Too Far to Care

Price: $11.53

Artist: Old 97 s

Timebomb
Barrier Reef
Broadway
Salome
W. TX Teardrops
Melt Show
Streets of Where I m From
Big Brown Eyes
Just Like California
Curtain Calls
Nite Club
House That Used to Be
Four Leaf Clover

If the Waco Brothers sound like the Clash playing country music, an Old 97s song like Barrier Reef sounds like Rancid doing the Wacos. That s not a bad thing, but lead singer Rhett Miller is more distinctive pining for his gal on the sweetly beautiful Salome and Streets of Where I m From, a jazzy number about living in a place where romance ends as roadkill. The band--Miller, lead guitarist Ken Bethea, bassist Murry Hammond, drummer Phillip Peeples--sounds most like a rock outfit on the album-opening Time Bomb, and most like a country crew on West Texas Teardrops, featuring banjo and Hammond s nasal twang. On at least half his songs, Miller reveals himself to be a guy who falls in love easily but takes getting dumped hard. The subject matter might get old, but the 97s vary things enough musically to steer clear of trouble. If the story of a guy scared to death of Manhattan on Broadway is too obvious, Miller easily redeems himself on the album s closer, Four Leaf Clover. Sung as a duet with Exene Cervenka, it sounds like X riding a Bo Diddley beat, but the bitter lyrics send it to the moon. I got a four-leaf clover, but it ain t done me a single lick of good/I m still a drunk and I m still a loser/And I m still living in a lousy neighborhood. After all the crying he s done, it s nice to hear Miller get good and pissed. --Keith Moerer

By far the best Old 97s album. - Not to say the others are shabby, but this one just has that je ne sais quas.

Yay!!! - Love, love, love this album. One of my favorites of all time. Great lyrics, beautiful alt-insurgent-country-rock sound. Cheers to Murray Hammond & Rhett Miller s songwriting!!

the quintessential altcountry album - I bought this album when it first came out despite the fact that I was rather underwhelmed by its predecessor, Wreck Your Life. This was their major label debut, and it would seem that the Old 97s took extra care with this album as it improves greatly upon their previous work. Everything on this album is better--the songs, the music, the production. This is the perfect Old 97s album. So what makes this album so great? Rhett Miller s lyrics and delivery. He had already shown himself to be a smart and clever lyricist on previous albums, but here he takes it to the next level where almost every phrase of every song employs some sort of subtle intricate wordplay. His themes of young love and love lost are still there, but you can tell he took his time with the words this time around. For example, from Salome, I m tired of making friends, and I m tired of making time, from Big Brown Eyes, you make a big impression for a girl your size, from Niteclub, telephones make strangers out of lovers, whiskey makes the strangers all look good, and from Barrier Reef, my name s Stuart Ransom Miller, and I m a serial lady killer. Oh, and did I mention that the kid can sing?As for the music, they are as tuneful as they ever were here, but the country leanings are very pronounced. They would definitely go on to produce more polished work over the next few years, but if you like your pop music with a healty twang of cowpunk then this is the album for you.

This Ain t Our Home Anymore, It s Just Four Walls and A Floor... - This album is a serious a**-kicker from start to finish. No matter how old you are, where you re from, or what kind of music you normally listen to, I dare you not to stomp your feet when Timebomb gets going. This is the perfect driving album.But as any Old 97 s fan will tell you, the music s only half the story. Rhett Miller and company are kings of the lyrical one liners... and their skills truly shine in Too Far to Care.Buy this album - you won t regret it. Then see them live!

Old 97 s - Too Far To Care - A must have for anyone who enjoys X, The Reverend Horton Heat, or anything else that rides the line between punk rock and country.

Too Far to Care