Grits and Greens

I was very sad about Merv Griffin's death until I saw the preview for the new Michel Gondry movie. The Lord takes away and he gives....or something like that.

Gwoemul, or The Host, as it is known in the U.S., is by far the best movie that I have seen in a long time, especially of the horror/sci-fi genre. Made in South Korea by Joon-ho Bong, is the monster movie that I have been waiting to see for a long time.

The story is simple, a doctor pours some chemicals into the river and a giant tadpole is spawned. Of course the tadpole is two stories tall and has a taste for human flesh and destruction. The creature is also quite an achievement in movie monsters--it looks amazing, moves quickly and is quite smart.

The movie itself is also a huge "f#$@ you" to the constant power struggle between the North Koreans and the U.S., much in the same fashion as Japan's Godzilla. But this is no Godzilla--this is a much scarier creature than Godzilla.

According to IMDB, an American version is going to be released in 2008, which is probably going to suck. I don't mean to sound negative, but I'm fine with the original. I like my Hie-bong Bye0n; I don't need a Wilson or Denzel or Will Smith to mess it up. The only way it could work is if it is helmed by James Gunn, Darren Aronofsky, Bryan Singer, Christopher Nolan or possibly M. Night---other than that, it's will probably be a bust.

See The Host now while it still kicks ass. That way, you can be a snob when it comes to a megaplex near you directed by some asshole that didn't quite get it---you can say, "The original was much better." You more than likely will not be lying.

Ok, so, LolliLove came out in 2004 and I just now saw it, but let's just say that it never showed at the big whoopity-doo theater in Tupelo, MS. However, it has lost none of its punch nor snarkiness over the past three years.

The film, co-written and directed by Jenna Fischer, stars Fischer and her real-life husband, James Gunn as real-life couple Jenna and James Gunn, who are on a mission to help the homeless--one lollipop at a time. Shot as a documentary, LolliLove skewers non-profits, celebrity philanthropy and America's attitude towards the less-fortunate. The film focuses on the Gunn Family and their decision to help others, namely the homeless in LA, buy distributing suckers with self-help slogans and Jame's art neatly placed on the wrapper.

Although this may sound far-fetched, believe me, as someone who has worked with and for non-profits and is in the process of doing another benefit (questions? email me at gritsandgreens@gmail.com), it's not--many times, people do not think when it comes to helping others. In a recent conversation regarding a proposed benefit for Habitat For Humanity, my idea was chastised and instead, my efforts "should be put towards the Humane Society." What the f$#@?!! How are these things even remotely related? One houses people and one houses animals---how is this even relevant? Don't get me wrong, I love animals---I love barbecue, bacon, catfish, fried chicken, etc. No, I am compassionate towards animals, but I'm trying to help people get homes. No cause is greater than the other, but my heart is in helping other people---does that make sense?

Many times, especially in Hollywood--and every city that has a life and style section in its newspaper, which translates to everywhere, people do the charity to make the papers, a point that LolliLove drives home in the hilarious third- act of the film, which finds James yelling "These f@#$%ing people!" after an unpleasant run-in with a homeless man. Amazing!!!

Lollilove is a rare piece of art that has way Moore of an impact than more provocative and commercial documentaries floating around Hollywood. Order it from Netflix today.

Good for ridin' the back roads of Smithville, MS. While in Smithville, try the Cashew Brittle at Custom Kandies and Nuts Shoppe (http://www.customkandies.com/).

1. BR549/Little Ramona's Gone Hillbilly Nuts
2. The Band with Emmylou Harris/Evangeline
3. Peter Frampton/Show Me The Way
4. Sebadoh/On Fire
5. Ryan Adams/Two
6. Jets To Brazil/You're Having The Time Of My Life
7. Buck Owens/Love's Gonna Live Here
8. The Beach Boys/Good Vibrations
9. Bad Company/Shooting Star
10. Starbuck/Moonlight (Feels Right)

Starbuck

Dear Ms. Britney Spears,

Girl, you gots to hide that squirrel. Young lady, we are tired of seeing your woman parts all over the internet. I know that them camera folks follow you around and sometimes you get out of cars in a not-so-lady-like manner after drinkin' a six-pack of Schlitz and that's ok. That pantie-monster is your business and if you don't want to wear drawers, that's ok. But ma'am, we are really tired of seeing the ol' bald eagle. Hell, yesterday you even wore under-britches but you decided to jump in the ocean in a pair of white panties, and once again, your moose-knuckle smiled for the camera.
Baby, I get it---you like to show your privates. But them privates have gotten way too public.
Does Cooter Brown have her own publicist?
Your friend,
Lonesome Rhodes

Posh and Becks are here, y'all.

thanks to http://www.dlisted.com/

Transformers is the best popcorn movie of the summer, hands down. Pictured is one of the stars of the movie who magically transforms into a midget when the director, Michael Bay, yells "Cut."

It's about time that someone did.

From an Edwards email:

Thirty seven million Americans live in poverty—one out of every 8 of us. This is a national disgrace.

The millions of Americans who struggle with poverty are all but invisible to the media and to the power brokers in Washington, D.C. That needs to change. Starting today, I will be traveling on the Road to One America—visiting 11 cities in 8 states over 3 days to expose the problem of poverty and highlight our power to solve it. And I am asking you to join me.

Help me expose poverty in America. Send me a picture or a story about poverty you have seen or encountered.

Please send your pictures and stories to info@johnedwards.com.

For the next three days, you can also join me on the Road to One America by checking for the latest photos, videos and blog updates at:

www.johnedwards.com/road

As open letters are all the rage in Hollywoodland, Ol' Lonesome thought he'd try his hand at it.

Dear son of a bitch that sits beside me at the movies,

Fellow, Ol' Lonesome really, really likes going to the talking, indoor picture-shows. I like "Harry Potter" and "Spiderman" and "Macon County Line" and "Cannonball Run" and even "Wings Of Desire." But sir and, or madam, please don't talk on your cellular phone while I'm looking at a motion picture. Heck, it's just plain rude. Also, please don't be typing messages on your fancy typing phone blueberry machines while the movie is playing. Please......

Keep it up and you might just find yourself on the stinging end of an ass whoopin'.

Best Regards,
Lonesome Rhodes



That's me....lookin' mighty stern.

What's hotter than Dolly Parton mud-wrasslin' Barbara Mandrell? Well, not much, but the following come darn close:

HOT SNOT

1. Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman Vol. 1: Rent this NOW--quite possibly one of THE best shows ever. Mary Kay Place as Loretta Haggers...hell yeah!
2. Fish Tacos at Fajita Express Mesquite in Aberdeen, MS: We call it The Fajita Mosquito.
3. The Pierces/Thirteen Tales of Love and Revenge: The only reason not to like this album is because you are an idiot.
4. The OC in reruns on SOAP: Now, you can hang with Seth and the gang everyday, which makes me believe there is a God.
5. Heroes AND Friday Night Lights on DVD August 28: Don't call me during September
6. Welcome Back Kotter reruns on ALN: Dude, they also show Chico and the Man AND Hill Street Blues!
7. The Residents/Eskimo: Art rock as it should be---cold and distant.
8. Paste Magazine--It just keeps on getting better
9. Nigella Lawson (Nigella Bites): It's like I'm going through puberty number two
10. The Dirt by Motley Crue: Read it again for the first time....
    

Cold Boogers:
The Smashing Pumpkins: Dude, it's 1995 again. Great! Now, leave me alone....
Gym Class Heroes: Fratastic!
Rolling Stone Magazine: Yawn.......
Posh and Becks

Thanks, Pat.
You helped make Mississippi a lot more beautiful.
1935-2007

I recently tried Pimpjuice (Xtra Strength flavored) for the first time and let me assure you that the energy beverage did nothing to improve my "pimp skills," whatever they may be. In all actuality, it was bright yellowish-green, the same shade as antifreeze, and it tasted like a melted orange Flav-O-Ice combined with one of those candies that comes wrapped like a strawberry and some crushed-up Flintstones Vitamins. After I recovered from the headache that came from being over-caffeinated and under-stimulated, I was severely depressed and I felt like ass. Pimps, playas, hustlers and nerds beware: Pimpjuicing ain't easy. Thanks for nothing, Nelly.



Reeses has introduced a limited edition "cup" entitled "Elvis Peanut Butter and Banana Creme." As much as I love Elvis Costello, I decided to try one. Although I was not completely horrified, it was not an altogether pleasant eating experience. Basically, I like the Reeses cup that is Reeses flavored. I then was told that the item was named for Elvis Presley and that there was a marketing contest coinciding with the product called "Live Like The King." I have been fat and addicted to drugs for so long that the last person I want to live like is Elvis Presley. I have no desire to eat my peanut butter and 'nanner samiches while I'm trying to come down from Quaaludes and get up with amphetamines. Speed-balling has no place in the kitchen.........

Good night, Lady Bird.

Lady Bird Johnson
1922-2007

1. Porter Wagoner/Wagonmaster: THE best album of any genre for this week and probably the entire summer.

2. Bill's Hamburgers/Amory, MS: The "OG" and best hamburger in North Mississippi.

3. The Office Reruns/NBC Thursdays: Like there's a better program on TV--even in reruns, it still blows away the competition.

4. Knocked Up: See it now before the Frat Rats ruin it for everyone.

5. Ben and Jerry's Stephen Colbert's Americone Dreams ice cream: Has anyone tried Willie Nelson's Country Peach Cobbler? It sounds awesome!

6. Harry Potter! Harry Potter! Awwwwww sh@% Harry Potter!

7. Ryan Adams/Easy Tiger: Oh my God y'all---Ryan Adams actually made another great album!!

8. Jones Green Apple Pure Cane Soda
9. Moroccan Fig scented Votivo candles

10. Sly and the Family Stone/Hot Fun In The Summertime: The BEST summer jam ever----for this summer and every summer!

The Whites Stripes saved rock n' roll many moons ago, and true rock fans, such as myself, are forever grateful. I've liked them when they were a blues band, a punk band, an arena rock band and a country band. I'm just not so sure that I love them as Led Zeppelin.
Jack White is a genius and he has proven that time and time again. He knows how to write good songs and how to make them sound great. Perhaps that's my problem with The White Stripe's new album, "Icky Thump."
At first glance, "Icky Thump" is full of big riffs and great guitar tones and wacky keyboards--basically, everything you expect from a White Stripes album. But "Physical Graffiti" and "In Through The Out Door," two late period Zeppelin albums, have these things also. Somehow, it just all seems as if I've heard it before.
That's not to say that there aren't some great moments on the record such as "You Don't Know What Love Is" and "300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues." But both are pure Zeppelin.There's even a Celtic acoustic number, "Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn", that comes from the same Scottish Highland stomp of "Friends" from "Led Zeppelin III."
I love The White Stripes; I love the brilliance of "White Blood Cells, and I truly love the beauty of the band's last album, "Get Behind Me Satan." However, "Icky Thump" by know means lives up to their past records and in all actuality, it shouldn't.
My problem with "Icky Thump" is basically this: one of my Swedes ripped me Donnie and Marie's "I'm Leaving It All Up To You" from vinyl to MP3. If I'm going to listen to something familiar, I want to hear that record as it was one of my favorites when I was a child (I LOVE AM Radio rock!). At least that record makes me feel warm and happy.
Truth be known, the best record that I've heard this summer is Porter Wagoner's "Wagonmaster." That, is what "Icky Thump" can never be: a classic.
But damn, Jack White can really makes those guitars and keyboards sound great and Meg beats the hell out of those drums.

Bravo's "Top Chef" judges hate the South, as Sandee from Georgia was let go on the latest episode. This comes on the heels of the dismissal of Ol' Clay from Columbus, Mississippi. What the hell, y'all? Oh yeah, Sandee made some something that sounded disgusting.
Sandee, or Ol' Bad Mohawk as she will hence be known, lost a barbecue challenge,as did some cat from Texas! How in the hell can you be from the South and lose a barbecue contest? If you're Ol' Bad Mohwak, you make something called "lobster poached in vanilla-butter with dates." What the f@#k?!
It's not all OBM's fault as the contest was called an "upscale barbecue elimination challenge." Leave it to those sum' bitches at Top Chef to mess up barbecue.
We love barbecue down this way, but poaching is not barbecuing, it's poaching...cooking something in a shallow liquid. Even if you do this over over coals on a grill, it's still not barbecuing.
Anyway, Salman Rushdie's wife and that chick from Canada and Chef Tom and some other asshole had a field day over her dish and in the end, Salman Rushdie's wife told her to "pack her knives and leave," the "your fired" of Top Chef.
OBM currently resides in Miami and I suppose that she should stay there, as she would surely be run out of Georgia for such a culinary travesty.

It's barbecue--it is what it is. To me, an upscale barbecue means that someone stayed up all night slow-smoking a beef brisket. Sometimes in the South they ask if "you want slaw with that?", and that is as upscale as it needs to be.

No sugar, I don't want slaw with that, but thanks for asking.

With all of the BIG movies hitting the screens this summer, it's nice to find that "little" movie that makes a huge impact and no movie has made that impact this summer quite like "Waitress." "Waitress" is an amazing film that I actually didn't want to end and is something that I look forward to seeing again.

"Waitress" was written and directed by Adrienne Shelly, who also plays the affable and lovelorn Dawn. Unfortunately, the talented Shelly was murdered in her New York office/apartment in the fall of 2006 and "Waitress" was released posthumously. "Waitress" was Shelly's labor of love and it is beyond sad that we will never see another film from her. Shelly lit up the screen playing dawn and it breaks my heart that some piece of shit killed her and silenced her voice.

"Waitress" is the story of Jenna, a waitress, played by Kerri Russell, who works in a pie shop in a small southern town. Jenna is also an incredibly talented pie maker who happens to create pies based on her life experiences. Jenna becomes pregnant, something she never wanted, with her abusive, controlling husband's baby, meets a newcomer to town and dreams of winning the $25,000 first prize in a pie-making contest.

The acting in "Waitress" is some of the best that you will see this summer. From Russell and Shelly to Sheryl Hines and Jeremy Sisto, the acting and timing is stellar. However, the biggest surprise of the movie is the brilliant Andy Griffith, who plays the curmudgeonly owner of the pie shop. To me, Griffith's role is Academy Award worthy. He absolutely shines in this film.

I liked everything about "Waitress," from the cinematography and lighting, to the writing and pacing. There are beautiful, sensual scenes of Russell making pies such as the "I hate my husband pie" that are pure genius. Do yourself a favor and let yourself get lost in "Waitress."

For whatever reason, I'm a big fan of Bravo's "Top Chef," although it is a pretentious reality where everyone can out cook and out snark the next asshole. I was quite excited when I saw the first episode of season three and learned that a Clay Bowen from Columbus, MS would be in the cast.

I do not know this Clay person and I had not heard of him until I saw him on television. After briefly getting to know the cast members, judges Tom Colicchio and Salman Rushdie's wife showed up for the "quick-fire challenge," which challenged the competitors to make an amuse bouche, a bite-sized meal starter, from the hors'dovers. I knew that things did not look good for ol' Clay when his amuse bouche was served in a carved-out apple---not necessarily something you can eat in one bite. Clay finished in the bottom three of the challengers. He claimed to have made a fruit gazpacho, but it looked like pieces of whole fruit in a hollowed apple. However, the whole concept of amuse bouche is ridiculous anyway, so you can't blame him for trying.

After a brief soliloquy about his "chef daddy who killed himself 'cause he couldn't handle the pressure," things went from bad to worse for ol' Clay.

This week's elimination challenge was some sort of surf and turf thing that replaced bee and shrimp with wild boar and black chicken and rattlesnake and horse's ass, etc.

It's that same tired concept of "exciting and exotic" food that comes across as very banal and mediocre.

Poor Clay chose to cook some pan-seared wild boar chops with cornbread dressing with scorpion fish and a fried scorpion fish tail, and the plate presentation looked so dry that it made me thirsty. Well, Tom and Mrs. Salman Rushdie and the Canadian chick and guest judge and self-hating narcissist Anthony Bourdain tore ol' Clay a new asshole, stating that his food was "tough, inedible and many other not so pleasant adjectives.

When the proverbial smoked cleared and the dealing was done, Clay, fortunately, was sent home--the first person cut from the show. To me, this was a good thing as I didn't want to sit through an entire season of redneck and Mississippi jokes. Clay, who now resides in Santa Barbara, was sent packing.

I like to experiment with food and I'm always willing to try wild game and food from different countries, etc. However, just because Clay couldn't make a stew with horse ass and sea monkeys doesn't mean that he can't cook, as we are all more likely to eat catfish and collard greens than we are kangaroo and duck wang.

Thanks Clay for giving us hope and stepping up to the plate. I bet that you could have whipped their asses in a biscuit cook-off any day of the week.

Lord of the Twang: The Battle for Middle America, or at least California

The Republican Party received a much needed proverbial shot in the arm this week as former Tennessee senator and actor Fred Thompson has entered the 2008 Presidential race after months of speculation. Thomas joins a host of others including Rudy Giuliani, Arizona Sen. John McCain and Mitt Romney of Massachusetts. This is good news for the GOP as they actually have a viable candidate that can not only win the nomination but the general election in November 2008 as well.
So what does this mean for the Democrats? It means that it is time for Al Gore to go ahead and pony up and jump in the race. Then, and only then, we will Americans have an election that will be finally have the importance and magnitude of the annual Iron Bowl, in which the University of Alabama and Auburn University battle it out in order to make our nation a continued great place to live.
Although this would make for an interesting election for the South, California would be the deciding factor in who goes to the White House. It’s a beautiful thing to fantasize: SAG member Thompson going toe-to-toe with the Academy Award-winning Gore. It’s Clint Eastwood versus Sean Penn, Chuck Norris versus Tim and Susan.
Thompson is basically the only hope for the struggling GOP. McCain and Romney are unelectable, regardless of their pedigrees and the Giuliani is still questionable to many Americans. Thompson is a true conservative and he will be able to get the support and the financing of important conservative groups such the Southern Baptist Association and other Christian-based organizations that are extremely important to Presidential candidates, especially Republicans.
Although Romney may not be electable as President, Thompson would be smart to choose him as his VP. I have no problems with Romney, but I don’t think that the Christian Right is going to support a Mormon candidate. As unfortunate and ridiculous as that sounds, it is the truth, and the Republican candidate cannot afford to lose this support network. However, Romney is by the far the brightest in the GOP field and he would make a welcome addition to anyone’s staff. Then, we put Mitt in the White House in 2012. It’s all part of my plan to control the world.
At the same time, Gore is the only electable Democrat. Hillary Clinton’s diabolical past is going to come back to haunt her and probably in a big, bad way. She has been preparing for this run her whole life and there have been a number of souls crushed along the way. And forget all of the nonsense about Clinton being a woman and a feminist, etc. She has balls of steel and probably a bigger ding-a-ling than most men. Her bid for the White House will self-destruct somewhere along the way, much to the chagrin of Hollywood’s pocket book.
Barack Obama is also an unelectable candidate. He may be a bright senator from Illinois, but he is also something the media has created in hopes of creating some sparks for the Democrats. The Democratic Party has been fledgling and floundering for years now and Obama made it seem exciting once again. This media blitz, however, is not his fault. I look forward to watching his career in politics flourish and shine.
With Clinton and Obama gone, the only real candidate left is John Edwards, the best that the Democrats have, by far. But Edwards’s run on the ticket with John Kerry has all but made him insignificant and that’s a shame. However, Edwards would be a welcome addition to a Gore ticket. Gore-Edwards 2008 has a nice ring to it.

Fred Thompson versus Al Gore: the battle of the South. Keep in mind that Thompson was elected to fill Gore’s Senate seat when he joined the Clinton Presidential ticket. Both candidates, or, possible candidates, have that good ol’ boy aw shuckness about them that people love and find electable. There are both sharp, highly educated Hollywood types that people love as well. I may have a Fred Thompson bumper sticker on my truck, but Al Gore is probably unbeatable. Thompson is the only Republican that would give him a close race. We’ll see…..

Cockfight Club
Acockalypse Now
Weapons Grade Records

In full-disclosure, Kenny Calloway is a dear friend of mine. We met when he was the editor of the “Planet Weekly,” The revolutionary free press that once filled the new stands of Tupelo, MS. We both had a passion for all things alt.country and rockabilly and our friendship has lasted through the years. Hell, we even went to see “Revenge Of The Sith” together the night that it opened. Yes, I heart Kenny Calloway. However, that has nothing to do with my feelings regarding Kenneth Calloway and Cockfight Club.
Kenneth Calloway is genius and it shows through his band, Cockfight Club. Whereas Kenny Calloway was the person that turned me on to Whiskeytown, there is nothing alt.country about the Kenneth Calloway of Cockfight Club. Cockfight Club is intricate electronic that is being made in a basement studio literally a stone’s throw away from the birthplace of Elvis Presley. If Elvis the musical past to which Tupelo overly clings to, the Cockfight Club represents the future of Tupelo, which is so bright from nuclear fallout that one has no choice but to wear shades, lest one’s eyes disintegrate.
“Acockalypse Now” is Cockfight Club’s second release and it is a beautiful, scary quagmire of ugliness that one is not likely to forget for a long time, if ever. There is no sophomore-slump here, as the album surpasses its predecessor, which was no easy feat. Calloway may have been finding his footing on “Cockfight Club,” but “Acockalypse Now” is so solid that it sounds as if Calloway has made 50 albums as opposed to two.
One of the reasons that the new album is more fluid is that despite Calloway’s production and songwriting skills, Cockfight Club is now a band and not just a project. It’s probably a good idea for Calloway to have like-minded people to swap ideas with. Members Elusive and Dustin Gant make contributions on keyboards and guitar, respectively that give the album a band-feeling. However, it is the addition of keyboardist-vocalist Graceless Lacy Babcock that really makes Cockfight Club V.2.0 something to remember.
The album opens with its namesake, “Acockalypse Now,” and everything previously mentioned about Tupelo is soon forgotten, although its North Mississippi roots will come to the surface in other ways. “Acockalypse Now” is a harrowing vision of dystopia with banshee-like wailing from Babcock that will make one’s blood turn cold. It is also the reason that you cannot wait to hit repeat and hear the song again. And again.
The intensity of “Acockalypse Now” continues on the next two tracks, “Darwin’s Monkey Blues” and “Supermassive,” as do the themes of the religious-right, Creationism, darkness, destruction and the failings of the Bush administration, all according to the Gospel of Calloway and Company.
“Mouth of Madness” drops about midway through the album and it is the centerpiece of the record. With fat, round hip-hop beats and a groove that weaves itself around the listener like a snake charmer’s snake, it should definitely make the summer playlist on many an iPod. It is pure listening pleasure.
The song also somewhat sets the tone for the second part of the album, which is far more dance and groove oriented than the first half. “Children of Dagon” is 2007 disco, bound to make anyone hit the dance floor with its syncopated beats and pumping bass line.
One way that “Acockalypse Now” triumphs over its predecessor is the trance element that is present throughout the entire disc. As previously mentioned, this is where Cockfight Club shows its North Mississippi Roots. The songs flow much in the same manner as the blues music of the Hill Country of North Mississippi. If R.L. Burnside was a fan of Kraftwerk and had a Mac, hell, he might have created this type of music.
Saving the blast for last, the album ends with “Extinction Level Event,” which samples the title track and is six minutes of avant-garde Earth destruction. This is The Beatles “Revolution 9” made on a Mac and existing in a universe where Cockflight Club brings about Armageddon with the assistance of Pres. George W. Bush. It is the end of Bush’s self-proclaimed “season of peace on Earth.”
The ugly head of Bush rears itself throughout the album as does American Family Association’s Donald Wildmon, various aliens, zombies and a continuing fascination with horror master H.P. Lovecraft. Cockfight Club is influenced by Gary Newman, The Cramps, B-grade horror movies, absinthe, Brian Eno and the political climate of the world and it is music that will stay with long after the record has ended.
On the track “Dying Alone,” Calloway wishes that “someday when you’re dying alone, you remember the words I said.” I don’t what I will thinking when that day dawns, but I know that when I’m sitting alone I can’t forget the words of Cockfight Club, especially when I’m attempting to sleep.

Country Ghetto
JJ Grey and Mofro
Alligator Records 2007



Thank God that Sly Stone and his illustrious Family did not self-destruct in vain. No, Sly’s legacy lives all over JJ Grey and Mofro’s new album, “Country Ghetto,” which seems to draw inspiration not only the Family Stone but Faces, Otis Redding and Humble Pie, as well. However, the Mofro is that rare band that pulls this off without sounding like the Black Crowes, something called “Southern Rawk” or this horrid thing known as “the Blooze,” which conjures up images of women “clap-dancing” to a bar-band version of “Mustang Sally.” No, Grey and his band are authentic –there is nothing mimicking about “Country Ghetto.”
“Country Ghetto” opens with the barn-burning “War,” which not only incorporates “Dance to the Music” drums and a low voice bass shout-out ala Larry Graham, but lyrically it deals with Sly’s most pressing issue: man versus himself—the “war” inside us all. From the fuzzed-out guitars and organ rides to the pumping organ bass line, “War” grabs you from the first beat and lets you know that the Mofro means business.
After setting the tone with “War,” the band continues to raise the proverbial bar with “Circles,” which begins with electric piano and Grey’s soulful voice, which is sometimes mindful of Bill Withers, before lazily rolling in a warm sea of strings and horns, which is not easy to do, unless you are George Martin or Brian Wilson or evidently, JJ Grey. “Circles” is the best song that Faces never recorded and if God were a fan of radio it would get played ad nauseam.
It’s refreshing to hear a record that is produced well. Grey and producer Dan Prothero keeps things simple and this simple, organic production works well. The drum and bass sounds are fat and tight, the guitar tones are authentic and the organ sounds like, well, an organ. Together, it all sounds warm and it would probably sound like a million dollars if heard on a jukebox in a Southern roadhouse. I know that it sounds great on my iPod on the speakers in my truck as I ride along the back roads of North Mississippi.
The center of “Country Ghetto” is anchored by the songs “Footsteps” and “Turpentine,” which mixes both the swamp music of Grey’s Florida home and the trance-inspired blues of the North Mississippi Hill Country. It’s the type of sound that exists in a world where Ronnie Van Zandt and R.L. Burnside are on the ten and twenty dollar bills, respectively and the local university is known as “Ole Flar’da.”
The songs are the perfect set-up for what follows next. “A Woman” is the best example of modern day soul since Otis Redding recorded “Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul.” Grey’s voice is a powerful instrument on “A Woman,” but it is not overpowering in the slightest. Grey is a soul singer, not a “blue-eyed soul singer.” Once again, he’s more Bill Withers than a screaming Joe Cocker, hoarse Rod Stewart or a big, bossy Blooze singer.
Grey, who IS the Mofro along with Daryl Hance, George Sluppick and Adam Scone, pays homage to my home state on the track, “Mississippi,” which rolls along like an old junk wagon telling the listener that “good things are going on there in Mississippi.” Old Charlie Rangel may ponder “who the hell wants to live in Mississippi,” but I do and it looks like the Mofro wouldn’t find it so bad, either.
Song for song, “Country Ghetto” is an album to listen to in its entirety, as opposed to a couple of great songs and mediocre filler material. It tackles the age-old themes of loves lost and found in a way that is at once both old and modern. Sure, there are female back-up singers, gospel-tinged choruses and big guitars and horns but Grey is nothing of a Humble Pie imitator. He’s an honest songwriter with a soulful voice and a great guitar tones. In a day and age when Indie rock is suddenly arena rock, JJ Grey and The Mofro should be one of the biggest true Indie rock bands in the world. At the very least, they inspired me to write this blog.