Songs of Sahm

Description

This seems like a can't-miss concept, with a powerhouse band paying labor-of-love tribute to Doug Sahm, the alt-country avatar whose legacy extends from the Sir Douglas Quintet of the '60s through the Texas Tornados of the '90s. Yet the results often fall curiously flat, as the Rockets engage in mimicry rather than making the sort of interpretive leaps that could mediate between Sahm's freewheeling eclecticism and the band's harder-rocking strengths. The song selection leans heavily on Sir Doug's San Francisco daze (hippie anthems such as "Lawd, I'm Just a Country Boy in This Great Big Freaky City") rather than the twangier and bluesier strains of his Texas roots. In addition to soundalike renditions of hits such as "Mendocino" and "She's About a Mover," the collection honors underheard classics including "At the Crossroads," but only the explosive "I'm Not That Kat Anymore" represents the band at its unbridled best. --Don McLeese