Asleep At The Wheel
1973-07-xx
Record Plant
Sausalito, CA


KSAN FM 95.5 San Francisco

FM>?>cdr>eac>wav>cep>cdwav>flac



01-Intro Tom Donohue > Space Buggy 02-I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive
03-Phantom 309
04-Your Down Home Is Uptown
05-I'm the Fool Who (Told You To Go)
06-Shoe Shine Boy (Count Basie Cover)
07-Dark Moon
08-Cherokee Boogie
09-I've Been Everywhere
10-Our Names Aren't Mentioned Together Anymore
11-Truck Driving Man
12-Yes, I'm Mad With You
13-Blues Stay Away From Me
14-Hillbilly Nut
15-Take Me Back to Tulsa > Tom Donohue Outro




General Notes on the band:

Singer/guitarist Benson was born Ray Benson Seifert and grew up listening to a variety of music in Philadelphia, especially jazz. He formed Asleep at the Wheel in Paw Paw, WV, in 1970, along with longtime friend Lucky Oceans (born Reuben Gosfield; steel guitar) and Leroy Preston (rhythm guitar). They soon added a female singer in Chris O'Connell, who was fresh out of high school. Initially, the group played straight-ahead country in local venues, but quickly switched to Western swing when they discovered the music through Merle Haggard (specifically his Bob Wills tribute album) and eclectic country-rockers Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen. In fact, Commander Cody helped the group sign with his own manager, Joe Kerr, who convinced them to move to San Francisco in late 1971. They subsequently added keyboardist Floyd Domino, and secured a residency at Berkeley's Longbranch Saloon. Praise from Van Morrison in a Rolling Stone article helped them land a record deal with United Artists, which released their debut album, Comin' Right at Ya, in 1973.



AMG Notes On Their 1st Album, which is a good part of this broadcast:

Asleep At The Wheel did not start the Western swing revival of the '70s -- Merle Haggard kicked it into gear with his tremendous 1970 album, A Tribute to the Best Damn Fiddle Player in the World -- but Asleep stuck to it so long that the band came to personify it. Though they occasionally stretched out, they never really strayed from the sound they unveiled on their 1973 debut, Comin' Right at Ya. The 12-song platter kicks off with a faithful but loose version of Bob Wills' "Take Me Back to Tulsa," setting the tone for not just the record, but the group's music. Asleep At The Wheel's members were disciples of Wills and the Texas Playboys, and they not only patterned their sound after them, but followed the Playboys' restless spirit in how they used Western swing as a foundation for exploring other sounds and styles. Where Wills' group often spun into jazz and blues, Asleep branched out into other kinds of country, delving into pure Texas honky tonk, country boogie, and heartache ballads, touching on Hank Williams, Hank Thompson, Hank Snow, Ernest Tubb, Ray Price, Patsy Cline, and Loretta Lynn.

There's also a dash of post-hippie humor, rearing its head clearly on "Hillbilly Nut," and just the slightest touch of knowingly reverent reserve, as if the group were trying out an uncle's clothes to see if they fit. This little hint of artifice -- this little echo of Commander Cody -- is the only area where the record stumbles, and it's a slight one, the kind of thing that should be expected on a debut, because the group is musically powerful and nimble, re-creating the sound of pure country at a time when it often wasn't heard. Asleep at the Wheel would better this record, but that the band had such a sure grasp on its musical versatility so early in its career is impressive, and the general good spirits Comin' Right at Ya stirs up are infectious. Years later, after many fine records, this still stands as one of their best.

-- Stephen Thomas Erlewine




01-Space Buggy.flac:a5abee7e70ed7819bffd6cdc3b7fb1c1
02-I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive.flac:348f9b03a0e03a8de82e86c3224fcced
03-Phantom 309.flac:2997d11a19bedbfb74679112ceab4a6e
04-Your Down Home Is Uptown.flac:2517c170b48748cf7d4dbc07bffb5375
05-I'm the Fool Who (Told You To Go).flac:10cd6a46095ecae8085241e9ce998bed
06-Shoe Shine Boy.flac:5f0c44b8cf08139a535dc3dde26358a3
07-Dark Moon.flac:f9d88a0d7d1dee75f92ea61ba362f388
08-Cherokee Boogie.flac:bae082d120faeaa0f62f2985f8f9de92
09-I've Been Everywhere.flac:7ea04670e429450dca0c799f1670c542
10-Our Names Aren't Mentioned Together Anymore.flac:3e75d0c2e56f6a255df9c44b9b067308
11-Truck Driving Man.flac:bd2f2b76de3d4d7c3eab4cfc60d56f19
12-Yes, I'm Mad With You.flac:0c632b128fcfaab193349fcfc3c6aa06
13-Blues Stay Away From Me.flac:c7f0c2d0118c5dced8b3e4577dd7b689
14-Hillbilly Nut.flac:e8caded9d16cd5abe6808fbc5e662477
15-Take Me Back to Tulsa.flac:97844d6cc55327c90b56236bd343f202