Bill Kirchen: guitar, vocals, trombone; Tony Johnson: drums, vocals; Richard Cassonova: fiddle, vocals; Steve Mackay: tenor sax, baritone sax, Steve Fishell: pedal steel, lap steel; Don Kennedy: bass, Rick Higginbotham: rhythm guitar; Tim Eschliman: bass, vocals; Austin deLone: piano, guitar, organ, vocals.
Sounds Like
Commander Cody, Asleep At The Wheel, Rockpile
MOONLIGHTERS REVIEWS: New CD, "The Missing Moonlighters -
Live / Studio Closet Tapes"
Midwest Record Recap:
Slipping around behind Commander Cody’s back will get you sharing the spotlight with some high profile pals and production by Nick Lowe. Of course, you’ll still be a cult figure, but you can also figure on some killer music. Bill Kirchen and pals that range from hands from Emmylou Harris to Iggy Pop gather round the mic and finally air out some sides that have been in hiding too long. Good time music that defies classification as well as inclusion into free form formats, it’s fun stuff for boomers or those who wish they were there the first time. Certainly a dream bar band collection, this stew is savory and you're sure to want seconds.
-- 2/3/2008
Marin Independent Journal (California)
In Marin rock history, the Moonlighters will go down as the progenitors of a style called "R&W," for "rhythm and western," an eclectic hybrid of R&B, rock and western swing that the band popularized in the late ’70s and early ’80s. Founded by the great rockabilly guitarist Bill Kirchen and other musicians moonlighting from Commander Cody’s band, the Lost Planet Airmen, the Moonlighters’ eponymous debut album included "Midnight in Memphis," a band original that was covered by Hoyt Axton and Asleep at the Wheel and a song that Bette Midler sang on the double platinum soundtrack album from the movie "The Rose." The Moonlighters’ second album, "Rush Hour," was produced in London by Nick Lowe. But their local fans were disappointed that neither record captured the excitement of the band’s live concerts.
Just this week, Globe Records released previously unreleased material - a dozen live cuts and 13 studio songs - on a double-CD set, "The Missing Moonlighters Live/Studio Closet Tapes." The music covers the range of the Moonlighter’s career, from their R&W era into their evolution as a skinny-tie new age, pop/rock outfit in vogue in the early ’80s. The unearthed tapes on the new CD include a trove of live tracks from old KFAT radio shows as well as gigs the band recorded at a favorite Vancouver, B.C., club, the Rockpile. There is also a clutch of early songs recorded in a variety of studios, including the original Globe Records studio in Mill Valley - band member Austin de Lone’s garage. "The idea behind the title is that there are two things these CDs bring out that have been missing before," Eschliman explains. "One is the live sound that people were used to but didn’t get to hear on the other albums, and the other is this more obscure, secret part of the band, the songs we wrote that wouldn’t fit into our shows. In fact, there’s a song of mine, ’I Can’t Stop Eating,’ that has never been performed live. These songs give people a glimpse into the whacky other side of a band when it’s left to its own devices."
The centerpiece of the set is a live rendition of the band’s first single, "Midnight in Memphis," written by Johnson and recorded at Different Fur Studios in San Francisco. "That song has been cut a lot of times by a lot of people," Johnson says. "This rendition’s got a lot more energy than the one on our original album. It’s my favorite version of it." Like other Marin bands of that era such as Clover and the Tazmanian Devils, the Moonlighters were all skilled musicians in a band that never broke through nationally. "We were surprised when we didn’t get signed by a major label after we did the Nick Lowe album," Johnson says. "We got a good look from a lot of the majors, but record companies like bands with a clear focus, and here we were with four singers and four songwriters playing everything from western swing to New Orleans to Chuck Berry to weird modern things we’d written."
After they disbanded, the core members went on with their lives and careers. - Kirchen has a large cult following as a "dieselbilly" legend. - De Lone’s played with Elvis Costello, put out solo albums and is a stalwart of the Marin music scene. - Eschliman runs Globe Records and works with his band, RhythmTown-Jive - Johnson, who has a masters degree in philosophy from Yale, teaches philosophy at College of Marin and has his own CD and DVD duplication business.
-- 2/21/2008, Paul Libertore
Chico News & Review (California)
n 1976 Commander Cody stepped away from the controls of his Lost Planet Airmen briefly but soon returned to rev them up again. During Cod's absence his Airmen formed The Moonlighters, and continued in pretty much the same vein (what they called "Rhythm and Western"). This two-disc package was recorded in the late '70s through the mid-'80s, and features their visceral (the "Live" tracks) and cerebral (the "Studio Closet Tapes") approaches. The live disc captures them in a super-revved-up mode, especially the seven numbers recorded at one of KFAT's "Fat Frys" held in the Saddlerack, a gigantic country dance hall in San Jose. Highlights include Chuck Berry's "Oh, What a Thrill" (fine solos by guitarist Bill Kirchen and Austin deLone on organ); bassist Tim Eschliman's New Orleans-flavored "Flat Tiyo"; "Sittin'; on Top of the World" (with Kirchen on trombone!) and "Ubangi Stomp," the band's "traditional rave-up set closer." Disc two features Kirchen in their four-man "skinny tie" mode working on new material with deLone's hot boogie, "All Tore Up," the stand-out track.
-- 3/27/2008, Miles Jordan
All Music Guide Bill Kirchen, the master of the Telecaster, started his first post-Commander Cody Band, the Moonlighters, with other guys from the Lost Planet Airmen. At first, they were actually Moonlighting from Cody, but when that band splintered, the Moonlighters became Kirchen's main gig and the first Bill Kirchen Band. During their brief heyday they moved from a country/swing band in the manner of Commander Cody to a skinny tie semi-new wave group. The tunes from these recently unearthed sessions cover both aspects of the band's history. The live disc includes selections recorded at various San Francisco Bay Area nightclubs and one from a Canadian tour.... The best moments -- "Let It Rock" a Chuck Berry knock-off by Al Anderson that features a twanging Kirchen solo, great piano work from Austin De Lone, and Tony Johnson's frenzied drumming, a horn heavy arrangement of the traditional country blues "Sittin' on Top of the World" with solid pedal steel work by Steve Fishell and a Kirchen solo you can actually decipher, and "Ubangi Stomp," the Sun Records classic, with hot solos from Kirchen, De Lone, and Johnson ..."Seven Nights to Rock" gives Rockpile's version a run for its money with a solid Kirchen solo driving the band home. "The Angels Listened In" is an oldie first done by the Crests, and it's fun more for its nostalgic kick than any intrinsic musical merit. "All Tore Up," a band original, is an energetic three-chord rocker with a roadhouse vibe, and "True Love" is a cool midtempo love song with a catchy chorus and a new wave meets '50s feel. Then there's the best of he rest: "Worthy of a Second Step", "The Day I Throw My Phone Away" (a rockin' kiss-off of an old girlfriend written before cell phones became ubiquitous), and "Big Noise in the Neighborhood," an odd, almost metallic party anthem.
-- May/2008
Le Cri du Coyote "fanzine country music" (France)
Une production étonnante dans un monde où tout est carré et calculé. Ce double CD sous carton modeste, est une
compilation d'inédits pour amateur de Rhythm & Western comme l'appelait Bill Kirchen qui joue ici avec ses amis du
moment. Un CD live, avec quelques standards tels Mississippi Sawyer, Big Mamou, Boppin' The Blues (Carl Perkins) ou
Ubangi Stomp (Warren Smith) avec des touches cajun, caraïbes, pop, du fiddle, de la peral- steel ou des cuivres, dont
deux titres au fameux club
Rockpile (Vancouver) où les californiens prolongeaient leur montée vers le Nord avant d'envahir nos platines. Un CD
studio, sorte de fourre-tout de démos de titres de Tony Johnson (drm) et Tim Eschliman (bss) 4 sessions dirigées par
Nick Lowe, et quelques enregistrements sauvés avant l'arrêt des sessions pour cause de "local non autorisé". On croise
Richard Casanova (fdl) Steve Mackay (sax) et Steve Fishell (pdl-stl) parmi les copains de Bill. L'album plaira aux
nostalgiques de l'époque Commander Cody And His
Lost Planet Airmen, comme une sorte de bootleg officiel (des clairs de lunes gravés en marge des néons ?) tout
droit sorti des limbes du rock 'n' roll, avec spontanéité, énergie, quelques faiblesses aussi, mais des essais de
combinaisons de sons et d'instruments intéressants, et moins banals à l'époque. De la musique coyotesque en train de se
faire, mêlant country et rock, avec le talent du grand Mr Kirchen, son sourire et, déjà, sa guitare virevoltante ! (JB)
which roughly translates to:
This double CD in an unassuming case, is a compilation of previously unpublished work for the lover of Rhythm & Western
as it's called by Bill Kirchen who plays here with his friends of the day. A live CD, contains several standards
like "Mississippi Sawyer," "Big Mamou," "Boppin' the Blues" (Carl Perkins) or "Ubangi
Stomp" (Warren Smith) with touches of Cajun, Caribbean, pop, fiddle, pedal-steel or brass, of which two titles were from the
famous Rockpile Club in Vancouver where the Californians extended their Northward rise before invading our (French) turntables.
A studio CD, sort of stuffed full of song demos by Tony Johnson (drums) and Tim Eschliman (bass) 4 sessions led by Nick
Lowe, and several recordings saved before the halt of these sessions due to "unauthorized venues."
You meet Richard Casanova (fiddle), Steve Mackay (sax) and Steve Fishell (pedal steel) among Bill's pals.
The album will please those nostalgic for the era of Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, as a sort of official
bootleg (moonlights etched from neon lights?) taken straight from rock and roll limbo, with spontaneity, energy, several
weaknesses too, but experiments of interesting sound and instrument combinations, and a less ordinary era.
Some "coyotesque" music in the process of forming itself, blending country and rock, with the talent of the great Mr.
Kirchen, his smile, and, still, his twirling guitar!
The Moonlighters was the band formed in the mid-1970s that was led by Bill Kirchen and "moonlighted" from Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen... later to become his backing group. The early "Rhythm & Western" sound of the group came from a seven man outfit that featured a section of tenor sax, pedal steel and fiddle. The group evolved later into a four-man, skinny-tie, rock/pop outfit. The band's first album was self-titled and produced by Jack Richardson and came out on Amhearst Rercords early in the groups existence. Towards the end of the group's run, a second album, "Rush Hour," was released, which featured the four-man combo, was produced by Nick Lowe, and recorded in London, England. By this time, Austin De Lone was in the group, who had known Nick Lowe in the pub-rock days of the early 1970s, when the group Mr. Lowe was in, Brinzley Schwartz, followed Austin's Eggs Over Easy into the Tally Ho pub, birthplace of the famed pub-rock scene that is credited as being the precursor to punk-rock. Austin's Eggs Over Easy is credited with having started that scene.
The recordings that appear on the new 2008 release, "The MIssing Moonlighters - Live / Studio Closet Tapes" have some of the live-ness and songwriting that's missing from the two previous releases, featuring Bill Kirchen, Tony Johnson, Richard Casanova (Geaorge Strait), Steve Mackay (Iggy Pop), Steve Fishell (Emmy Lou Harris), Don Kennedy, Rick Higginbotham, Tim Eschliman (Rhythmtown-Jive), Austin de Lone (Eggs Over Easy) with special guests Mark Karan (Ratdog) and James Henry.
The live CD from this release includes essential tunes that were staples of the band's live shows but didn't appear on the 2 previously existing releases, like Carl Perkins' "Boppin' the Blues," a few Rockpile numbers and the bands traditional rave-up set-closer, Warren Smith's "Ubangi Stomp." There are also 3 songs from Rohan's Rockpile in Vancouver, B.C., Canada, presenting the Cajun fiddling of "Mississippi Sawyer," "Big Mamou" which featured the 3-man section of fiddle, tenor sax & pedal steel and the sassy "Sittin' On Top Of The World," which adds to that section Bill Kirchen's wild trombone. This is the club where the band Rockpile (Nick Lowe & Dave Edmunds) got its name. Live recordings are also from Keystone Palo Alto, The Saddlerack (KFAT Fat-Fry), and Keystone Berkeley.
The studio CD, on the other hand, brings to light a more experimental side of the band. Three of the tracks were recorded live to 4-track in an afternoon as a pre-production session at Different Fur Studios in San Francisco and when heard by Austin's friend Nick Lowe, led to the arrangements for the recording of the Moonlighter's "Rush Hour" album, which Nick produced in London. "Midnight in Memphis" on this collection, recorded live in that session, is the only commercially available Moonlighters recording of the song that was the band's first single. This was a staple of the band's repertoire and has been covered by many artists, most notably, Bette Midler in the movie and double platinum soundtrack, "The Rose." Many of the other studio tracks are song demos of originals by drummer Tony Johnson or bassist Tim Eschliman, and several of those were recorded at Tim and Austin de Lone's at-the-time home studio, the earliest iteration of Globe Studios. Although not all of these recordings were Moonlighter projects, per se, but they happened to have been recorded by the band members and in some cases led to additions to the band's set lists. Studio recordings are also from Sonoma Recorders and Prairie Sun.
Mastered by Fred Catero, Tim Eschliman and Tony Johnson. This new release also sets a new eco-friendly standard, being packaged in an all-recyclable mini-double jacket format.
Hey guys. Thanks a lot for befriending us! We have some working titles for this
season! Coconut Christmas, Merry Christmas I'm Pregnant! and Oh! New
Years Eve. We'll stay in touch it's gonna' be a heck of a season!
Hello, it's me, Ruby Jane.To those who don't know me, I am a 14 year old fiddler, songwriter. I have some songs posted that are fresh out of the studio. Let me know if you like the new songs..be one of the first to hear, even before they are released!Thanks! new videos too! Ruby Jane
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