Junior Brown, The Austin Experience (Telarc)


If you’ve never seen Junior Brown live, this might be the next best thing. Recorded at his home base, Austin’s Continental Club, Brown really gets the sparks flying. Besides doing more with a guitar (actually, two guitars made into one) than a monkey can with a peanut, the guy is 175 pounds of Texas country soul. The country fried “Broke Down South of Dallas,” gets the wheels turning and the audience churning. It’s followed by several of Brown’s standbys, including the hilarious “My Wife Thinks You’re Dead,” “Hillbilly Hula Gal,” and “Highway Patrol,” which sounds like George Jones on acid. “I Got To Get Up In the Morning (Just To Say Goodnight To You),” is also out of Jones’ kitchen. Tex-Mex accordion ace Flaco Jimenez joins Brown on “Juan Charasquado,” which works well. The set ends with an amazing guitar medley that includes samples of “Apache,” “Secret Agent Man” and “Lullaby of the Leaves.” If you’re not into Junior Brown, where you at man?