Released July 2023 on Thousands Records - https://shop.thousandsrecords.jp/ Reviewed July 2023
The Real Deal are a Spanish rockabilly trio made up of Alex Cash – vocals and rhythm guitar, Hugo Menéndez – bass and backing vocals and Carlos A. Del Bosque on lead guitar.
All the songs are original recordings written by the band’s vocalist, Alex Cash.
Track by track: Panic At The Drive-In – Weird sci-fi sound effects give way to a driving rockabilly guitar. A touch of the Johnny Burnette Trio in the guitar break. A solid bopper as an opening track.
Rock It Up – Another bopper with great guitar work and a solid slap bass to drive things along.
Attack Of The Cat Girls – Alex, the writer of all the songs, clearly likes science fiction judging by this title and some of the others. This is another vintage style piece of rockabilly.
Me And My Old Guitar – Slightly more country rock than out and out rockabilly but nice to listen to and the “old guitar” is being played excellently!
Invasion Of The Brain Eater – Full on rockabilly with a sci-fi theme. A great bopper.
Your Baby Has A Party – The slap bass intro sets the pace for this mid paced rocker.
Phone Call Daddy – One of the slower tracks on the album, a good stroller with some interesting vocals.
Barn Party Queen – Handclaps and fiddle kick off this “barn dance style” hillbilly bopper. Nice banjo playing too.
Lonely Boy – Not a ballad as I thought it might be, but a mid-paced rocker with a strong a vocal to make it sound a bit “moody”. DJs be warned it has an abrupt finish.
Let Her Know – A bit of a Tex-Mex vibe to this track that picks up pace towards the end.
Hot Rod Heart – A rockabilly track that mentions hot rods. What’s not to like?
Train From Tennessee – Something about the opening bars reminds me of Carl Perkins and I am sure there’s a bit of 'Honey Don’t' in there from the guitar player towards the end.
Sometimes I Think About You – If you like the sort of guitar you get on some Johnny Horton’s classic then this track should appeal to you.
You Married An Alien – A heartfelt vocal on this ballad with a sci-fi theme to close the album
Summary and Recommendation: As somebody who has been listening to rockabilly since the late 60s I find it amazing that these days there are young people out there who can not only play the music but can also write new material. Also, this album is a great example of the global appeal of the genre. Recorded in Spain for a label in Japan and hopefully purchased by people in many other countries. It is a very well-produced collection with excellent musicians performing at their best. Definitely worthy of place in any good record collection!
You Tube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oC8kDynEIbQ Reviewed by Jailhouse John Alexander
