Freddie Steady 5 "1000 MILES" ep

GUEST REVIEW BY GENTLEMAN JOHN BATTLES  (Steadyboy) I read this blog the other day about how The Zombies broke up on the dawning of a mammoth hit, "Time of The Season," in 1969. With no band to promote the record someone quickly bought the rights to use the name and tack it on any available young AMERICAN group...the blog states that it was a Texas band featuring ex-American blues and future ZZ Top members Dusty Hill and Frank Beard (though it appears to be a different, older set of fake Zombies that mimed to the hit song on "Memphis Talent Party").  I only bring it up because on their newest release The Freddie Steady 5 really straddles that line between Texas Hardass Rock n Roll with almost Baroque "Zombies" signatures and the kind of Lovin' Spoonful "I didn’t have to be so niiiiice you woulda dumped me anyway" nice guy sentiments that frontman Freddie Krc spreads around like so much Oleo margarine. It doesn’t go on thick and heavy but it stays with you. The title track is a tuff Swamp-rocker a message of urgency that'd compete with Smoove B. in the climbing mountains swimming seas sweepstakes. “Like a Bear Loves Honey," as the title implies, is a good-natured laff-it-up love song worthy of Johnny Horton and early Conway Twitty. It was written for the upcoming (?) Bear Family tribute to bears (Not THOSE kind). A solid version of the Late Rusty Wier's early punk raver (Recorded with The Wig) "Crackin' Up" keeps things in the garage vein proving to the young youngsters, as Ed Sullivan would call 'em, you don't need atrocious playing and horrible production to deliver the garage goods...the two aforementioned songs only appear on the CD version but if gambling (or dancing crossing the street hailing a cab etc) were allowed in Austin they'll make bet you'll want 'em both.