Writing a review for this album was kinda like driving while blind. This is their first major label release and it came with no biography information, so I'm completely in the dark as to their origins. What little I do know is this. They're from Georgia and they make some mighty fine music. I had the chance opportunity to catch them at Granny Killam's Industrial Drinkhouse awhile ago, and I must say that they reproduce live what they've done in the studio with very little effort. (Not often the case these days...) The album opens with,"I Know All About You." A catchy little ditty about, (what else), a relationship gone astray. The music and lyrics are more than you may have come to expect with tunes such as this. And that is true of the whole album. There seems to be a deep undercurrent that ties all the songs together with an unbreakable thread. They're clever like Elvis Costello and upbeat like The Smithereens, while retaining their indentity as Uncle Green. The single from the album is, "A Good Man," which, in no uncertain terms, is the tale of decent husband with an unappreciative wife and he's not above stating the facts. "She thinks she knows what I am/ But she never stops to listen/ She seems to think that I'm some other man/ Well, she don't know what she's missing." The rest of the album follows suit. There's a bit of everything here. From the condemnation of marital infidelity and the resulting impotence of, "I Always Knew You'd Come To Me" to the stark realization of incompatibility in, "Look Into The Light," or the difficulty of trying to find that, "special someone," as confessed in, "In Good Time." No matter what they're trying to express, they do a fine job of it. Suffice it to say, there's not a bad tune here. With any luck and some support from the record label, Book Of Bad Thoughts, shouldn't be the last we hear from this fine band. And, as everyone who's heard this has said,"Why isn't this all over the radio?" I could answer that question, but you wouldn't like what I had to say. But, I will say this, Uncle Green have refined their craft to an art form and with that, their career should be a long and successful one. If it isn't, you can thank the music "industry" for keeping them a secret. And if that's the case, it will be a real shame. (SC) © 2000 Dr. Rock'n'Roll
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