The Blasters: Trouble Bound : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

The original lineup of the Blasters hadn't performed together in nearly two decades when Trouble Bound was recorded, but you'd never know it. Culled from a half-dozen reunion shows at Hollywood's House of Blues in the spring of 2002, the album captures not only the rockabilly heat the band was known for, but also the excitement of the early Eighties Los Angeles music scene. At that time, the Blasters and cohorts like Los Lobos, X and the Gun Club met at an intersection of Americana, drawing from blues, rockabilly, country and punk, and creating music that sounded fresh to ears dulled by Seventies rock bloat. Trouble Bound is a reminder of the Blasters' versatility and top-notch musicianship. Dave Alvin's supreme guitar wrangling, brother Phil Alvin's distinct throaty croon and Gene Taylor's twinkling barroom piano stretch across chugging rock & roll vamps ("Blue Shadow"), New Orleans-flavored honky tonk ("Hollywood Bed") and harmonica-laced boogie blues ("I Wish You Would"). Add to this old hits like Rudy Toombs' "I'm Shakin'" and never-before-released gems like Johnny "Guitar" Watson's "Too Tired," and it's like the Nineties never happened.

MEREDITH OCHS
(October 15, 2002)