Live at Goner Records

They Say...

Review by Mark Deming, All Music Guide

Who can argue that Memphis, TN is truly one of America's greatest cities? Imagine living in a town where you can not only still go to a fine record store on a Saturday afternoon (you know, those places where you used to buy music before iTunes), but while looking for that elusive Compulsive Gamblers 7" or Andre Williams reissue, you can sometimes hear actual musicians perform for your pleasure! And when the artists in question happen to be Reigning Sound, you have clearly hit the jackpot of rock & roll cool. Greg Cartwright and his latest rhythm section dropped by Goner Records in Memphis on June 26, 2005 to play a few tunes, and thankfully someone had the good sense to record the show; for someone playing a free gig for a handful of shoppers, Cartwright isn't afraid to work up a sweat, and both his guitar work and his vocals are rough, sweet, and full of soul on this disc. Live at Goner Records features selections from Reigning Sound's first three studio albums as well as a few well-chosen covers (including Sam the Sham's "Black Sheep" and Dan Penn's "Do Something"), and while this isn't Greg Cartwright's strongest or tightest performance (he forgets the ending to "Do Something" and he has to abandon "Two Thieves" due to faulty grounding), the spirit was clearly with him -- unlike most folks on the garage punk nexus, he clearly understands that the history of this music goes back farther than Lenny Kaye assembling the Nuggets compilations, and he weaves country, soul, and blues into raw, no-frills rock & roll with an unforced intelligence and passion whenever he steps in front of a mike. Like most live albums, Live at Goner Records is for serious fans rather than the uninitiated, but anyone who understands what makes Reigning Sound a great band will have a blast reliving this afternoon in their career.