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Santa Fe All Stars
Genre: Americana (EP)
It’s hard to keep up with Santa Fe’s Joe West. One night he’ll perform with his alt-country group, the Joe West Situation. Another evening, he’s the lead singer of the Santa Fe All Stars, playing a blend of offbeat folk and bluegrass. He’s also performed as part of a local gospel group, Bethleham and Eggs.
But recently, the Santa Fe All Stars havedrawn much of West’s and Santa Fe’s attention. In addition to West (guitar, vocals, harmonica), the group includes: Sharon Gilchrist (mandolin, vocals), who performs with Peter Rowan and the Tony Rice Quartet; Susan Hyde Holmes (bass, percussion, vocals), a songwriter who plays with Boris McCutcheon and the Saltlicks; and Ben Wright (guitar, vocals), who, with Gilchrist and Josh Martin, formed the popular (now defunct) Mary & Mars. Wright also plays experimental rock music and jazz. The Santa Fe All Stars’ CD is an EP—only seven songs—but it provides a tasty sampler of their music.
While West’s “Roswell, New Mexico” appeared on an earlier CD, it has new energy in this raucous version, which takes the listener on a wild odyssey from Santa Fe’s Furr’s Cafeteria to the famous UFO landing spot. On the band’s interpretation of the traditional tune “Handsome Molly,” Gilchrist’s mandolin provides hard-driving counterpoint to West’s warm vocals and harmonica riffs. And “Tara’s Song,” one of West’s newer compositions, stands out as a campy yet heartfelt ballad to the somewhat wacky wife who lights up his life.
The female vocalists, too, make strong contributions. Gilchrist sings a hauntingly beautiful interpretation of her song “Walker,” and Holmes’ clear, melodic, rapid-fire delivery of Tom Waits’ “Jockey Full of Bourbon” makes the song sound brand new.
To order Santa Fe All Stars, visit to www.frogvilleplanet.com or www.joewestmusic.com.
-- Emily Drabanski