If you’re a fan of 70’s country rock, you’ll feel right at home with the latest release from Great American Taxi, Reckless Habits. Â Vince Herman, the leader of Taxi, was also a founder of Leftover Salmon, and the jam band roots are noticeably. Â But what really comes through is a homage to the early pioneers in Americana, alt country, and newgrass.
Reckless Habits comes out of the gate burning with a New Orleans-style, swampy. roots number, One Of These Days, that could have been a Tony Jo White composition, with horns. Â Other songs that get that second line feeling going are New Millenium Blues where “mommy’s got two jobs and daddy’s got three”, the John Hartford tune Got No Better, and a version of the Bill Monroe classic Big Sandy River. Â The album finishes with the other half of the bookends, Parade, a cut that’s basically the sound of a New Orleans parade band coming up the street and then moving on.
Another primary musical influence in Reckless Habits is clearly Gram Parsons. Â From the title cut and it’s story, “poor old Gram burned up in the desert”, to Albuquerque, NM, there’s a lot to love for fans of pedal steel, dualing lead guitars, and multi-part harmonies (think Allman Brothers). Â In that same vein is American Beauty (guess who that’s a shout-out to) and Fuzzy Little Hippy Girl about the summertime festival scene.
Finally, I have to mention the musical Easter eggs. Â You know, those little surprises you find hidden in an album. Â Sometimes they’re from the songwriter, like the verse “wild horses singing rock and roll” about the friendship Parsons had with the Stones. Â Other times it’s more of a production gift. Â Listen to Cold Lonely Time and remember the first time you heard the soaring female vocal moan/scream of Claire Tory in Great Gig in the Sky. Â In some ways, that’s what the whole album is about: a musical gift to today’s listeners from a number of musicians who are no longer with us, but channeled through Great American Taxi.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.