2013-11-13
Hillbilly Voodoo finds soul singer Barrence Whitfield teaming up with folk/Americana mainstay Tom Russell for a delightfully jangly set of country-tinged grooves. 4 of the 12 tracks are composed by Russell himself (including goofy standout "The Cuban Sandwich"), while the other 8 are covers written by an array of artists from Lucinda Williams to Arkansas legend Jimmy Driftwood, from a Van Morrison cut to a Dylan rework. No matter who wrote the tune, all the songs on Hillbillly Voodoo are performed with a lighthearted, funky, and occasionally silly storyteller perspective born of Whitfield and Russell's chemistry; Whitfield's voice warbles charismatically above the music, and Russell's omnipresent guitar work offers a substantial backbone for the album. While some of the rehashes are lukewarm (notably "Mississippi You're On My Mind"), songs like "Ice Water" and "Cleaning Windows" offer a fresh and colorful spin on songs from ages past.
KRISTIN HERSCH
Learn To Sing Like A Star
The Black Cats
The Famous Rockabilly Of The Black Cats
BLITZEN TRAPPER
American Goldwing
Hippo Campus
Bashful Creatures
ZACH DEPUTY
Another Day
THE LAST SHADOW PUPPETS
The Age of the Understatement
The opinions expressed in these reviews are those of the individual volunteers that submitted the article and do not necessarily reflect the views of WYCE or GRCMC; nor its staff, donors, or affiliates.