Bandera

I was turned on to Charlie Robison by my nephew. He brought a copy of his second album Life of the Party and I immediately fell in love with it. I then got a copy of Bandera and I loved it even more.. This guy has to me what Steve Earle had in his early years, with Guitar Town and Exit 0.. This is an album about every day people getting caught up in the act of trying to live in this old world. Charlie Robison is an outstanding songwriter and a great singer as well.. If you like real country music with a twist and some soul get this album.. I listen to it all the time and I have been for over a year now.. I rank it right up there with Guitar Town.. It is well worth the bucks..

Love this musivy

Well, this guy can't make a really BAD disc!, some are better that others, but I like them all, this one is one of his best, is it really country?, I think it's a hybrid, Charlie can rock with the best of them, he seems to be always having fun, he ALWAYS has a a-- kicking band! and boy do they do that on this one!, I love your music Charlie, please find a new label and keep putting out great American music!

This is probably Charlie Robison's best album to date... a great set of tuneful, tounge-in-cheek, wiseass honkytonk songs, chock full of great melodies and amiably snide humor. Thematically and vocally, this early, long-haired incarnation of Charlie Robison sounds a bit like what John Prine might have been like if he'd followed his hard country inclinations a bit further, rather than going the folkie route. At any rate, Robison has definitely got the goods, and this disc has one good song after another... Well worth tracking down a copy!

As another reviewer wrote, Charlie does have a different sound here than on his 2nd (& better, IMO) CD "Life Of The Party". The music & his voice are twangier. There are some awesome tunes here. My fave from this CD is the 4th track - "Desperate Times". It's a true story about one of his old high school buddies who "went bad". :-) Anyway, I would suggest that you get Charlie's "Life Of The Party" CD first. Then, go back & get this one.

Think this is Charlie's first, and a true introduction to what awaits. His rendition of "Reconsider" blows me away, and his version of "I Am a Pilgrim" reminds us that traditional country embraces a wide range of interpretations. Damn, he's good, and continues to improve with age.

I happened to hear Charlie Robison on "Austin City Limits" one night, and promptly ordered all his CDs. It's true that "Bandera" is less polished than his later two CDs, which are also great. However, *this* is the one I keep popping in the CD player. "Desperate Times" is quite a song, "Red Letter Day" really sticks in my head .... In fact, there's not a bad track on it.If you like folks like Townes Van Zandt, Billy Joe Shaver, Guy Clark, Waylon Jennnings, Lucinda Williams, etc. you oughta like this one.