Alabama Shakes--An Album Review with Some Thoughts About Music

   A couple weeks ago, I was driving FH around in our new ride and came to two full realizations that I wasn't really looking for. We were actually looking for somewhere to blow about a half hour besides the insides of the Envoy and we realized that the vehicle has no option to plug in my trusty iPod and we had run through all of the cd's that we had available and we were at the not so benevolent hands of the radio tuner and although we begged for mercy, it showed us none. The two realizations were that 1) the Envoy NEEDS a plug in option for some outside source for acquiring music and 2) all radio, minus AM and maybe public radio, is so, so, so very terrible. And I don't mean that Top 40 radio stinks in that hipster nonsense way in that I'm actually too good for it, but in that please play more than the same 10-15 songs and please, dear Mr. DJ, please quit playing those loud screaming commercials where the speaker is promising me a golden goose if I would just come in and test drive a 2014 KIA kind of way. 

    And this got me to thinking about how much music has digressed over the last 70 or so years. I am really talking about feeling. And by this, I mean that while the song is playing, what am I feeling and how the artist relays what they are feeling through the music or through their voice. If you don't understand exactly what I'm getting at, I ask you to go find an older song, say Ella Fitzgerald's, "At Last, My Love Has Come Along ", and then compare it to even a great voice of today like Adele and compare the feeling of the voice and the feeling of the music. Or say listen to Bill Withers sing, "Ain't No Sunshine", and compare it to John Mayer sing, "Half of My Heart". Can you hear a difference? Can you feel a difference? Or say go listen to BB King sing, "The Thrill is Gone", and compare that to Pitbull singing, "Give Me Everything". And lastly, say go listen to Hank Williams or even Waylon Jennings sing, "Your Cheatin' Heart" or "Casey's Last Ride" and compare that to Darius Rucker singing, "Come Back Song". Hopefully you can get what I am trying to get at. 

      I say all of this because as I was driving along and FH and I got to thinking and wishing that music could sound like it used to. I know, I know. We're nostalgic and sentimental, and maybe we are hoarders of past emotions a little as well. But what happened? No, I don't want musicians to not be there own, but I would like them to make me feel as if the lyrics to the songs they are singing mean something to them so much so that they make them feel real to me. And yes, there are musicians and singers who are putting heartfelt music out there, but it seems like it is becoming more and more of a rare thing. But what I was really wondering about was about if there were any bands/musicians/artists around making music that sounded and felt like music did 50 years ago and then we got to where FH and I were suppose to be and then the thought died. If you are a parent of a little child, you get this. 

       And then a small moment of inspiration occurred. A couple weeks ago, I had the opportunity to work once again at Alpine Camp for Boys in Mentone, Alabama. On one of the days we were there, the other guy I was working with and the boys who were in our stead headed north to have a grand day in Chattanooga. One of the places we went to was McKay's Used Book Store (One of my favorite places in the whole world to go to!). The other guy, Doug H., bought a cd and then popped it in the car radio on our way to location two of our planned day and what came out of the speakers blew me away. The cd that he had purchased was Alabama Shakes: Boys and Girls. 

    Alabama Shakes was formed in 2009 when a group of high school band members starting getting together after school to write songs in Athens, Alabama. They first played under the name The Shakes, but added the word, Alabama, in 2011. I won't give you their whole history because you can read about it elsewhere, but all I really wanted to do was bring the band to your attention. My youngest sister who is very hip and with it knew about them already, but I hadn't heard about them at all. But I am so glad that I know about them now.

        The sounds, the voice, and the music that came blasting from the Bose speakers in that Suburban that day answered my question in more than one way. Yes, there are a few bands out there making music like it used to sound and one of those bands is Alabama Shakes. From the first song, "Hold On", to the last song, "Heavy Chevy", the band led by lead singer and rhythm guitarist, Brittany Howard, will take you to places that BB King, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, The Temptations, and Muddy Waters once took you. Each of the songs has a very old feel about it and some even sound at times like songs from other bands. An example of that would be the first track, "Hold On", it could very well be a CCR song until Brittany Howard begins singing and you realize that John Fogerty was replaced by a blend of Aretha Franklin and Ella Fitzgerald. 

      No, I would in no way say that Alabama Shakes is breaking new ground, but I would say that all 12 songs on the album are great songs and worthy of several listens. To be honest, it took me two full rotations of the cd through the Suburban's speakers before I took a full liking to the way the band sounds. No, the lyrics aren't soul inspiring every single line, but they are and do, like the country songs of old, tell great stories and are full of life's moments. I would say the music to the songs is spot on; especially the percussion portion of the songs. I know very little about drumming, but will say that the drummer, Steve Johnson, is impeccable. And the voice of Brittany Howard is a driving force in each song. She can lay it down thick and dense and she can be light and airy, but nowhere on the album did I feel like she was anything, but heartfelt. 

    Since I first heard Alabama Shakes, I have purchased their album and have given it about 10-12 full listens and with each listen it grows more and more on me. If you have not heard it, give it a try. You won't be disappointed unless you are looking for more auto-tuned voices and songs featuring ten performers who have parts like saying, "Yeah, Yeah, Word" during the chorus. This is a great album and worth the nine dollars you will throw down for it, unless you buy it somewhere for less. I look forward to a night I can go home from work, start the grill, help Mel and FH cook dinner, turn on our little deck lights, pour myself a tall limeade, and let Alabama Shakes sing me into the weekend. 

Happy reading and happy listening,

   David