AltCountry: Greg Hobbs' Threats & Promises

The PR agency warned me about the language on the last track of Greg Hobbs’ Threats & Promises, a live track called “Beautiful Girls,” which says, “Tell me why/Do the beautiful girls always pick/Assholes, losers, and dicks.” Yet, if you’ve been paying attention to Music Spectrum, you know that I’m not about to shy away from an album or artist simply because the language is rude, the topics off-color, or the morals questionable. There’s too much good music out there that gives too many good insights to our true lives and hearts that would be missed if we ran away at the first cuss word.

[That said, I have been having trouble believing that Ten Benson’s song “Tits” is worthy of discussing. Jetset Records did send me a promo copy, but mainly the song just indulges in that male preoccupation with breasts. However, a more careful reading of the song actually reveals a self-awareness about being corrupted by the passions of the flesh. “Was it the money/Was it the booze....”]

Hobbs is a folk singer, hinting at the tonal qualities of Peter Mayer, Cliff Eberhardt, and Peter Mulvey. The first track, “Storm,” is soaked in dobro and reminiscent of many troubadours in the American Folk section. Some of the guitar work even recalls fellow Canadian Gordon Lightfoot.

When track 1 runs out, though, and flips to track 2, we’re in the “Gospel Barroom,” a country shuffle about drinking and the Bible. That country flair is never far behind in Hobbs’ brand of folk music which lands him finally in the AltCountry section, next to Thomas Denver Johnson, Adam Masterson, and Jason Walker. (However, “Gospel Barroom” actually is very reminiscent of the Waterboys’ “Spring Comes to Spiddal" from Room to Roam, the Waterboys being in the Folk influenced IRE/UK Rock section. Hobbs' voice has a lot in common with Mike Scott's timbre).

Here is a collection of songs about bars, girls, drinking, and partying with friends, but meanwhile, this is sensitive singer-songwriter stuff, you know, drinking or hitting on the waitress with a conscience. “Me & This Girl” is about that typical male problem of suddenly fantasizing about a girl, in this case a waitress in a bar, thinking it would be better than a current relationship, all the while forgetting that you’re pitiful for even thinking this while your wife is at home. “Tonight the Guys are Coming Over” catches us guys trying to convince the women in our lives that they love us even if we’re drinking with our friends and being loud. Even when Hobbs is being humorous, he’s exposing the shallowness in the thoughts of guys.

In these heart-on-sleeve, paper-tiger-machoism songs, there’s also great beauty. The title song’s gentle picking tries to keep a strong front even while mourning the loss of a relationship. “Leave This Town” has Lightfoot picking, Dylan-esque phrasing, and a tender melody. You can’t let the occasional drawl and country-like compositions fool you into thinking that he’s a stereotypical Country & Western bar singer; this ain’t just some two-stepper. Hobbs writes songs that truly capture the heart.

Thanks to Greg Hobbs for the review copy.

BONUS CD GIVEAWAY!
If you’d like to check out 2 singers with a little more twang, check out Stuart Rosh & the Geniuses and Billy Joe Shaver. The first person to email me for this giveaway was Adam Cleveland, a man with a very cool blog. He wins both CDs--plus I'm throwing in the Banhart CD which got dusty because y'all didn't ask for it.


Singer-songwriter Stuart Rosh brings some quirkiness with his country drawl. Accept No Limitations is available from www.stuartrosh.com. The Geniuses add great music as his band.


Influential among Americana, Country, and singer-songwriter artists, Billy Joe Shaver’s new album, Freedom’s Child, is out now on Compadre Records. This album finds Shaver with the voice of country wisdom, earnest politics, and fine roots music style.