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Track Listing 1. Bad Dog 2. Happy Hour 3. Don't Make Me Explain It 4. Constitution, The 5. My Last Goodbye 6. You Pushed My Head Away 7. Revenge of Scorpio 8. California Song 9. Cold and Bitter Tears 10. Gypsy Woman 11. Ain't That Pretty 12. One Hundred Miles
Album Notes Personnel: Ted Hawkins (vocals, guitar); Elizabeth Hawkins (vocals); Dale Wilson, Augie Brown, Night Train Clemons (guitar); Dennis Walker (bass); Johnny Greer (drums). Recorded at Music Lab and Sage & Sound, Los Angeles, California. Ted Hawkins' second album follows the blend of his first-a few selections with a band, the rest solo or in duet-with equally stunning results. He wrote 10 of HAPPY HOUR's dozen songs, and each is full of undiminished spirit, his tattered hopes finding footing wherever they can. Hawkins' deeply moving songs and singing mix equal parts blues, R&B, and gospel. Most of these songs are powered by Hawkins' lone strummed guitar, its big, thick, and simple chords ringing out with pulsing urgency. There's incredible beauty throughout HAPPY HOUR. A number of songs feature harmony vocals sung by Hawkins' wife Elizabeth, and the couple's interplay adds an extra measure of beauty and melodic tension. These numbers are instantly likable and full of grace and wisdom. They yield continual gifts and manage to touch on universal themes without ever resorting to clichT. HAPPY HOUR is highly recommended, as is its predecessor, WATCH YOUR STEP.
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