Get a Load of This
Formerly half of theDave & Deke CombowithDeke Dickerson, Dave Stuckey's more musical, less campy solo debut focuses on thoroughly exhilarating Western swing created with help from members ofRonnie Dawson's andWayne Hancock's bands, theAsylum Street Spankers, and theHot Club of Cowtown. What they've wrought is an explosion of first-rate Texas-California swing that outguns evenAsleep at the Wheel. By eschewing the dreary, meticulous revivalism that's foiled other, less astute artists, Stuckey and friends capture the spirit, sound, and loose, uninhibited fun of 1930s and '40s swing as few have. The leader contributes vibrant originals with "(Ol' Daddy's Got A) Brand New Love" and the goofy "Hitch My Wagon." LikeRay Condo, he picks his oldies with impeccable taste. The most perfect choices: A dazzling version of the 1930sBenny Goodmaninstrumental "Pick-a-Rib," theFats Wallerfavorite "Whose Honey Are You?" and an obscurity from Texas Western swing bandleaderAdolph Hofner, "I'll Take My Old Guitar." And from there it just gets better.--Rich Kienzle