JUGGERNAUT JUG BAND: Don't Try This At Home

Juggernaut Jug Band

Don't Try This At Home

© 2001 Juggernaut Jug Band (659696129023)

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Jazzy jug-band music; 1920's rock and roll.

notes

Reprinted from Dirty Linen: Folk and World Music
Issue #91 â€" December 2000/January 2001 - page 59

The Juggernaut Jug Band
Don’t Try This At Home
self-produced
Two of the members of this band, namely Gil Fish (bass, washtub bass, kazoo, nose flute, and vocals) and Roscoe Goose (jug, washboards, trumpet, harmonica, snare, and vocals) have been the nucleus of this band since 1965. While the great jug bands of the 60s have long since become extinct, this one persevered. So why aren’t they better known? Surely such persistence deserves some form of recognition, but the group doesn’t seem to have too many delusions of grandeur. (Their previous album was wittily called Perhaps You Don’t Recognize Us). Fortunately, the group has plenty of talent and that in itself should bring the group some attention.
Don’t Try This At Home, whose cover artwork is a takeoff on the infamous painting of dogs playing cards, starts out with "Cowboy," a weird tribute to cowboy heroes that was written by a member of the band from the 70s. The only other songs that originate with members of the group are "Barbecue On Broadway" and "Hawaiian Holiday," both written by Jim "World Wide" Webb. The rest of the songs are associated with such names as Bob Wills, Cab Calloway, The Boswell Sisters, and Groucho Marx (Harburg and Arlen’s "Lydia, The Tattooed Lady" from the Marx Brothers’ At the Circus). Naturally, the band also draws from other Louisville jug bands from earlier days, and covers a couple of tunes they retrieved from Jim Kweskin and The Jug Band. Being a band with 60s roots, they also tackle The Who’s "Pinball Wizard," to which they add a few references to Johnny Cash, "Wabash Cannonball," and Elvis. The album ends with The Kinks’ "You Really Got Me." Although it would be close to impossible to surpass the original, this acoustic version is energetic enough to hold its own.

reviews

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  • Catchy, Funny and Fresh!
    author: Carl M. Nielsen

    Since I've got this album, I've been playing it constantly. It surely got what it takes: great tunes, devoted musicians who play with energy and entusiasm. Last but not least it's not too serious, but a lot of fun. A nice surprise was to hear Juggernaut Jug's lyrical version of "Lydia, The Tatooed Lady" - a song I only knew from a unforgetable scene in a Max Brothers movie. But the album also contains beat/rock tunes such as "Pinball Wizard" as Pete Townshend probably never imagined it played and "You Really Got Me" in a extremely raw og rough version. From the opening bars of the first track, "Cowboy", the album just kicks off, and take the listener away. And the secdond track "Who Walks In" is even greater.And is goes on, all the way through. Wonderfull music with apealing freshness. Melodic and catchy, energic and driving, and with the smiles, happiness and joking that fills a warm summer in to a grey wintherday. But also a touch of a deeper, more poetic mood, with some elements of Gypsy Swing and unique nostalgic melancolia. Just as a little undertone. Nothing that spoils the fun. Just what it takes to make it even greater, more intensive. Even though it's pure jug-style, in the tradition of Jim Kweskin, it's not at all copy and cliché. Juggertnaut Jug got there own distinctive sound and personality. In my opinion among the 10 or 15 definetive best albums released in the last ten years.

  • The best medicine...
    author: Stu

    Great music from a great Jug Band. If you listen to this CD...and you're not tapping your toes within the first minute...you must be dead!

  • Pinball Wizard is great
    author: Shari

    Pinball Wizard alone is worth the price of the CD.

  • best jugband CD I've ever heard, & I've heard plenty
    author: teddi

    This is exactly what I've scoured the web for years to find, the talent and finesse of the Squirrel Nut Zippers with the cornpone of Spike Jones & his Wacky Wackateers. This CD is a foot stompin' riot loved by both young and old. I play it in my art gallery in Hawaii and all my customers adore it.

  • GREAT!
    author: Chris Calabrese

    These guys are GREAT! I have seen them live several times and this CD is the next best thing. I love their eclectic mix of tunes--Pinball Wizard on the same CD as Coney Island Washboard! The range of styles they offer on this CD is also diverse, but the group has a consistent sound and feel throughout and they somehow manage to pull it all together for a great CD from start to finish. In addition to the great music, I also appreciate the high production vaules of the CD. The recording quality is excellent and I love the funky picture on the CD cover. Don't let the "Jug Band" moniker fool you, these guys are all top-flight musicians who know how to have fun with the music they play. I know of few groups that are as tight and polished and just plain enjoyable to listen to.

  • Lots of fun. Pinball Wizard is a hoot, literally.
    author: C. Haug

    Jug Band music is infectious, and this CD exemplefies the genre. I found myself dancing 'round the kitchen with the first song. This version of Pinball Wizard is well worth the price of the CD. The two Minnie the Moocher tunes take you back to the old days of radio.

  • author: CD Baby

    For a light, laughin', swingin' good time, your search ends here. Cultivated from jazzy jug-band music; 1920's sparkle, Hawaiian ukelele styles, ragtime, old cowboy songs, early jazz swing and their own delightfully upbeat, almost goofy flair, the Juggernaut Jug Band is everything a vintage nut could want and then some. Maintaining their fun, kazoo-rivaling sound while shining with unbeatable musicianship, these boys know how to lighten your load with pure, aural fructose. And I mean that in a good way.

  • Seriously good musicians having great fun!
    author: Vicki Neighbors

    Not being a fan of novelty music, I was surprised at how much I liked this CD. It is great fun without sacrificing musicianship. Particularly funny was Pinball Wizard with its blatant lack of politically correct phrasing! My coworkers love black humor and enjoyed it immensely too. Imaginative, catchy and just plain good fun! I give it 4 jugs and a nose-flute.

  • Toe-Tapping, Rhymic, with excellent musicians.
    author: Glenn Miller

    Although, I am a dixieland fan, I really enjoyed this unique Style of rhythem and harmony. The members of the band are excellent musicians and there array of songs will keep your attention.

  • author: Tamara Turner, CD Baby.com

    For a light, laughin', swingin' good time, your search ends here. Cultivated from jazzy jug-band music; 1920's sparkle, Hawaiian ukelele styles, ragtime, old cowboy songs, early jazz swing and their own delightfully upbeat, almost goofy flair, the Juggernaut Jug Band is everything a vintage nut could want and then some. Maintaining their fun, kazoo-rivaling sound while shining with unbeatable musicianship, these boys know how to lighten your load with pure, aural fructose. And I mean that in a good way.

  • author: Allan

    This original group captivates its audience from the moment the CD opens. We intended just to sample it, but ended up playing the whole CD twice non-stop while we stopped all other activities and listened. Both fresh and refreshing, and oh how musical! Might turn out to be dangerous in the car though as the tapping feet could send one way over the limit........use cruise control and enjoy!!

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