Rockin’ Ryan And The Real Goners – Cry Of Midnight
Golly Gee Records GGR1040
Cry of Midnight – Rainin’ In My Heart – I’m The Wolfman – Why Did You Leave Me? – Double Crossin’ Daddy – Open Up The Casket -Headstone Rock – Snake In The Grass – Animal Tamer – Cottontail – Rattle Shakin’ Mama – Woman Cry – Cry of Midnight (Alt. Country Mix) – Castin’ My Pearls Before Swine
Don’t expect Rockin’ Ryan to play traditional rockabilly with clean guitar and love songs. This guy is wild and so is his newest record. Helped by his partner in crime Rip Carson – who co-wrote half of the songs, produced, engineneered, played guitar and bass – he offers to the listener an album rich in sounds and moods. From dark country tunes to straight ahead rockabilly, from rock’n’roll to garage.
The melodies are not the ones you’re used to and the lyrics are clearly not about kissin’ a blonde babe in the back of a pink cadillac. A song like “Rainin’ In My Heart” is not that far from The Gun Club and “Cry Of Midnight” wouldn’t be out of place on a Nick Cave album with its story of murder and obsession, but always in a rockin’ mood. Some are more traditional, like “Double Crossin’ Daddy” (kind of Johnny Burnette meets Hasil Adkins) or “Snake In The Grass” and “I’m The Wolfman” reflects the influence of Sagat-Carson’s other band The Hexxers.
Sagat’s voice fits all this styles with ease being warm and dark one moment and aggressive the next. My favourites songs are the album title “Cry Of Midnight” (both versions), The Crew’s “Why Did You Leave me Baby” and it’s haunted steel guitar and the wild “Animal Tamer”
Fred “Virgil” Turgis
