Green On Red "Valley Fever" - Live At The Rialto, Tucson, AZ 9/04/05

»Just like the old days!« Dan Stuart's reaction to a cracking PA feedback at the start of the concert couldn't have been more fitting for the Green On Red reunion and the 1:1 media pack it released!..
...Green On Red, one of the most distinctive and legendary Americana/Roots Rock/Alternative Country/No Depression bands (whatever the differences may be...) had gotten back together, almost 20 years after their breakup, for two reasons and an hour and a half Rocked out a midnight concert that had it all. On the one hand, the in-house club of the iconic Hotel Congress, the Rialto Theater, celebrated its 20th anniversary in Tucson, Arizona and everyone that had anything to do with Tucson Music was invited. And surprisingly, GOR also agreed, as they also wanted to commemorate their late drummer Alex'Big Dog' MacNicol.
Three days of rehearsals in the hotel were enough to put a full repertoire from the first five albums on stage together with drummer Darren Hess. The whole thing was recorded by colleague Chris Burroughs and a Brazilian 'guerrilla film team' present in the city was hired at short notice for a video production.
GOR are the Arizona cousins of Crazy Horse / Neil Young and their Rialto gig could be seen as a delayed sequel to "Live Rust" (at least the 'electric' numbers). The band burns off a fireworks display of their best-known titles without any start-up time and appears to be excellently coordinated. The sound is dominated by the two clanging, mostly overdriven electric guitars (Dan Stuart on the semi-resonant Gretch, rhythm and Chuck Prophet on the lead Telecaster), plus the well-complementing, fairly straight organ by Chris Cacavas, the somewhat thin semi-acoustic -Bass from Jack Waterson and solid drumming. Even Stuart's voice is often reminiscent of Mr. Young, but is much rougher and deeper. Plus the backing vocals from Prophet and Cacavas.
On "Valley Fever" GOR play their unrestrained, scratchy rock 'n' roll, enriched with some psychedelic rock, pop or country and tell stories about the everyday American nightmare. For their fans, of course, a feast they no longer expected, but also for lovers of fat guitar sounds, a production that fully conveys the best live feeling of a hot gig. - Norbert Neugebauer, 16.08.2006

trax:
01 Death And Angels 02 Hair Of The Dog 03 Cheap Wine 04 Gravity Talks 05 Jimmy Boy 06 Keep On Moving 07 No Free Lunch 08 16 Ways 09 Time Ain't Nothing 10 The Drifter 11 Sea Of Cortez 12 We Ain't Free 13 Clarkesville 14 Fading Away 15 Ghost Hand 16 That's What Dreams Are Made For