Search - Dave Edmunds :: I Hear You Rockin

A Telecaster Telegram from Passaic, NJ!

Greg McDowell | Tacoma,WA | 06/11/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Anyone who chooses to open a concert with a blistering rendition of an obscure Elvis Costello B-side ("Girls Talk") obviously has a love of both the ideas behind and the attitudes that comprise rock & roll! Add to this several textbook original songs ("Here Comes The Weekend," "I Knew The Bride") and more obscure covers ("Paralyzed" is a nearly-forgotten Elvis classic from 1956, "and who could imagine Juice Newton's 1981 "Queen Of Hearts" revisited as a new rockabilly classic?) and you have one of the great lost classics of the 1980's! A must for anyone who loves pure, adrenalized rock & roll!"

I hear him rockin'

Daniel J. Hamlow | Narita, Japan | 03/27/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Yet another in a series of music I got turned onto by Lynn. Well, I'd actually seen the video for Dave Edmunds' cover of Dion and the Belmonts' "The Wanderer" and liked the reduplicated 50's atmosphere, down to the poodle-skirted girl with ponytail. The rest of the album, copied for me, was quite a revelation, displaying rockabilly, country, and rock, but I learned later that Edmunds was more an interpreter of 50's and 60's rock. Call this album a live greatest hits, as it contains some of his better known interpretations, such as Elvis Costello's "Girls Talk," which opens the album.Much was my surprise when I heard a familiar tune, and one of the-then few country songs I liked. That was "Queen Of Hearts" by Juice Newton, and its high energy makes it one of the best tracks here. That's followed by the Presley number "Paralyzed," which is a close cousin to "Don't Be Cruel," rhythmically speaking. After that is the cover of "The Wanderer," complete with a horn section that really comes together during the instrumental part of the song.The pace picks up with the Graham Parker-penned "Crawling From The Wreckage" with a devil of a piano. Edmunds also collaborated with ELO's Jeff Lynne, who produced his Information album. "Slipping Away," a more mid-paced number with a steady rhythm with dominant keyboards is included here, as is "Information," with its engaging "Happy Days" feel.His association with Brinsy Schwarz's bass player, Nick Lowe went beyond playing together, as they embarked on a long songwriting collaboration over the years. Edmunds covered Lowe's "I Knew The Bride When She Used To Rock N Roll," originally on his 1977 Get It album, is done in a quick-paced rockabilly style. The live version loses none of its energy. The two also co-wrote "Here Comes The Weekend," another rockabilly number."I Hear You Knockin'", which was one of his most favourite covers, was originally by Smiley Lewis, he who originally did "Blue Monday" before Fats Domino. There is a country-rock feel on this rendition. Love that bluesy guitar in the instrumental part. Edmunds winds things up with "Ju Ju Man," another raucous number that get a big finish.Other than his collaboration with Paul McCartney on the movie and soundtrack for Give My Regards To Broadstreet, I haven't heard too much of Edmunds, having confined myself to this live album, but I enjoy what I've heard. Maybe some listening to his other material is in order."