In what a big iron world we live. Or so think Old Crow Medicine Show. On their second disc, again produced by David Rawlings, the boys would like to take us back to a much simpler time. A time before Leo Fender and Les Paul’s “electric” guitars. This is a time when the banjo and fiddle reigned supreme. A time when the radio could have easily crackled out a static verse of “New Virginia Creeper” or a lonesome tune such as “My Good Gal.” When men walked around with a harmonica in their shirt pocket. But alas, we live in 2007, but that still doesn’t stop the 5-piece (plus Rawlings and occasionally Gillian Welch on drums) from trying to transport us back.
But hey, people have always liked to have a little fun from the time of Moses to Guthrie to today. And just to show they don’t take themselves too seriously, the band starts to break into “Tell It To Me” from their previous album, but then play the similar sounding “Cocaine Habit.” It’s pretty much the same chord progression with the same theme…cocaine. And whether Old Crow is singing about the coca plant or preaching the good gospel on tunes like “God’s Got It” they make it easy to believe their sincerity. The album bounces around from tunes about wildlife, murder, hard times and the union, all universal themes that can be seen as relevant today, while trading off on lead vocals throughout the disc. My favorite from the record is track 10, “I Hear Them All,” a tune that could have easily been performed by Dylan in a basement coffee shop in the 1960s. But it wasn’t…it was written by Rawlings and fiddler/singer Ketcham Secor.
Big Iron World is an old-timey classic that works well today so grab your good gal, a clean shirt and I’ll see you at show tonight.
http://myspace.com/oldcrowmedicineshow
About the author: Producer, Engineer, Musician and all around music enthusiast.