Search - Big Sugar :: 500 Pounds

A truly great album

04/18/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is LOUD. From the sound of Gordie's Gibson wailing through big Marshall amps, to Al Cross' thunderous drums, '500 Pounds' is the closest thing you'll find to hearing Big Sugar live. (On a side note, Big Sugar is, without a doubt, the best live act I have seen to date).'Ride like Hell' and 'I'm a Ram' evoke comparisons to classic Cream. Gordie can alternately croon or wail, and his slide guitar playing is masterful.While I feel that the band's most recent recordings have tried a little too hard to find commercial success, they're still about the best blues-rock band out there. If you're a fan, you must already own this album. If you're looking for a good introduction to Big Sugar though, '500 Pounds' is cooler than Gordie's Car."

I'm a Fan

acnoth | Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada | 06/28/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was working late one night when "All Over Now" came on over the radio. I immediately sat up and cried "What the (heck) was that?" It was a startling discovery. The entire CD, with the exception of the appalling "AAA Aardvark Hotel," brings a sonic grit to the blues that would make Jimi Hendrix and the Eric Clapton of Cream proud. The CD announces this intent with the defiantly loud "Ride Like Hell" to begin, but even more quiet pieces such as "Sugar in My Coffee" cry for volume. In "Sugar in My Coffee" the two notes following the line "And when he barks it rolls just like thunder" are perfectly juxtaposed by the falsetto of Gordie Johnson's next line. The harp and sax of Kelly Hoppe is incredible, and has only been matched by Hoppe's own harp on "Hemi-Vision," Big Sugar's following CD. Johnson's guitar virtuoso is also apparent throughout the album, with the execption of the aforementioned unfortunate "AAA Aardvark Hotel." One of my favourite examples is the bagpipe drone of "Wild Ox Moan," the likes of which I will guarantee you have never heard before. For tradionalists Johnson does calm it down beautifully with "Still Waitin'," a traditional blues tune that shows that, back then at least, Big Sugar may have been colossally loud, but Johnson's heart remained still in the right place."

Reminds me of beautiful memories during the 50s' r & r

dlhicks@ctaz.com | arizona | 10/11/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I first heard Big Sugar on LaFemme NIkita doing "Still wailing" and I knew I had to have this cd. This song so fits the charecter "Michael" of LaFemme Nikita and I play it over and over. It is so great! leigh"