Search - Black Oak Arkansas :: High on the Hog

Jim Dandy is a Ras-cewl!

Reviews No More | 06/01/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Now, some of y'all don't know I got me a lil' ol' man who fronts a tribute band to Zeppelin and Black Oak Arkansas called Stariway to Arkansas. He legally changed his name to Jimbob Dandyplant after enought folks done told him he looks like the other two. He's got himself long blond hair, eyes of blue, and a swimmer's body just like them before Jimmy and Robert done turned into 50 year-old fatsos with Just for Men blond hair.



Ana-hoo, I don't think he respects me much, although I dress up like his idol's old girlfriend Ruby Starr. He done caught me at the edge of the stage singin' "Jim Dandy is a ras-cewl" and stopped the band to scream at me in front of everybody in the club. "It's Jim Dandy to the rescue, ya bimbo!" Everybody laughed while I cried, but I still kept dancin' 'causin' that song rocks my booty off. Unfortunately, he dedicated "Happy Hooker" to me after we *made up* during first break, but I jez can't get enough. How can you say no to a dude who likes a band that paved the way for the likes of George Thoroughgood, the Georgia Satellites, Aerosmith, and David Lee Roth, only to be left behind as a footnote in rock history while their avid students reaped the glory they themselves still deserve?



I think about great, ballsy blues numbers with the cherry bomb of funk thrown in, and can't deny the infectiousness of "Movin'," and the almost metallic kiester crunch of "Mad Man," and the words highly underrated come to mind. True, Jim Dandy Mangrum was never a fantastic voice, but I'll be gosh-durned iffin' he didn't have as much carnal appeal as that cross dresser from Van Halen who stole everything he knows from him. An' besidin' all of that, what's a whiskey burned voice with the right 'tude when it's accompanied by three great axe-slingers, a hell of a drummer in Tommy Aldridge--who's played for everyone and their bros--and some good old southern blues and country roots funkified?



I'm still at a crossroads, y'all. Jimbob Dandyplant caught me at home with all three gee-tarists from a Skynyrd tribute band called Jacksonville Kid. Looks like I'm "Swimmin' in Quicksand." Funk-ay!"

BOA's Biggest Hit Album

The Footpath Cowboy | Kingston, NY United States | 02/27/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"HIGH ON THE HOG was the biggest hit album for Black Oak Arkansas, obviously the nastiest, dirtiest, funkiest band to come out of the whole "Southern Rock" scene. The band lacked the musical skills of the Allman Brothers Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Marshall Tucker Band, the Outlaws, Molly Hatchet, and Blackfoot, yet more than made up for it with a deep funk and a wicked sense of humor that hasn't dated at all. This CD belongs in any serious rock & roll collection."

No Fat Here, Plenty of Hog!

Andy A. Blake | Madison, MS | 12/21/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well, I gotta tell ya...I've got every Black Oak Arkansas album ever put out but I would definitely say that High On The Hog is the Crown Jewel. It has the most flavorable tunes to croon to and sums up the spirit of what this band was all about. Dirty's driving bass lines opens several of the songs here and only wets your appetite for the diverse intertwining solos of their triple guitar attack. Plenty of wah wah petal, slide and even some finger lickin acoustic that makes you wanna run out and buy a cabin and a 100 acres of land to live the life that these lyrics convey. Damn, what can I say, listening to High On The Hog just makes you feel good and alive! Who but BOA could come up with song titles like Swimmin In Quicksand and Moonshine Sonata. The latter is a great instrumental with intertwining solos that bleed emotion with every note picked. Back To The Land and High 'N' Dry have a down home country feel to it....you can just picture these guys playing this on the front porch of their Ozark cabins. If you want to hear what crooning is all about, then the Dandy will pour it on you during High 'N' Dry. Happy Hooker is a real cooker and has a strong slow bluesy rhytmn to it and the lyrics are just a hoot. This is foot stompin music at it's finest. Movin and Red Hot Lovin are very fast, upbeat and powerful songs. The order of the songs on this album are perfect...I think this is why this release just simply knocks my socks off. It's also produced by Tom Dowd, you know. Folks, there simply is not a bad tune on this one! To me, it is the definitive Black Oak Arkansas album and truly one of the great classic rock albums of the early 70s. You'll love the album cover and you'll want to run out and buy you a washboard and croon along with the Dandy. After that, just run to the highest peak in the Ozarks you can find and yell...Go Jim Dandy, Go! After 30 years of listening to this, all I can say is "Why Shouldn't I Smile, So Many Happy Miles"."