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Grandma's Roadhouse

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A lost cosmic country rock relic from the early 70s – the ramshackle, hard grooving gem Grandma's Roadhouse by a group called Riley – named for leader Riley Watkins and featuring the great Gary Stewart, years before he revolutionized 70s honky tonk music out on his own! If anyone needed more evidence of the awesome talent bubbling under the surface in and around Nashville in the late 60s and early 70s, here's something incredible. The thing we love about the best music in the nascent country rock scene of the time, if it can be called that, is the lack of rules and prejudices about what can go into the pot. Riley delivers rambunctious roadhouse rock & roll, ornery honky tonk drinkin' & cheatin' songs, achingly effective Byrds-y & CSN-y harmonies, gritty southern soul style testifying, funk steeped bass, heavy drums...the whole hog! This one deserves mention alongside those "best" records, but it's almost totally unheard of to this point. Watkins sings and pens the more rocking and raucous numbers and you feel Gary's songwriting presence on the honky tonk styled songs with sweeter group harmonies. The warm, lived in vibe comes courtesy of the recording facility, Bradley's Barn – Owen Bradley's legendary space. The album comes to us thanks to Mark Linn on his Delmore label – where he also helped revive the legend of Karen Dalton, and Mark also produced the Kris Kristofferson demos for Light In The Attic. Titles include "Grandma's Roadhouse", "Picture", "Daddy's Come Home", "Love, Love You Lady", "Listen To My Song", "You Been Cheatin' On Me Honey", "Easly People", "Drinkin' Them Squeezin's", "Funky Tar Paper Shack" and "Field Of Green". CD has 3 bonus tracks: an alternate version of "Grandma's Roadhouse" plus "Cows & Dogs, Ducks & Hogs" and "Gotta Get Away".  © 1996-2013, Dusty Groove, Inc.