THE HOOCHIE COOCHIE MEN
The Hoochie Coochie Men (Independent)
Reviewed by DJ Johnson


A very nice blues record by a trio from down under. The Hoochie Coochie Men are Tim Gaze (guitar/vocals), Rob Grosser (drums/washboard/guitar), and Bob Daisley (bass). Daisley is a veteran of many famous bands, including but not limited to Mungo Jerry, Chicken Shack, Uriah Heep, Rainbow, Blizzard Of Ozz (Ozzy Osbourne's first post-Sabbath band, in which Daisley wrote all the lyrics and much of the music that Osbourne still takes credit for), and the Gary Moore Band. A native of Melbourne, Australia, he's back home with fellow Aussies making some truly fine music, at times robust and powerful, such as on the Johnny Winter cover of "Dallas," and at other times minimalistic to perfect effect, such as on the voodoo-sounding version of "Strange Brew."

Four of the ten songs are originals, always a risky proposition with the blues, but the HCMen prove themselves as writers in the best cases and capable enough performers to cover any weakness in the others. "She Whines" is a good tune but not a great one, but with the melted butter slide tone, and the blues harp (courtesy of Jim Conway), "She Whines" shines. "24/7 Blues," written by Daisley and Gaze, is a much stronger song right off the sheet of paper, with a catchy lyric and a sultry chord progression. Gaze is quite a talent, both as a singer and guitarist, and he displays both in spades on this tune, which also benefits from a nice guest performance by Mike Gubb on Hammond B3 organ. Gaze and Grosser's "Playin' The Blues" is a basic little pub dance number that really needs a harmony vocal in the chorus, but that's a small quibble. While "24/7 Blues" is traditional, Daisley's "New Old Lady Blues" is smokin' blues rock and definitely the hottest tune on the album. Gaze's slide tone is freakin' evil, for starters, the bass pumps along with the kick drum in a groove like a mournful "Suzy Q," and as Daisley wrote the lyrics, the words are definitely worth tuning in.

My old lady, she went cold on me - I was no longer her desire
She turned into the queen of ice - she wouldn't melt next to a fire
She had for a sale a pack of lies - and I turned out to be the buyer

Among the many fine performances is "You Need Love," which is labeled on the back with an asterisk that leads to a note I hope many people see. It says "This is the song that inspired Led Zeppelin's 'Whole Lotta Love,' for which Page/Plant took full credit - ours is credited to the original composer, Willie Dixon." Fantastic performance of the song, wide open and spooky, and hats off to them for adding that footnote in a very prominent font on the back of the CD. Yes, It's almost word for word what you hear when you listen to "Whole Lotta Love."

Electric blues fans, take note: you have to watch this band on your own, keep your own tabs, seek out your CDs, because if Bob Daisley's "labor of love" habit from his Mothers Army days are holding over, they may not be actively pushing this, and it is so worth having.


[This CD can be purchased online at Chaos Music.com.]

© 2003 - DJ Johnson