Joe Ely/Honky Tonk Masquerade [Import] [Original recording remastered]

1. I Had My Hopes up High

2. Mardi Gras Waltz

3. She Never Spoke Spanish to Me

4. Gambler's Bride

5. Suckin' a Big Bottle of Gin

6. Tennessee's Not the State I'm In

7. If You Were a Bluebird

8. Treat Me Like a Saturday Night

9. All My Love

10. Johnny's Blues

11. Cornbread Moon

12. Because of the Wind

13. Boxcars

14. Jericho (Your Walls Must Come Tumbling Down)

15. Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown

16. Honky Tonk Masquerade

17. I'll Be Your Fool

18. Fingernails

19. West Texas Waltz

20. Honky Tonkin'

Editorial Reviews

Product Description:
UK reissue combines the country outlaw's first two albums, ' Joe Ely' (1977) and 'Honky Tonk Masquerade' (1978), together on one CD. 2000 release. Standard jewel case.

Tracks:

I Had My Hopes up High
Mardi Gras Waltz
She Never Spoke Spanish to Me
Gambler's Bride
Suckin' a Big Bottle of Gin
Tennessee's Not the State I'm In
If You Were a Bluebird
Treat Me Like a Saturday Night
All My Love
Johnny's Blues
Cornbread Moon
Because of the Wind
Boxcars
Jericho (Your Walls Must Come Tumbling Down)
Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown
Honky Tonk Masquerade
I'll Be Your Fool
Fingernails
West Texas Waltz
Honky Tonkin'

Album Description

UK reissue combines the country outlaw's first two albums, ' Joe Ely' (1977) and 'Honky Tonk Masquerade' (1978), together on one CD. 2000 release. Standard jewel case.

Album Details

Digitally Remastered 2-On-1. One of the Clash's Favorite Rocker's First Two Brilliant Albums from his Progressive Country Days. Includes 'I Had My Hopes Up High', 'Fingernails' & 'West Texas Waltz'. Features Butch Hancock.

Customer Reviews:

The original vinyl is an ancient memory..........2006-03-04

...but Joey's early music is timeless. Alternately simple and musical, toe-tapping and lyrical, or occasionally loud and rockin', Ely's early band did a little bit of it all. But the predominant styles are rockin' honky-tonk and ballads.

Looking back on it now, living in Lubbock when Joey and the boys first took flight was a distinctly treasured time. Whether at the old Cotton Club on Highway 84, or the long defunct (and always funky) Fat Dawg's on 4th Street, his band never failed to bring the house down. Just like Stevie Ray Vaughn at Stubb's B-B-Q on east Broadway, as good as Joey's early recorded music is, it only hints at the foot-stomping jaw-dropping good-timing sessions his crew could lay down in a small club atmosphere.

As mentioned elsewhere, Jesse "Guitar" Taylor and Lloyd Maines each made their presence well-felt while Joey belted out the vocals. Lloyd's pedal steel wailed when called upon. Before hearing Lloyd, I used to think the only electrified guitar worth listening to hung from a shoulder. And the accordian-squeezing land surveyor P. Bone always added just enough funkiness to the mix so that you didn't completely lose your head. Guest appearances by other local talent, including my ex-boss, Tommie Anderson (may he rest in peace), always added a little bit of variety to make each show unique. You always knew where you were eventually gonna' get to with Joey, you just never quite knew exactly how.

It's too bad they won't let you listen to the samples here. This studio disc captures what it can of that early Ely music, and it's still a favorite. The two-fer is a great deal. Buy it, listen to it a couple times with a beer or two in tow, and just try not to smile. Go ahead and sing along...it won't hurt ya'.

If Buddy could hear the music now.......2006-02-26

Rockabilly/Country-Western-Swing/Tex-Mex. It's all here. Combining the past with the present. It's like Bob Wills teaming up with Buddy Holly and Doug Sahm. And anybody can dance to it, even if you don't have rhythm in your heel's. Texas music at it's best

Honky Tonkin'.......2005-07-14

Ex. Flatlander Joe Ely is one of the most important country artists ever. When the Flatlanders (Butch Hancock, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Joe Ely) broke up, he went solo and first two albums that are featured on this cd (Joe Ely and Honky Tonk Masquerade) are fabulous. Ely wrote most of the songs and included few songs of Butch and Jimmie Dale. So here you can find such classics as Hancock's She Never Spoke Spanish To Me, Tennessee's Not The State I'm In, If You Were A Bluebird (later covered by Emmylou Harris), Gilmore's Treat Me Like A Saturday NIght and Ely's own compositions like Fingernails, I Had My Hopes Up High...
Honky Tonk Masquerade was picked by Rolling Stone as one of the best albums of the 1970s. This disc contains some of the best work Joe Ely has done.

Terrific Texas Music and Essential.......2003-07-28

This disc is a great bargain because you get two fantastic albums on one. The out-of-print album "Joe Ely" contains a number of fine songs, including "If You Were a Bluebird," "Treat me Like a Saturday Night," and "Tennessee's Not the State I'm In." Several songs were written by Butch Hancock and one was written by Jimmie Dale Gilmore, both of whom were in the Flatlanders with Ely. A great album!

"Honky Tonk Masquerade" is even better, though. It's songs are full of rich imagery and a sound that mixes honky tonk, Tex-Mex and rock and roll into a satisfying brew all its own. I never get tired of listening to these albums. And with both on one disc, it makes it even sweeter. You can't go wrong getting this disc!

Joe Ely's Country-Rock Masterpieces.......2001-02-07

These two late-Seventies albums (his 1977 debut and 1978 follow-up) are watershed marks in Joe Ely's career. Ely and his band combine country, honky-tonk and Tex-Mex sounds with a rock 'n' roll attitude and churn out an exciting blend of country-rock music.

On both albums the band included lead guitarist Jesse Taylor and steel guitar player Lloyd Maines. Accordian player Ponty Bone was brought on board for the second album (tracks 11-20). While these two albums may not have quite the same energy level as 1981's Live Shots, these two albums come awfully close.

In addition to being a powerful singer, Ely is an excellent songwriter. He wrote ten of the tracks here, including the rocking "Cornbread Moon," the plaintive "Honky Tonk Masquerade" and the Jerry Lee Lewis-inspired "Fingernails." Except for the Hank Williams classic "Honky Tonkin'," the other nine tracks were written by his former Flatlanders bandmates and fellow Texans Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore. Hancock wrote the gorgeous "She Never Spoke Spanish To Me" and the hilarious "West Texas Waltz," among others. [Note: On 1995's Letter To Loredo, Ely recorded Hancock's follow-up song "She Finally Spoke Spanish To Me."] Gilmore contributes "Treat Me Like a Saturday Night" and "Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown."

Tracks:

Cornbread Moon
Because Of The Wind
Boxcars
Jericho (Your Walls Must Come Tumbling Down)
Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown
Honky Tonk Masquerade
I'll Be Your Fool
Fingernails
West Texas Waltz
Honky Tonkin'

Amazon.com

Joe Ely's second album is a classic of late-1970s progressive country--but this description hardly does justice to what he did with the music. The Texas-born Ely expanded its expression both lyrically (with the help of fellow ex-Flatlanders Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch Hancock, whose songs he covered regularly) and musically, tossing in Tex-Mex accordion and rock guitar lines that competed with the steel guitar parts. That Ely's title song and Hancock's "Jericho," two of the record's more accessible tracks, didn't become radio smashes is criminal, but it's never too late to pick up on them yourself--that is, so long as the CD remains in print. --Rickey Wright

Customer Reviews:

The definitive country rock album.......2004-04-25

Joe Ely was (and still is) a hugely talented singer and musician who always did things his way. In the late seventies, he recorded three classic country-rock albums. His debut album was untitled, while his third was Down on the drag. In between came this one, which was the best of the lot. Joe's music did not fit easily into any radio station's play list, being too country for rock and too rock for country, but he did visit the UK a few times during the late seventies and acquired a cult following, although it seems that the main interest lies in those first three albums and, to a lesser extent, the fourth album, Musta notta gotta lotta.

Joe Ely wrote many of his own songs but also recorded some fine covers. Often these covers were of songs by fellow country-rockers Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore, both of whom have reciprocated by covering Joe's songs. Thus, this album is made up five songs by Joe, three by Butch, one by Jimmie and just one other song, the Hank Williams classic Honky tonkin', which is ideally suited to Joe's style.

The musicians are Joe Ely (acoustic guitar), Lloyd Maines (steel guitar), Steve Keeton (drums), Gregg Wright (bass), Ponty Bone (accordion and piano), Jess Taylor (electric and acoustic guitar), Chip Young (electric and acoustic guitar), Shane Keister (Moog and acoustic piano) and Farrell Morris (percussion). There aren't many singers who would use such a selection of instruments, but that's what makes Joe's music so distinctive.

Cornbread moon is a great up-tempo song to open the set. Because of the wind is a beautiful ballad. Boxcars is a bluesy train song. Jericho (your walls must come tumbling down) is a great upbeat song with biblical metaphors. Tonight I'm gonna go downtown is a wistful ballad. Honky tonk masquerade is a great cheating song. I'll be your fool is a wonderful ballad. Fingernails is a great song about playing the piano. The brilliant blues-rocker and pianist, Marcia Ball, later covered Fingernails for her album, Blue house. West Texas waltz always, a lightweight, fun song, reminds me of Lucille, the Kenny Rogers classic, because of some similarities in parts of the melodies. Play them back-to-back and you'll understand what I mean. Honky tonkin' rounds off the album brilliantly.

If you only buy one Joe Ely album - indeed, if you only buy one country-rock album - make it this one. Note that this album has also been released as half of a twofer, the other half being his excellent untitled debut album.

Shootin' the Cornbread Moon.......2001-04-21

Joe Ely was probably 3 or 4 albums into his career before my old record collecting pal Pat in Oklahoma turned me onto him in 1980. After hearing his brilliant synthesis of Country, rockabilly,Tex-Mex and R&B I had to have everything he had recorded up until then, right away. Several dollars later I was the proud owner of both LPs and 8 tracks so I could enjoy Joe Ely at home or on the road. Now many years and many fine recordings later I find that this recording,Joe's second releasese is the one I listen to the most. It contains all of the elements of his music listed above, and he was backed by one of the hottest bands he ever had. There's no filler here, but the songs I love the most are 'Because Of The Wind', 'Boxcars" and 'Fingernails". You can't miss with any Joe Ely release (well you can, but they're out of print) but here's where I started and you won't regret hearing this talented Texan's early work either.

This Is the Cornerstone of Any Joe Ely Collection.......1999-12-31

Any progressive country collection that doesn't include this album and at least one of the other four albums Ely cut for MCA from 1978-1982 has a serious gap in it.

Ely has absorbed the influences of fellow Texans like Buddy Holly and Waylon Jennings and gone on to produce some of the best honky tonk, Tex-Mex, rockabilly music of his generation.

This, his second album, includes songs written by former Flatlanders bandmates Jimmie Dale Gilmore ("Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown") and Butch Hancock ("Boxcars" and "West Texas Waltz"). But While Ely would on almost all of his albums rely on these two songwriting pals for great songs, Ely's songwriting is equally strong. He begins the album howling at that big, yellow "Cornbread Moon," and later cries in his beer at that "Honky Tonk Masquerade" and eventually brings down the house with the greatest song Jerry Lee Lewis never wrote, "Fingernails."

Ely's signature sound is provided by bandmates Lloyd Maines on pedal steel and Ponty Bone on Accordian.

At only ten songs and 34 minutes, this album may seem skimpy, but this is the kind of music you wish you could hear in your favorite smoke-filled honky tonk as you put back a few cold longnecks. HIGHLY Recommended.

Joe Ely/Honky Tonk Masquerade
Average customer rating:
Joe Ely/Honky Tonk Masquerade
Joe Ely
Manufacturer: Bgo Records/Ka
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Country | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0002B68D0
Release Date: 2000-10-17

Music Album:

Music Album