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Billy Roberts and the Rough Riders - The Last of the Originals

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It's always fascinating to hear how American music gets filtered and re-translated as it travels from its original sources, and onto its final destinations. Billy Roberts and the Rough Riders are Australian, and love the rowdy country-rock sounds of Hank Williams and such. However, Roberts has a cynical-sounding voice that comes out more like The Dream Syndicate's Steve Wynn - with and extra dose of Lou Reed's cynicism added in - than anything we in America might call country.

Opening track, "Mrs. Jones," also separates itself from typical country music lyrically by painting the character study of a girl that's a lot wilder than her mother imagines. Most mainstream country music these days is far too lightweight to ask the sort of questions raised by this insightful track. Stylistically, Billy Roberts tends to lean toward harder, electric guitar rocking music. However, "No More Mr. Nice Guy" runs to an upbeat, two-stepping groove that is colored by harmonica. Then on "Not That Special," lovely steel guitar gives this track its winning, forlorn quality.

Thankfully, Billy Roberts and the Rough Riders are not the last originals on the music scene. However, the sort of originality expressed with the act's new work is quickly becoming a rarity in the country genre and something truly heartening to hear.

Billy Roberts and the Rough Riders - The Last of the Originals
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