The Buzzards

These California boys have a great feel combining lean Telecaster at its best with open song structure, kinda like if Rodney Crowell had stayed more in his Diamonds and Dirt era, particularly on the sauntering “Walking Down the Street” and the Roy Orbison-ish “Drive.” Standouts like the uptempo opener “Racing with the Wind” and the appealing “Saturday” showcase J Rulon’s California soulfulness on vocals, Will Ray’s commanding genuine-article twang on guitar, feel-good vocal harmonies, and a kicking rhythm section also versed in rimshot straight-up country. The Buzzards qualify for alt-country status merely by being too country and too much like Gram Parsons for country radio, and that’s no knock. Perhaps not every moment on this 14 track CD is perfect (“Miguel’s Tree”goes on too long at 8:08) but it’s more than worth the money in twanging satisfaction. It’s worth a look at www.sonicbids.com/thebuzzards or www.bandofbuzzards.com - Kentucky Amplifier- Don Thomason

"SPRINGTIME IS TWANGTIME", and by who can we then better on the lap sit than by Will Ray, the legendary guitarist of the Hellecasters that we also yet know of his cooperation at the albums of Candye Kane, Wylie & the Wild West Show and Solomon Burke. A famous guitarist, that not only the guitar freaks with its Telecaster in ecstasy brings but the furrow each other got, that the renowned Fender so only just two guitars on the market brought under his name. A meeting with singer/songwriter J. Rulon Beus was for last named the starting signal round together with Rich Eastman (rhythm gt, harmonica), Tom Connolly (bass), Tom Galella (drums), Melanie Bomar (harmony vocals & percussion) a roots/rock tie on to direct that with this album at their debut closed is. And it is a twisted amusing album become of a tie that unquestionable with J. Rulon Beus voice the mustard must go get by quantities as Roy Orbison, Chris Isaak, Raoul Malo. Opener "Racing With the Wind", " Flyaway", the pearl "Drive", "Go Play With Your Toys" are of that excellent examples. Only also the something rougher work to Gram Parsons and the Byrds comes also through the contribution of Will Ray, the twang master himself, exhaustively at bid. Songs as "Ain't Fair", "Ruby", "Lucas", "Saturday" and in the particularly "the Free Range Buzzards" jam that almost imperceptible flows through in "Carry Me Home" and "Walking Down the Street" let the guitars sumptuously at bid come and just imagine we us back in the country/rock of the fertile seventies. The jewel of "Miguel's Tree" in the style of Donovan's "Atlantis" and the excellent honky tonkers "Hey Stupid" and "Yard Sale" get you it as a dessert on top. An excellent album that extremely arranged is for the country/rock dabble: "The Buzzards draw on influences ranging from Roy Orbison and Johnny Cash to Gram Parsons and the Byrds, from Hank Williams and Bob Dylan to Lucinda Williams and Ryan Adams."
(translated from Dutch) - Rootstime.be - Francois Braeken