{"id":430,"date":"2013-09-21T20:00:02","date_gmt":"2013-09-21T20:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/216.71.127.204\/wordpress\/?p=430"},"modified":"2015-10-07T20:31:23","modified_gmt":"2015-10-07T20:31:23","slug":"cyrus-james-dosey-doe-cafe-conroe-tx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/2013\/09\/21\/cyrus-james-dosey-doe-cafe-conroe-tx\/","title":{"rendered":"Cyrus James – Dosey Doe Cafe – Conroe, TX"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
Written by James Killen <\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sep 21, 2013 at 08:00 PM<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\"Image\"Barbara and I took a little trip north Saturday night to take in a dose of outlaw country at the Dosey Doe Caf\u00e9 on FM1488 with Cyrus James on the bill. I must admit that I knew very little about the gentleman, except that he\u2019d been taking a bit of a different route at knocking down Nashville walls, some of his vocals reminded me of Dr. Hook and Brewer and Shipley, and that he\u2019s been dressing like Buffalo Bill Cody. I guess that my question was, \u201cIs this guy hype or the real deal?\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019s been making an impression on some of the satellite radio stations of late. I listened to some songs from his last CD and found them creative, but only within a boundary that seems to have been set by the C&W industry for what is acceptable for \u201cOutlaw Country\u201d. Then I stumbled across another web site, http:\/\/hellopoetry.com\/-cyrus-james-goodhart\/<\/span><\/u><\/a> . That, my friends, is where the good stuff is.<\/p>\n

I will start out by saying that the entire evening\u2019s music was entertaining, but what we really are looking for is that unique bit of creativity that makes an act stand apart. Songs like \u201cLucky 59\u201d married the rock genre with country in a most traditional way, but it was quickly followed by the melodic \u201cSeems to Me\u201d, about growing up in Colorado, with two unabashed Dylan references (\u201canswers just blowing in the wind\u201d and \u201cforever young\u201d) stashed in the lyrics. Pulling a stunt like that shows that Cyrus has made the assumption that his listeners are sophisticated enough to recognize the references and drag the themes from those two songs into his composition to flesh out its meaning. Hence, three songs into the set I\u2019m picking Cyrus James as the real deal.<\/p>\n

James continued to mix in the old stuff, like \u201cWinter in Frisco\u201d, with an occasional cover, like David Alan Coe\u2019s \u201cLiving on the Run\u201d, with his up and coming stuff like, \u201cPaper Boats\u201d, due out on his next CD. One thing that I noticed is that his newer, as yet unreleased stuff seamed to flow more naturally, even better suited to his voice than the material released on the previous disc.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t go too much further discussing the show without mentioning the band that he\u2019s put together. The rhythm section is anchored on a steady bass line and enhanced immensely by some exceptional keyboard support, but on \u201cStranger\u201d, guitarist, Jesse Houghton really stood out for the first time in the show. Houghton, playing a black Les Paul, reminded this old southern rock and roller of a reincarnated Dickie Betts with some younger, more rocking licks.<\/p>\n

\"Image\"The band continued, covering an old Lieber\/ Butler song made famous by the Rolling Stones, \u201cDown Home Girl\u201d, and a new tune that strings together a pretty good list of country colloquialisms called \u201cI Don\u2019t Cry When it Rains\u201d, followed by the T-shirt inspiring, \u201cI\u2019m Drunk and I\u2019m Sorry\u201d and \u201cLickity Split\u201d, that Cyrus recorded on the last CD with Jason Boland.<\/p>\n

I must admit that I don\u2019t have a full knowledge of all of the songs that James played that night, but I felt influences from Steve Miller and Bruce Springsteen bubbling up from the talking blues and smooth country that pervaded the show. When they kicked in to Dylan\u2019s \u201cKnockin\u2019 On Heaven\u2019s Door\u201d with Houghton\u2019s smooth leads, I couldn\u2019t help but see Slim Pickens collapse in the dust holding his gut.<\/p>\n

The show began to wind toward its end with \u201cTumbleweed\u201d, \u201cLong Way Down\u201d and \u201cReckless Cinderella\u201d. Cyrus sent the rest of the band from the stage for the last two songs, done acoustic. The first was a cover of Hayes Carll\u2019s \u201cLong Way Home\u201d and the second a tribute to James\u2019 working class origins, \u201cBlue Collar\u201d that recognized contributions of miners, truck drivers, cowboys and construction workers.<\/p>\n

If you get a chance to check out this full band experience, get ready for an evening of country rocking entertainment. If it\u2019s just a show by Cyrus James acoustic, listen up for the real Cyrus. He\u2019s coming out all over. Ya\u2019ll have fun. We do.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Written by James Killen Sep 21, 2013 at 08:00 PM Barbara and I took a little trip north Saturday night to take in a dose of outlaw country at the Dosey Doe Caf\u00e9 on FM1488 with Cyrus James on the bill. I must admit that I knew very little about the gentleman, except that he\u2019d… <\/p>\n

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