One thing that
country
and the
blues
have long had in common is a penchant for dark humor -- an ability to find humorous, clever ways of addressing life's challenges and disappointments. That ability to laugh and cry at the same time is something that
's royalty --
Johnny Cash
,
Waylon Jennings
Buck Owens
, and
George Jones
, among many others -- have in common with
greats like
Willie Dixon
and
Buddy Guy
. And that laughing-through-the-tears approach is certainly alive and well on
From the End of Your Leash
, which often demonstrates that
Bobby Bare Jr.
is a master of dark humor. Anyone who calls his band
the Young Criminals' Starvation League
obviously has a taste for twisted humor, and this
Americana
/
roots rock
effort is hardly the work of a mindlessly naive Pollyanna who goes through life wearing rose-colored glasses --
Bare
's world-weary vocals and lyrics indicate that he's been around the block too many times for that.
sings and writes about loneliness, heartbreak, sadness, and dysfunctional relationships -- he writes about being down on your luck -- and through it all, his sense of humor is a definite asset. The
singer/songwriter
brings a variety of influences to his
rock & roll
-- influences ranging from
Memphis soul
to
punk
, and that
influence isn't surprising when you consider that his father is
star
Bobby Bare Sr.
But the younger
is hardly a carbon copy of his famous dad; while
Bare Sr.
's name is synonymous with
Bare Jr.
is primarily a rocker with
influences. At times,
can be a little too self-indulgent for its own good, but that's only a minor problem -- one that is easily outweighed by the warmth, humanity, and soulfulness that
brings to this generally memorable CD. ~ Alex Henderson