Man, it was great to finally catch up to these guys again. The foursome, Phil Bass (drums), Josh Zee (lead guitar), Phil Hurley (lead guitar) and Lonnie Trevino (bass) just seem to be getting better the more they play with one another. The mixture of tunes they pour out are such an unusual array that you have to be there to soak it all in and appreciate it. They come at you like a machine gun and you better strap in and enjoy the ride. Nobody does good ole soul music anymore and “Can’t Live Without You” is a stunner in that regard.

Other killer tunes were relatively new “Once I Saw a UFO”, Phil Bass vocals ruled on “29 Miles” with all the players chiming in, “King of Friday Night” and new one “Coming Home”. The double barrel bookends of Zee & ‘Joe Walsh face’ Hurley bring to mind memories of the first time I saw Rossington and Collins mash for Lynyrd Skynyrd back in the 70’s.

Yes, they are THAT good folks.

By blending all the talents of these four gents-especially vocals-the sky seems to be the limit for SAM. Having the versatality to burn the blues, southern rock your ass or cool you down with Bee Gees “To Love Somebody” is classic indeed. They can do Elvis tunes like “Travelling to Get to You” or delta swamp sheet like “Lying On the Bottom of Mississippi River” to perfection. Lonnie’s soulful bigger than life pipes can bring goose bumps when he gets that sexy growl workin’ for sure.

The band has put out a live CD “Live at the Saxon Pub” and SAM is promising a new album soon. This started as a collaboration of all stars but seems to be settling into way more than that from my point of view. Words like underrated and scary good come to mind when addressing the outlook for this squad.

The key as I see it is the total unselfish attitude amongst the four men who seem to be only trying to push each other to make the live experience that much better!

For this Sunday in December two hits were better than one for HMR and, by all means, get to a gig of these guys. They seem to hit Houston once or twice a month and are a treat I’ll bet you’ll thank me for…That’s all I got. Merry Christmas.