In his liner notes to this collection,
Robert Christgau
writes "When
the Old 97's
were on
Bloodshot
, the myth was that they were '
alt-country
' -- which was true in a way but misleading." True enough; while
were one of the best and most consistently enjoyable bands to come out of the '90s
boom, they sound less like hipster kids trying to nail hayseed affectations onto
Replacements
-esque
rock & roll
than the proud sons of Texas that they truly are. Like their spiritual forefathers
Buddy Holly
,
Bobby Fuller
, and
Doug Sahm
have always been a band that can't help throwing a bit of twang into the mix (as best evidenced by
Ken Bethea
's guitar, which at its best splits the difference between
Luther Perkins
and
Neil Young
), but they also know a great hook when they hear it (or write it) and realize telling a good story is the best way to draw in the listener (singer and primary lyricist
Rhett Miller
has a way with words that makes him sound smarter than average, but like a regular guy with regular girl problems at the same time). With the passage of time, it's doubtless significant that
' two strongest albums are
Wreck Your Life
, which best captures their
country
-accented side, and
Satellite Rides
, which does the same for the
pop
side of their vocabulary. Considering they've never won much more than a fervent cult following despite the strength of their recordings, it's a pleasant surprise that
Rhino
has deigned to release a greatest-hits disc, and while
Hit by a Train: The Best of Old 97's
isn't the ideal introduction to this band, it's a thoroughly enjoyable overview of their body of work.
Hit by a Train
covers the band's career prior to their recent association with
New West Records
(including one cut from the band's hard-to-find debut,
Hitchhike to Rhome
), and includes a few rarities along with the usual-suspects album cuts (most notably the brilliant
single
"Crying Drunk"
and a rollicking version of
Marty Robbins
'
"El Paso"
cut for the television series
King of the Hill
). There isn't a dud track on this disc, through the truth is
didn't record much material that isn't top-shelf, which points to this set's only real flaws -- anyone who is already familiar with the band is going to wonder why this song or that didn't merit inclusion, and the sequence doesn't always smooth out the distinct differences in sound and approach that dotted the five albums which provided most of this material. But there's no getting past the strength of the songs, the energy and skill of the performances, and the excellence of
Miller
's lyric and vocals. If you love
will remind you why, and it will send newbies scurrying to the record shop to find out what they've been missing, and that's a powerful recommendation. ~ Mark Deming