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Bandleader Ray Benson decided to put together an album that contained all of the band's most requested songs in an updated version. He admits that Asleep At The Wheel has had a reputation for being much better "live" than on record, and he wanted to try to change that with The Very Best Of Asleep At The Wheel. 'The Letter(That Johnny Walker Read)", which Benson and Leroy Preston wrote, is the band's only Top 10 record- so far. This song is still great, even after 27 years. Mandy Barnett replaces Chris O'Connell on this new version and Carco Claverta joins the band on steel guitar. The swingin' "Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens", which Benson says is their most requested song, is next. Pure Boogie-Woogie follows on "Get Your Kicks on Route 66". 'Wheel's new piano player, John Michael Whitby, really shows out here. There are some really cool harmony vocals, too.
Leroy Preston's "My Baby Thinks She's A Train" is a Rockabilly-swing tune which Roseanne Cash turned into a #1 record. Lucky Ocean's steel and Jason Roberts' fiddle playing are outstanding, as is the guitar work. "Boogie Woogie with western swing instrumentation and big band arrangement." That's how Benson describes "House of Blue Lights". Yeah. It's all that. "Miles and Miles of Texas", by Diana Johnston and Tommy Camfield, is one of those songs that sounds like it's been around forever. It had been around since the 1950's, but had never been recorded until 1974 when 'Wheel put it on their Wheelin' and Dealin' LP. This is one of the all-time great "Texas" songs. One of the big surprises on this album is the instrumental "Sugarfoot Rag", the Hank Garland classic. Again, there's some fine fiddlin', but the guitar playing of Brad Paisley- yeah, Brad Paisley- is amazing. Regardless of what you think of Paisley as an artist, the fact is this boy can pick! Too bad Nashville chose to make a sex symbol out of him. More hard-driving boogie-woogie next on Louis Jordan's "Choo Choo Ch' Boogie". This song may be one of the first country-rap tunes, with Benson belting out the lyrics like a machine gun. The band is flawless, with the fiddles and saxophones really showing off. Benson says the title of "Dance With Who Brung Ya'" comes from his friend, former UT head coach, Darrell Royal. Prior to Royal's Longhorns playing Arkansas for the 1969 National Championship, Royal was asked if he was going to change his game plan. He replied, "We're gonna dance with what brung us." The Longhorns won. The song is pure textbook western swing. More Western Swing, perhaps THE Western Swing tune, follows with the Bob Wills/Hoyle Nix classic, "Big Balls In Cowtown". Former Texas Playboy Johnny Gimble provides some fine electric mandolin and Benson's vocals are right on the money. The Benson penned bluesy "Last Meal" features Huey Lewis blowing some really nice blues harp. This is follwed by another Benson tune, the hard-driving "Boogie Back To Texas". Benson says he wrote the final cut, "Texas Me and You", for Waylon Jennings, but Jennings never recorded it. 'Wheel later ended up performing the song in the movie Roadie. Benson says the song is about the importance of two things in his life- women and Texas. The tune is only slightly syrupy, and Benson does a fine job on the vocals, aided by Eliza Gilkyson on backup vocals. There's not a lot of new ground being broken on The Very
Best Of Asleep At The Wheel, but if you're like me, and have
run a needle through multiple copies of Texas Gold, you'll
be very satisfied with this new version of your favorites. You
poor folks who are new to 'Wheel, well, this is as good a place
to start as any. You can buy 'Wheel merchandise and find out
where the bus is headed by visiting www.asleepatthewheel.com.
Contact Michael Johnson at: rockzilla-at-rockzilla.net |
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"Greatest Hits" albums are almost always
something of a let down because all too often many of the cuts
are neither "great" nor are they "hits".
Well, Ray Benson and the rest of Asleep At The Wheel have put
together an album that lives up to that "greatest hits"
tag. If you're among the many folks who've followed 'Wheel since
1970, well all of your favorites are here- all dressed up and
ready to carry you through the next 31 years. You new folks will
understand what all the fuss is about.
The western swing classic, "Take
Me Back To Tulsa", by Bob Wills & Tommy Duncan, showcases
what Asleep At The Wheel does best- WESTERN SWING. Long time
fans will be very pleased with this new version. Benson has been
credited with almost single-handedly keeping Western Swing alive,
and it would be hard to argue that fact.
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