Eric Hawks Michael - Eric Michael Hawks

There was a time when country music was country music. In recent decades there's been a movement towards music that's called "country," but really is just plain pop music. It seems that in the last few years music has emerged that breaks from that tradition and brings real country back to the genre. That movement is to be applauded and Eric Michael Hawks is one of the better artists helping to push this movement forward. He's produced a strong album here that really does recall old days when country music was something unique and special. Hawks wastes no time getting to the meat of the album, launching it out with a great old time country music stomper called "Whiskey Drinkin' Cowboy." There's some particularly tasty guitar soloing on the piece. Fiddle playing features prominently, too, along with slide guitar. All in all, this feels like it could have come out in the 1970s (or even earlier) from any number of outlaw country acts, at least in terms of style. Hawks proves he can do it in style and with conviction. "A Good Woman's Love" brings things down in terms of volume and pace. It's a country ballad and Hawks deep down vocals work really well in this. The familiar slide guitar and other country arrangement standard features are included here, too. This is another that seems rooted in an older, more legitimate country music era. The arrangement on "Living by the Gun" feels a bit like "Wild Horses" by the Rolling Stones at times. It's a mellow and quite sad ballad that's very pretty. The arrangement leans more towards a southern rock sound than the two openers did, but it's far from the "pop" music that sometimes passes for country. The tune is definitely real country music. The opening of "Lay Down the Law" has a lot more energy, feeling a bit like Southern rock. The cut has a more pure country as it continues. The vocal performance is particularly inspired and the tune is one of the best on a set of great music. "The Devil Made a Sinner Out of Me" is the most unusual track of the whole album. It's got an old time gospel element to it, as the title suggests. Additionally, it's very energetic and feels rather playful. It's got some definite ties to rockabilly and seems pretty down-home at the same time. A fun cut, it's a nice change of pace and works quite well in relationship to the music around it. There's a real hoe-down element to "Blazin' in the Saddle." It's another with a lot of energy. It has one of the catchiest choruses of anything here. It's also one of the highlights of the disc. The instrumental section on this tune is particularly effective and really feels like something from bygone eras. "Wild Texas Rose" is a mellow, balladic cut that has a bit of a "cowboy" music element to it. It's another point where Hawks' deep voice really adds a lot to the mix. "Mean Woman Blues" has a shuffling, old fashioned country sound that's both tastefully retro and a lot of fun. It's another nice change, and in a lot of ways a highlight. The honky tonk piano bit is a nice touch to it. The most rock oriented tune on the whole set is "Cowboy with the Cowboy Boots." It feels a bit like something The Allman Brothers might have done. There's a lot of bluesy rock in the mix, but still enough country to keep it legitimate. The instrumental section later has a real country meets jam band vibe to it. The closing cut, "I Dug My Heels (In Flanders Fields)" is quite mellow. The acoustic guitar that opens it is quite intricate and some of the vocals are spoken......... There isn't a bad song in the bunch here. Hawks provides plenty of variety, too. Everything seems to be delivered with a genuine attachment to real country music traditions and Hawks and the musicians featured here are all quite good........ Artist: Eric Michael Hawks Title: Eric Michael Hawks Review by G. W. Hill.