Greater Good

Greater Good delivers a blend of soulful party rock with a touch of southern charm and a dash of Brit-pop. Some of the bands influences include Joe Jackson, Elvis Costello, and The Clash. Or so their press release says. Me, I hear dabs and dips of The Shazam, The Rosenbergs, Mando Diao, The Ceasars and The Figgs. Great as those artists are(and they are inspirations of the band, no doubt), we like to get more specific here at Not Lame, right? Dig into the soundbites below and hear what you think and see if you agree with me. This is one of those indie rock releases that comes on your Ipod and you are not sure who it is playing but you *are* sure you are digging the sounds of their snarling, stabbing guitar work and catchy choruses! "It's a mixture of 60’s rock and soul influences (Spencer Davis Group, The Kinks, early Rod Stewart) filtered through a 90’s alternative indie vibe (Supergrass, The Stone Roses, or Charlatans with less organs). The result is a sound that seems familiar yet fresh all at once, and the songs are filled with enough hooks to bring you back for seconds!" – GhostofBlindLemonJefferson Blog. RIGHT FREAKIN’ ON!! - notlame.com

Before I explain how Greater Good fits into this article, I would like to give a little background information for you.


Blind Lemon is the man pictured at left. His birth name was Lemon Henry Jefferson, but he was best known as Blind Lemon Jefferson. He made Dallas his home in 1917, and many would say he is the founding father of Deep Ellum and the Dallas music scene. I would be strongly inclined to agree with these people. The name of this site is a tribute to Mr. Jefferson.

Blind Melon is a band from the early 1990’s best known for the song “No Rain”, with the song’s video featuring the infamous “Bee Girl”. The band formed in California, with members coming from various states, including Pennsylvania, Mississippi, and Indiana. None of the members are from Texas. The blog was NOT named after this band. I feel compelled to state this as I have had more than one individual think that the name of the blog comes from the band, not the blues artist.

Now that we’ve established the difference between Blind Lemon and Blind Melon, let me proceed with the real point of the article. The band Blind Melon has reunited and obtained Travis Warren as its new lead vocalist, taking over the vacancy left when Shannon Hoon died of a cocaine overdose in 1995. They have started touring, and they have gotten local boys Greater Good to open for them on this tour.

If you’ve never seen the band, the best way I can describe it is a mixture of 60’s rock and soul influences (Spencer Davis Group, The Kinks, early Rod Stewart) filtered through a 90’s alternative indie vibe (Supergrass, The Stone Roses, or Charlatans with less organs). The result is a sound that seems familiar yet fresh all at once, and the songs are filled with enough hooks to bring you back for seconds. You can check these songs out on their MySpace, or you can by their CD, Shake Till I Let You Go, when it comes out May 20th.

The Ghost of Blind Lemon is thrilled that the band will get the opportunity to perform with Blind Melon on their tour. You can check out Greater Good with Blind Melon on Friday, April 18th, at House of Blues. Many of the dates on the tour have sold out. It appears that tickets are still available for the Dallas show, but it is probably just a matter of time until this show sells out too.

But please, whatever you do, don’t tell people that the Ghost of Blind Melon recommended you see Greater Good open for Blind Lemon. That would be really annoying to me. - Ghost of Blind Lemon Blog

This local sextet has the influences down pat: Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson, The Faces and Stone Roses are all incorporated into a well-produced, well-played concoction that is packed to the brim with hooks and sweat. Throw in a little Motown edge to Americanize the sound just enough and Shake Till I Let You Go, Greater Good's debut effort, appears to be on the cusp of greatness.

- Dallas Observer