Wishful Thinking (2009)

Product Summary Label: GOLD STIKE RECORDS/RED DISTRIB UPC: 00626570601098 Release Date: 8/18/2009 Buy.com Sku: 211545229 Item#: M4QCP4 Format:  CD Song Listing Disc 1 Song Title Sample 1. Can't Go on This Way ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 2. Reunion ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 3. If You Leave Me ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 4. Cabiria ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 5. Heart of Romain ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 6. Georgia ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 7. What You Meant to Me ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 8. Carry Me Close ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 9. Long Way Home, The ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 10. Magic Violin, The ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 11. (Intro) One Step Closer ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 12. One Step Closer ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 13. Columbus Stockade Blues ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown 14. Someone to Watch Over Me ~ The Hot Club Of Cowtown   Album Notes and Credits Notes & Personnel Info Personnel: Whit Smith (vocals, guitar); Elana James (vocals, violin); Damien Llanes (drums); Jake Erwin (background vocals). Audio Mixer: Mark Hallman. Photographer: Michael O'Brien. WISHFUL THINKING, the first Hot Club of Cowtown album in five years, finds the group pulling out all the stops to lay down what may be their best yet. Guitarist Whit Smith and fiddler Elana James are in fine voice, and the band's minimalist virtuosity is even more impressive than it was before their hiatus. They've also added drummer Damien Llanes to the lineup, which gives the music even more drive than before. The band's also stepped up its songwriting, with seven original tunes that sound as good as any of the standards that used to be their main stock in trade. Covers include Bob Wills' "Can't Go on This Way," a showcase for Smith's picking, and James' Texas fiddle, the Tom Waits/Kathleen Brennan tune "The Long Way Home" given a country-flavored makeover, and the traditional "Columbus Stockade Blues" in an arrangement that could have been tailored for the Andrews Sisters. Smith croons "Georgia on My Mind" with a behind-the-beat delivery halfway between Hoagy Carmichael and Willie Nelson, while James shines with a smoky vocal on the Gershwins' "Someone to Watch Over Me." Producer: Mark Hallman; The Hot Club Of Cowtown Engineer: Mark Hallman   Compilation Appearances Parkinsong Vol 1: 38 Songs Of Hope Elko A Cowboys Gathering American Music:hightone Records Story High Tone Anthology: Rockin From The Roots /   Technical Info Release Date : 08/18/2009 Original Release Date : 2009 Catalog ID : 333 Label : Gold Strike Records Number of Discs : 1 Runtime : 43m : 6s Studio/Live : Studio SPAR Code : n/a UPC : 00626570601098   Professional Reviews Dirty Linen (p.68) - "[T]he group blends a few jazz and country standards with a slate of originals that show the group expanding its stylistic borders."    Product Image