Live At The Troubadour

Amazon.com Old 97's Live underscores how one of the premier alt-country, No Depression bands of the 1990s has become a truly eclectic, power pop quartet with a gritty folk heart and penchant for lyrical mischief. ("You're a bottle cap away / From pushing me too far.") Drawing from each of their six albums, Old 97's brought the crowd at Santa Monica's Troubadour club to visible delirium at a March 2004 show; that concert appears here. Sounding very much like hard-charging heirs to vast legacies of the Kinks, Hank Williams, the Replacements, Johnny Cash, REM, and even White Album-era Beatles, singer-songwriter-guitarist Rhett Miller, drummer Philip Peeples, lead guitarist Ken Bethea, and bassist Murry Hammond paint loss with rootsy-poetic authenticity while blowing gloom apart with punky exhilaration. The many highlights include the agreeable pop plaint "Rollerskate Skinny" ("I believe in love / But it don't believe in me"), the anthemic anti-anthem "Friends Forever," and Hammond's moving, acoustic solo on "Valentine." --Tom Keogh Product Description Shot at the world famous Troubadour nightclub on Hollywood's Sunset Strip, Old 97's Live captures all the excitement and energy of the band in concert. It includes songs from the CD "Drag It Up," as well as fan favorites from the band's long career.