- This Guy
5
By Sierranista
This guy is about as close to an American Treasure as you get. A true heart runs thru each and every story told.
- Mellowed like aged whiskey. Fire like Moonshine.
5
By oceanaris
I first came across Dave Alvin with his brother Phil back in the early 1980's when they were oplaying clubs around the Los Angeles basin. They were one of the first real rockabilly bands. They picked up a following, but I was only a casual fan. Phil and Dave had epic brawls that sometimes spilled onto the stage. Real ones.
It was for the best when Dave set off on his own. He found his own voice, a combination of 18 year old bourbon and moonshine. A low murmering sound sometimes and then he'll rip out your heart and sometimes your throat with his lyrics and that voice that sounds like a worn out Peterbilt broken down on the 99 in Bakersfield.
You can hear the echoes of the Mississippi blues and some Chicago sometimes. Straight, great lyrics, and stripped down.
- Wrong Category
1
By Shuck and Jive
Listed as "rock" by iTunes, there is nothing about this music that rocks. In fact, the whole affair never seems to completely wake up. There is no energy. No passion in this music. Alvin is just not a singer.
- one of the best
5
By brian47
One of the best albums ever by one of the greats.
- ashgrove
5
By surfer-rosa
I first heard Dave Alvins voice when he performed a few of his own tunes on stage with the Knitters in the 90s and was melted by this mans amazing depth. Romantic but very manly, Hear him live you will want to hear him again and again so buy this one Blue Blvd and King of California
- Country Music With Brains
4
By Bloomville
I came to Dave Alvin's music by way of the Knitters--a rollicking-fun band if ever there was one. Alvin's music is pensive, intelligent, one-of-a-kind. He writes smart, poignant songs and sings them with a soft-gravel voice that goes down easy yet commands one's interest. "The Man in the Bed" is a heart-rending tale of aging and disability. "Black Haired Girl" tells of time's passage with wit and pathos. One of my all-time favorite songs is "Everett Ruess," which tracks the story of the outcast, the loner, the visionary. Alvin's music rocks when the occasion calls for it, and there is nothing "soft" or "sentimental" in even his most emotionally potent lyrics. I strongly recommend exploring his work.
