Left Lane Cruiser and James Leg - Painkillers

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 27 / 8 / 2012

---

Well, it would be a good idea to have a monster jar of the things near to hand after listening to the ten tracks on this album, as a headache is surely one of the side-effects… The duo of Joe Evans (guitar) and Brenn Beck (drums) have released a handful of albums under the name of Left Lane Cruiser which have been described, quite understandably, as punk blues. James Leg (aka John Wesley Myers), whom I hesitate to describe as a singer, is a member of the Black Diamond Heavies, handling keyboards as well as vocal duties, and who have also released a number of albums highlighting their unique take on the blues. Alive Records have done the natural thing and combined the talents of this trio to make an album of covers, but with a difference. The difference is that unlike most cover albums, where an artist takes an established song and either makes a complete copy or dismantles the thing and tries to rebuild something completely different from it, is that LLC & James Leg still retain some of the feel of the originals here but are far, far off from making anything resembling copies of the originals. There are indications on the CD cover to warn you that you’re going to be in for something of an unexpected and, at times, disturbing journey. ‘Take this medicine with a full glass of whiskey’ and ‘Side effects may include euphoria and an uncontrollable desire to boogie’ are two of the warnings printed on the fake medicine label that forms the major part of the artwork. You’ll have probably heard the originals of all the songs on this album. All are blues-related, even in some small way (were the Stones still a blues band by the time they recorded ‘Sway’? Didn’t think so), and there are also numerous covers already available of some of the tracks. But it’s pretty certain that you have never heard them done like LLC & James Leg do them. Robert Johnson’s ‘Ramblin’ On My Mind’ starts as a chugging blues shuffle until James Leg does his best Captain Beefheart impression, and turns the whole thing into a gritty, howling match between his vocals, Joe Evans’ insane guitar runs and a piano that will never be the same again. It sounds like the band had a great time recording the song and it’s unlikely that, despite all the covers, you’ll have heard a version of the song quite as frantic as this before, it almost makes your ears bleed. Sixty-six year old Harmonica Shah blows some pretty neat harmonica (what else?) on their version of Willie Dixon’s ‘Red Rooster’, which is driven along by the bass of engineer Jim Diamond and isone of the more instantly acceptable covers on offer. Led Zeppelin’s ‘When The Levee Breaks’ again showcases the harmonica skills of Harmonica Shah and, while like the majority of these covers a little of the original is retained, the band really stamp their own unique mark on this song. It’s refreshing to hear old songs taken to their limits in this way, but James Leg’s distorted vocals sometimes take the attention away from just what a powerhouse the band is behind him. The Zeppelin song is a good example; the instrumental passages are much more exciting and rewarding than the vocal parts. ‘Sway’ is one of the songs that remains closest to the original, but again Leg’s vocals are going to turn as many people away as they attract. At just over thirty minutes the album is a perfect length, and to get you in a Friday night party mood it’s hard to beat this collection of punked-up distorted blues but keep that jar close by.

Track Listing:-

1 Sad Days Lonely Nights
2 She's Gone
3 Come To Poppa
4 Shake It
5 If 6 Was 9
6 Red Rooster
7 Ramblin' On My Mind
8 Chevrolet
9 When The Levee Breaks
10 Sway

Band Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/Left-Lane-Cruiser-16313548150/
https://www.facebook.com/James-Leg-114197558646461/
https://www.reverbnation.com/jamesleg

Label Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/AliveNaturalsoundRecords
http://www.alive-records.com/
https://twitter.com/AliveRecords
https://instagram.com/alivenaturalsound/
https://www.youtube.com/user/JIMalive1

Post A Comment

---

Comment

Name

your name

Location

ie London, UK

Submit

Check box to submit

Adam Coxon
Adrian Janes
Amanda J. Window
Andrew Twambley
Anthony Dhanendran
Benjamin Howarth
Cila Warncke
Daniel Cressey
Darren Aston
Dastardly
Dave Goodwin
Denzil Watson

Dixie Ernill
Dominic B. Simpson
Eoghan Lyng
Fiona Hutchings
Harry Sherriff
Helen Tipping
Jamie Rowland
John Clarkson
Julie Cruickshank
Kimberly Bright
Lisa Torem
Maarten Schiethart

Malcolm Carter
Marie Hazelwood
Mark Rowland
Nick Dent-Robinson
Nicky Crewe
Nige Nudds
Philamonjaro
Richard Lewis
Shirley Procter
Spencer Robertshaw
Steev Burgess
Steve Kinrade

Steve Miles
Tommy Gunnarsson
Zena Grieg