Album Review: The Jim Jones Revue – The Jim Jones Revue

Goodness gracious, great balls of fire indeed. Riddle me this, friends, how does a band from Blighty manage to channel the spirits of rock’s crucial dawning era so convincingly that listening to this here record might challenge anybody as to when it was made? How can they capture the exact firecracker tinkling of the piano, the rough, jagged polish of the guitar, and most of all, the soulful, guttural, holy howl so needed to inspire legions of fans into riotous abandon? I might not have an answer to any of that, but what I can tell you is that The Jim Jones Revue should probably become one of your favorite new/new favorite bands immediately, if not sooner.

This self-titled release has been around for a little while, but just now are we Yanks lucky enough to be able to get our mitts on it. And trust me, you’ll want to get a hold of this one. It’s like having Jerry Lee Lewis wiggling around at the keys, Little Richard running rampant with the mic, and the best axemen and rhythm section you can possibly imagine carrying the rest of the load. The rock just does not stop on this record. Does. Not. Stop. The band goes gangbusters from start to finish, and I can only imagine the holy hell of a live show they must put on (hey y'all, come on down to the D of C).

The songs on The Jim Jones Revue are short-ish, sweet, and sinfully splendid. And maybe just sinful. The most obvious reference here is 50s revivalism, and I can’t think of a soul who does it better than these gents. “Princess & The Frog” and “Hey Hey Hey Hey” are two of the best, purest rock songs you might could hear all dang year, choc full of hard-working piano and reverend-ready vocals. They do deviate slightly on occasion, “Another Daze” for instance sounds a little like the Fogerty-led CCR dragged kicking and screaming through the grime of Iggy's Motor City. And oh my, what a glorious racket that turned out to be. “Make It Hot” has shades of Skynyrd, in the roadhouse meets the stage kinda way, which endears the band to my little heart even more. “Cement Mixer” also dips its toe into the 60s waters, with a swirling organ and fuzz creeping in around the gritty edges.

Basically, my brothers and sisters, this here is a record you need to own. Amen.

mp3: Hey Hey Hey Hey (The Jim Jones Revue from The Jim Jones Revue)