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Border Town Legend

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Border Town Legend
Studio album by
Long John Hunter
ReleasedJanuary 30, 1996
StudioGem/Lone Star
GenreBlues
Length50:45
LabelAlligator
Producer
  • Tarry Owens
  • Jon Foose
Long John Hunter chronology
Smooth Magic
(1994) 		Border Town Legend
(1996) 		Swinging from the Rafters
(1997)

Border Town Legend is an album by the American musician Long John Hunter, released on January 30, 1996, by Alligator Records.[1][2] The album title refers to the many years Hunter spent playing in El Paso and Ciudad Juárez nightclubs.[3] Border Town Legend was one of the most played albums on blues radio the year of its release and was nominated for a W. C. Handy Award.[4][5] Hunter supported it with a North American tour.[6]

Production

[edit]

Produced by Tarry Owens and Jon Foose, Border Town Legend was recorded at Gem/Lone Star Studio, in Austin.[7][8] Hunter wrote nine of the album's twelve songs.[9] He was most influenced by B. B. King, rather than Texas blues musicians, but tried to find his own sound; he considered himself more an entertainer than an accomplished musician.[10][11] Hunter used a horn section on many of the tracks.[12] "John's Funk" is an instrumental.[13] "Everybody Knows" is a cover of the O. V. Wright song.[14]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[15]
Chicago Sun-Times[9]
DownBeat[16]
MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide[7]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings[17]
The Virgin Encyclopedia of the Blues[18]

The Los Angeles Times said that Border Town Legend "reveals Hunter as a raw, feral talent bursting with energy... His vocals are high and joyfully reedy, his guitar playing alternately restrained and flashy."[4] The Chicago Tribune called it "a simmering pot of hot, R&B-grooved Texas-style blues, distinguished by Hunter's smooth crooning and bell-toned, Albert Collins-ish guitar leads."[19] The Michigan Chronicle noted that "Hunter's secret weapon is a funky baritone sax ace by the name of Kevin Brown."[13] The Chicago Sun-Times labeled the album "tough music for grownups."[9]

The Dallas Observer deemed it "a travelogue of Hunter's eccentric life—the barrooms of Beaumont, the sparkling lights of Marfa, and the fields of Arkansas—set to a boogie-blues beat."[10] The Kansas City Star praised "Hunter's spare-but-spunky songwriting, engaging vocals and infectious guitar stylings."[20] The Post-Tribune considered Border Town Legend "a good guitarist's blues album, and Hunter writes nine fast-paced songs that loosely mirror his influences, T-Bone Walker and B. B. King."[21]

Track listing

[edit]
Border Town Legend track listing
No.TitleLength
1."T-Bone Intentions"3:08
2."Ice Cold"4:21
3."Ole Red"5:24
4."Marfa Lights"4:52
5."Nasty Ways"3:30
6."Grits Ain't Groceries"2:53
7."Arkansas"5:19
8."Rooster and the Hen"5:42
9."Lone Star Shootout"4:07
10."Everybody Knows"3:22
11."Road Hog"3:59
12."John's Funk"4:08
Total length:50:45

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Dahl, Bill (January 19, 1996). "Blues notes". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. 6.
  2. ^ Iglauer, Bruce; Roberts, Patrick A. (2018). Bitten by the Blues: The Alligator Records Story. University of Chicago Press. p. 318.
  3. ^ Forte, Dan (April 1996). "Long John Hunter's Border Blues". Guitar Player. Vol. 30, no. 4. p. 23.
  4. ^ a b Seigal, Buddy (July 12, 1996). "Blues Man Hits the 'Big Time'". Los Angeles Times. p. F1.
  5. ^ Ellis, Bill (January 17, 1997). "Allison Leads Handy Award Nominations". The Commercial Appeal. p. A15.
  6. ^ Thompson, Stephen (August 8, 1996). "Also tonight...". Rhythm. Wisconsin State Journal. p. 6.
  7. ^ a b MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 180.
  8. ^ Point, Michael (March 15, 1996). "Hunter blazes beyond border". Austin American-Statesman. XL Ent. p. 17.
  9. ^ a b c Johnson, Jeff (February 11, 1996). "Spin Control". Showcase. Chicago Sun-Times. p. 10.
  10. ^ a b Wilonsky, Robert (February 15, 1996). "Lonely Hunter". Music. Dallas Observer.
  11. ^ Beal Jr., Jim (April 23, 1997). "Bluesman Hunter has guitar, will travel". San Antonio Express-News. p. 2G.
  12. ^ Gregory, Hugh (2003). Roadhouse Blues: Stevie Ray Vaughan and Texas R&B. Backbeat. p. 169.
  13. ^ a b Seedorff, George (October 22, 1997). "Texas blues master Long John Hunter may be finest club act". Michigan Chronicle. p. 3D.
  14. ^ Meyerowitz, Robert (May 3, 1996). "Blues Comes to Alaska via Texas and Mexico". Anchorage Daily News. p. H24.
  15. ^ "Border Town Legend Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine". AllMusic. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
  16. ^ Point, Michael (May 1996). "Border Town Legend". DownBeat. Vol. 63, no. 5. p. 57.
  17. ^ The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 296.
  18. ^ Larkin, Colin (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of the Blues. Virgin Books.
  19. ^ Reger, Rick (August 16, 1996). "Long John Hunter...". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. S.
  20. ^ Wilson, Calvin (June 5, 1996). "'Border Town' to our town". The Kansas City Star. p. F8.
  21. ^ Knopper, Steve (December 6, 1996). "Long John Hunter Stalking a Place Among Blues Greats". Post-Tribune. p. D8.
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