|
The Province Canada
"On Brown's 4th Stomp release, the first in
which his Prairie Dogs band gets full billing, there is
rock, blues, folk and country, but it's hard to say
Brown and The Prairie Dogs lean more in any one
direction . It's a hybrid sound that's probably best
characterized as roots. There is an element of Bob Dylan
in the presence of harmonica or occasionally in Brown's
phrasing, but this might be the only landmark. The songs
are simple but wise and you find yourself nodding in
agreement with the sentiment of " A Good Talking
To" about having the courage to let go."
 (Tom
Harrison - The Province, Canada)
Exclaim Magazine
"Graham Brown fares better outside our borders
than within. The veteran songsmith was a founding member
of the wonderful Jr. Gone Wild back in 1984, and led his
own bands Brilliant Orange and Happyman. Subsequent solo
albums ( Brand New Smile ) , ( Good 'n Broke) and (
Stand Your Ground ) were well received and this new
outing maintains the quality level. " The Wandering
Kind" , an album highlight , has an Everly Brothers
feel, and there's a Dylan -esque harmonica sound on
"A Good Talkin To". The social commentary
isn't quite as convincing as Brown's more personal
material, the latter fuelled by his warm and honest
vocal approach. There's a nice variety of tempos and
tones here."
(Kerry
Doole - Exclaim Magazine - Canada)
Americana - UK
"Summer is here, so it's probably about time you
started auditioning contenders for albums to listen to
with the windows open Sunday afternoon. May we present
Contender # 1 , weighing in at 36 minutes, Vancouver's
Graham Brown & The Prairie Dogs with "Do What
You Should". The album opens with a nice, jaunty
set of songs "Goldmine",
"Incredible" and "A Good Talkin To"
all twang and jangle , nice and light on there feet. The
latter brings Dylan's "I Want You" to mind,
but redeems itself by being a thoroughly good song in
it's own right by the time the chorus arrives. As the
album progresses songs like "Ooh Mama" start
to add a bit more grit to the sound and "Long Way
From Home" keeps things moving along nicely. By the
time we reach the final round of "Truth
Denied" things are getting down right punchy.
There's good songwriting and playing here and the album
as a whole has an effortless sound to it."
(Matt Hutchinson - Americana - UK )
Rootstime Magazine - Belgium
"This Glasgow born, Canadian prairie raised
singer/songwriter Graham Brown has been releasing
wonderful albums for many years. Two albums with
Brilliant Orange, three more with Happyman and now his
fourth solo release has arrived. Graham Brown & The
Prairie Dogs - "Do What You Should" follows
the same great quality of his past releases. We know he
is such a talented guitarist from past albums, this time
around the guitar is in a less prominent role for this
group of 11 songs, which allows for some beautiful
harmonica work on the Dylan fuelled "A Good Talkin
To". That is followed by the bang on
"Incredible" that swings perfectly. For
"The Wandering Kind", Brown dives deeply into
the roots of country music with the use of pedal-steel
guitar and a delicious fender telecaster sound . The
next song "If I Fall" is a beautiful,
intriguing song with (wah - wah ) guitar , an excellent
song that I fell in love with after my first listen,
real fine work. "Long Way From Home" rocks in
a Dave Edmonds, Nick Lowe / Rockpile kind of way, Brown
does an immaculate job of all genres and his vocals are
bang on, at the same time his accomplished band The
Prairie Dogs , Mark Gruft -Drums and Dave Bridges -
Bass, give everything the songs deserve. Brown shows
what a wonderful singer he is on "Do What You
Should" and follows that with a Crazy Horse
work-out on "Love Is The Only Bullet ( for
peace)". There are some bluegrass sounds on
"Till We Burn" with it's mandolin and violin
at the core of the song. Graham Brown brings seasoned
Americana with original sounds. The album consists of 11
wonderful songs from a which Graham Brown earns a place
in the club of exquisite singer-songwriters ."
(Fred Celis - Rootstime Magazine - Belgium)
A LIVE Performance REVIEW
"The first time I saw Graham Brown, I was at The
Railway Club and did a double take due to his
resemblance to Ron Hawkins, formerly of The Lowest Of
The Low. So it only seems fitting that I should hear his
new alt/country offering at the "Do What You
Should" CD release party at Vancouver's infamous
Railway Club. Difference in vocal stylings and genre
aside, this CD reminds me of The Lowest Of The Low,
which is no small compliment considering the band is
about to be inducted into the IMA Indies Hall of Fame.
This is Browns 9th full length CD, although both Dave
Bridges ( Bass/vocals ) Mark Gruft ( Drums ) have
recorded with Brown previously, this is the first
instance in which The Prairie Dogs are referred to in
the band title. With a straight forward sound that
highlights the sincerity of the songwriting, "Do
What You Should" is a soundtrack of what might have
been, and a testament to what still could be. This is
honest music for honest people, as the band are as
gratifying live as they are recorded, making both their
CD and their live show well worth the listen. Like a
favorite shirt, this CD becomes more comfortable with
each use. It doesn't get any better that that."
Melissa Smith - Feel The Word
Magazine
|
