Delirium Tremolos

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Delirium Tremolos
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  1. Audio CD: Release Date 2005-01-25
  2. Publisher: Philo / Umgd
  3. Artist: Ray Wylie Hubbard
  4. Sales Rank in Music: #18338

Product Review

Texas troubadour Ray Wylie Hubbard offers originals and interpretations of writers such as Eliza Gilkyson, Roger Tillison, James McMurtry, Woody Guthrie and Slaid Cleaves. Out of many voices, he's crafted an album uniquely his own. Tearing down the road, fending off sin or welcoming it into the living room, shaking off the blues and seeking salvation wherever he can find it, Hubbard understands what he calls "the head of the rock 'n' roll gypsies," and no matter who wrote the tale, he knows how to bring it to life with a deep-focus emotional honesty that hits the heart dead center.

Amazon.com

Though Ray Wylie Hubbard ran with the rowdiest in progressive country through the 1970s, when he fronted the Cowboy Twinkies and wrote "(Up Against the Wall) Redneck Mother," he has since matured into one of the most reflective of Texas troubadours. Following a pair of bluesier releases, Hubbard returns to his folk roots with a collection that could pass as a Lone Star coffeehouse hootenanny. He applies his warm, weathered voice to "Drivin' Wheel" (popularized by Tom Rush), harmonizes with Eliza Gilkyson on her bittersweet "The Beauty Way," and collaborates with Cross Canadian Ragweed's Cody Canada on the hipster's credo "Cooler-N-Hell." A hallelujah chorus including Gilkyson, Patty Griffin, Slaid Cleaves, and Bob Schneider transforms a Woody Guthrie lyric into an a cappella spiritual ("This Morning I Am Born Again"), while the acoustic rendition of "Roll and I Tumble" evokes the rural roots of the blues standard. Though this collection spotlights Hubbard more as an interpreter than a songwriter, he revisits his outlaw days with "Dust of the Chase" and "Dallas After Midnight," trading verses with Jack Ingram on the latter. The album pulls out all the stops on the eight-minute closer "Choctaw Bingo," powered by the dual guitars of songwriter James McMurtry and producer Gurf Morlix. Its reckless spirit suggests that Hubbard hasn't totally settled down. --Don McLeese
Title Tracks for Delirium Tremolos

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review
4.5 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars His music has a gruff side, but that is its ballsy charm, March 1, 2005
J. Ross "a-music_fan" (Roseburg, OR USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Delirium Tremolos (Audio CD)
Playing Time - 45:35 -- Ray Wylie Hubbard may be best known as the composer of "Up Against the Wall, Redneck Mother," and he also wrote "Wanna Rock `n Roll," Cross Canadian Ragweed's party anthem. On his "Delirium Tremolos" album, the Texas singer/songwriter with the strong, growling baritone primarily interprets songs of Eliza Gilkyson, Roger Tillison, James McMurty, Slaid Cleaves and others. Three originals from his own pen are also offered. "Dallas After Midnight," originally recorded about 20 years ago with the Lost Gonzo Band, is a hard-hitting tale of a liquor store robbery gone wrong with all its social commentary. Jack Ingram sings with Ray Wylie on this number. Another Hubbard ballad, "Dust of the Chase" relates the story of a scripture-reading gambling man who is "lost in the dust of the chase" that his life brings. Written with Cody Canada, "Cooler-n-Hell" is straight-ahead blues that speaks to those things under heaven which are cooler-n-hell.

When choosing...Read more


15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A Fine Release From One of Texas' Holy Songwriting Trinity, March 29, 2005
Kurt Harding "bon vivant" (Boerne TX) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Delirium Tremolos (Audio CD)
Texas seems to produce an awful lot of singer-songwriter story telling types, and Ray Wylie Hubbard ranks right up there with Robert Earl Keen Jr and James McMurtry as one of the best.
I am not originally from Texas, but I have been aware of Hubbard's songwriting genius since Jerry Jeff Walker introduced him to the wider world back in the mid-70s with a cover of the riotous Redneck Mother. Since that time, I have been an occasional fan, picking up a Hubbard CD here and there as I became aware of a new release.
Delirium Tremolos is no different. A friend who is a regular buyer of Hubbard recordings alerted me to this about a month ago and told me how much he enjoyed it, so I gave it a shot.
As you might already know from the industry blurb or from other sources, this is a collection of mostly cover songs written by somewhat obscure songwriters, some of whom are unfamiliar to me. That's OK, I like to find hidden treasures, and there are a lot to discover on Delirium...Read more


11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A rock and roll gypsies' masterpiece, January 27, 2005
Smallchief - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Delirium Tremolos (Audio CD)
Ray Wylie Hubbard's "Delirium Tremolos" is the best CD I've heard in a month of Sundays. The craggy old Texas singer/songwriter mostly sings songs by other people, backed up by fabulous guitar work and female singers on some tracks who counterpoint Hubbard's growl with a bit of sweetness.

I suppose you would call RWH's style alt.country. His formula is to sing songs with interesting --sometimes deep, sometimes humorous, always surprising -- lyrics, backed up by heavy duty guitar work and little quirky touches such as a harmonica or a gospel organ that breaks in now and then. Maybe he's more like Lucinda Williams than any other artist -- although Hubbard seems to me to have a broader range of interests.

"Driving Wheel" is perhaps the most melodious song on the CD with a killer steel guitar wailing in the background and Patty Griffin adding her voice to the choruses. "Dust of the Chase" features an eerie harmonica weaving in and out of the vocal. "Choctaw...Read more

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