If you recall my Brian Burns review, I told y’all about a time when me and some of my friends went down to Dallas for a weekend. In that review I talked about the middle night and only barely touched on the other nights. On the third night of our stay we decided to drive down to Stephenville to watch Ragweed and Jason Boland play. As mentioned in that review, a couple of our party was under 21 and one of those under 21 was a Cross Canadian fan, and at that time they only played mostly at the Wormy Dog in Stillwater, so this was his chance to see them live and in person as it were. Now the other two had a different view of what good music was than either Cage or I did. You see, they felt if they hadn’t heard a song on, 97.1 Hit Country Radio playing only today’s hottest and newest hits with (insert idiotic name here) and (insert stupid name here) in the morning, if they hadn’t heard it played there, then they must suck. And as we all know, CCR and Boland don’t get played very often on those types of radio stations, especially in the latter part of the last millennium. So we had two of us primed to go see the show, one primed to go meet the ugly girl he met the previous night in Fort Worth and one along for the ride. Boland was up first and put on a very good show. But as mentioned, he didn’t play any songs that the two guys had ever heard, so they went out and sat in my Blazer for the rest of the night, didn’t even see CCR come on stage. But Cage and I didn’t care and we enjoyed the rest of the concert as the boys from Oklahoma put on their usual great show. Afterwards, Cage got an autograph from Cody on his shirtsleeve. As Cody was scribbling away, Cage mentioned how he had not seen them live before. Cody said they were playing down at the Wormy Dog the next week and to show up about 7 and he would get him in. Well, we showed up at 7 the next week and Cody was nowhere to be found, but no one was at the door either, so we just walked right on in. Don’t have to pay no cover, Cage doesn’t get carded and we get to watch CCR two weeks in row. Can’t beat that with a stick. Another interesting thing about that show at the Wormy Dog, it was the first time I got to hang out with Van. We had met before, but it was while buying groceries at the Mega-Lo Mart and didn’t involve any music or drinking. He and his roommate, Justin, were at the concert so we stood up towards the front of the crowd and enjoyed the songs and some ice-cold beer. Van wondered how Cage could get in, so Cage told him the whole story. For some reason, Van thought I was still in college, a freshman in fact, so he then asked how I got in. Since I’m about 5 years older than either of them, Cage just gave him a “what are you talking about, Van,” look. I’m sure he’s used to getting that look by now. I know I am. But the point here is you don’t always have to be 21 to enter. Some times you can stick it to the man and break all the rules, even if the rule is that you must be 21 to enter. So, for you wipper snappers that still have to go sneak drinks where ever you can have hope of getting into Adam Hood’s new CD, 21 to Enter. And trust me, this is much better than sneaking into any bar.
The first thing that struck me about this CD is the way it was recorded and the instrumental package. It’s basically just him with his acoustic guitar, recorded live at The Loft in Georgia, but it’s not like many live recordings. It was quite a ways into the CD before I realized it was a live CD. It really fits his feel and the songs he does. I think it really works for him, in the same way that Wayne Hancock’s recordings work for him. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not comparing their styles, as they are different styles of music, just the way they recorded a CD. But, I was amazed at what he can do with an acoustic guitar. He was able to change up his music to fit the song. Most of the songs have that good rock vibe that some acoustic acts are able to do. This is evident from the first song, Stay Out of My Way. One of the highlights for me was a song called Coffee Song. It’s one of those songs that is great, but then you really listen to it and it’s even better than you first thought.
Thank you for the coffee
A simple conversation
Thanks for the light shining in your eyes
It's taken so long to find someone to talk to
I know it ain't much
Thank you for your time
He has a lot of songs that many can relate to, and that is always the sign of a good songwriter. Nobody Comes Here Anymore and Big Mistake are both prime examples of songs that I can relate to. Tuesday Night reminded me of the old days when Jason and Cody used to play down at the Wormy Dog on Tuesday nights. When he slows down the tempo just a tick, the songs get even better, like on Million Miles Away. This is simply one of those great songs that I like with tremendous lyrics.
I get tired and it makes me mean
but cruel words aren’t what you need
I know and we both agree
But,
sometimes life gets down on me
and two hours on the interstate
I get quiet, start to pray
But, it feels like I lost my faith
Yep, this is a good CD, no matter what your age, from the arrangements to the lyrics, it has it all.
So, what have we learned today:
- There’s a new CD that everyone should check out
- You don’t always have to be 21 to enter
- And, I’m much look much younger than I actually am.
I’ll give this CD 4 out of 5 shirt sleeve autographs.