out front, gaining that new audience it deserves says Christer
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