Reviews (page 5 of 7)
Забавно, бодренько, но ок.
Geezer ahh country with a few nice tunes
Nur Bauern mögen Country! Hier, ich habs gesagt. Der Typ trägt nichtmals Schuhe auf dem Cover - Was war hier anderes zu erwarten? Zwei Punkte weil nichts so schlimm ist wie die Pixies!
Never heard of this artist. I actually....didn't mind some of this. Cornbread Moon was alright. Steel guitar throughout was good. But I did mind a lot of this. I don't think I'd every seek it out to listen to it again. But if I was forced to choose between this or /insert other country album/, I'd choose this. Some of this sounds like it came out in 1989, not 1977. Like...Lyle Lovett or something. Also, I dunno what honky tonk is, and I don't think I need songs about it.
2/5 whole lotta mid
5/10
65
A standard slab of late‑70s generic country tosh! Then “Boxcars” shows up and actually goes somewhere — darker, more driven, and far more interesting than most of the album. Shock, horror: it’s pretty good, and slightly exposes how dull the rest of the record is by comparison.
Another Country album. I believe it is good Country, but if you don't like Country, that's not necessarily a positive. The vocals are good and there is some OK song-writing there, but that omnipresent lapsteel gets on my nerves. Almost a parody of Country.
It’s fine, and quick, but nothing really grabbed me. Favourite track: Tonight I think I’m Gonna Go Downtown
Some nice slide guitar and interesting lyrics but didn't really catch my attention.
It sounds like parody music? I really hate that fingernails song
I lean towards liking country, but this is really nothing special.
No es horrible.
Very Elvis-y, very very Hank Williams-y. Almost distractingly so. On one hand, it distinguishes itself from its pedigree (positively) with the introduction of slightly more modern rock/keyboard sensibility/instrumentation, but Ely's voice also lacks the sheer charisma that the King and Williams had. I don't particularly think it's a problem that it's corny or derivative but it certainly doesn't match up to what it's trying to emulate. It's competent, and Ely clearly has talent, but it's not really making me pine for a relisten. fav tracks: Fingernails
well. it could be worse. but not by much i actually enjoyed the lyrics, they were rly cute / funny in parts, i just wish they were presented in any other way. glad it was only 33 minutes. yeehaw
Never heard of this although 1978 was around my peak for reception to new types of music. But I hardly feel I missed out.
Ich werde mit Country nicht warm, auch nicht mit Honky Tonk.
Not necessarily bad, but a transition piece. Before stadium country and just right after the golden era of honky tonk and the genre blazing cowboy heros. Thematic, song writing is pretty good and the instrumentation is all there. But it just kinda exists. Doesn't excite, nor contribute to progressing the grenre. This just a standard release.
Meh. Love country but this was just ok
Not really my thing ok
Was ok as far as country Americana easy listening goes until that corny fingernail song spoilt it. Then the Texas Waltz one was also a bit cringey. Took it down to 2. Don’t care if The Clash did love him.
Yes hah! Chickens in the yard!
I did not like this album.
Bakom ganska lökig produktion finns ändå några fina countrylåtar. Bäst är titellåten. Men jag kan också lista minst 50 countryalbum som skulle komma in i min bok före den här.
Country Rock. Some tracks, "Cornbread Moon" and "Boxcars" for example, are more R&B than Country which isn't a bad thing, but the rest of the album is boring Country music with the obligatory twanging guitars.
Today is a hard day to listen to some cornbread moon lyrics all honky tonkin' on the dance floor and transparently sung in such a way that everything being said is front and center. For an album with the word "Masquerade" in the title there's little sense of mystery here. But for 1978 it still manages to sound contemporary like you could go see Joe Ely playing in a Tennessee bar tonight.
You exactly what you might expect of a honky tonk album. No hits. No fouls. Straight down the middle.
No thanks.
I have basically nothing to say about this one. It went by ok but I wouldn't even say I liked anything it does. Guys voice is OK. Music itself is OK but its so boring it hurt. Thats all I got. Maybe you get it but I do not at all
Previously unknown. OK.
A second stab at country music with this album and once again it’s not for me. Not terrible, but I find it all a bit repetitive and boring.
sounds enough like 90s country to be surprising it's from 1978 I basically hate 90s country, except that I have some nostalgia for hearing it blasting way too loud on a tinny radio in my grandma's yard "the tractor's been acting up, and sewer lines are backing up" is basically a perfect line for that context you almost got me this time, list. am I a dumb redneck that enjoys listening a little? yes. do I think a guy should say "Joe Ely's Honky Tonk Masquerade is one of the 1001 albums to hear before you die, and I gave it three stars"? absolutely not. mortifying. honk: tonked. (⌐■_■)
There’s something untrustworthy about a Masquerade. Like it’s an event that could only be put on by swingers or something. “Wait a second, what kinda Honky Tonk is this?” sort of deal. You know what I mean?
I’M PISSING ON SHADOWS, SHADOWS, SHADOWS… IN THE FUCKIN’ DARRRRKKKK Glad to see these new artists inspired by the work of my favourite country and western artist, Mr Robert Mortimer. He is Honky Tonk, and always will be. 4/10 I liked Cornbread Moon but not much else lol
Not my cup of tea, but that speaks of my taste, not of the album. It sounds amazing, they surely knew how to record in that era. Sounds are catchy, I can't speak about the lyrics.
As with yesterday’s album I continue to betray my roots by not particularly enjoying this. Rounded up for Loretta and rounding down today. 2.5
A big ole honky hoodah fair. It’s fine, but shouldn’t be on this list
Heeee haw Just too country for me.
There’s a very small window of country music I enjoy so this is not really jumping out at me but it is a fun little country album, who doesn’t love a little honky tonk? There’s a little yodely bit in there during ‘I’ll Be Your Fool’ that’s great. It’s more pop country to me than country rock but what do I know. Songs feel fun without much substance, or maybe the style is making me feel that way.
Ok, county is a genre I do not listen to, and is one I've never enjoyed. So I'm going to give it my best shot here. My plan is to finish every album unless I have a good reason not to. I always check out the artist's wikipedia page before diving in to get a little bit of a background on them, and this was especially important as I know very little about country music and had never heard of this artist until today. I discovered that Joe Ely recently died just about two months ago. I also discovered that he performed with a lot of different artists across many different genres. I'm a lot more familiar with 90s country because that's what I heard all the time in the background of my high school life. I did not like it then, and I have to say I'm still not a fan of that style of country. This does sound pretty similar to it, and this artist probably inspired a lot of the 90s country artists that got big during that era. I enjoyed the songs that were a little closer to blues than the more country sounding songs. For me, I think it's pedal steel guitar as a sound I don't really like, and a lot of the vocal stylings. This album is definitely better than the racially-charged country from right after 9/11, or that song I heard from the tpusa halftime show that almost seems like a parody but is serious. I can appreciate the talent even if I don't enjoy the music. 2/5
A must listen?
Nothing to write home about blues
Fine but forgettable, mostly
Beetje grappig wel, voelt een beetje alsof Joe Ely een verzonnen muzikant character uit een film is en dat film schrijvers een poging hebben gedaan om muziek teksten te schrijven
I thought for a moment this album wasn't available on my streaming service. Unfortunately it was.
GOING IN: Not fussed really LISTENED WHILE: Walking ther dog FAMILIARITY: New to me SKIP RATE: Played it straight through REPLAY VALUE: Once was plenty DISCOVERY CURVE: Never happened ALBUM ARC: Ended better than it started VERDICT: Bit disappointing BODY'S VERDICT: Toe tapping situation FAVOURITE TRACK: Honky Tonk Masquerade My Rating: 2 That first track made me think of the soundtrack to those small-town live webcams you get. Muzak/Polka. This was more Muzak masquerading as Honky Tonk.
I don't even know what to say about this. It's music. It all sounds the same. How many times does he say hahhhnky tahhhhnk?
4/10
I am not a fan of the lyric writing, it sounds like children's music. This kind of country music is not for me, but I listened to the whole album and some of the instrumental solos are cool. Overall, I don't like the song writing or the lyrics or the vocalist. One song briefly had a slide whistle, that was my favorite part
This album is not what I expected, but I wasn't expecting a lot from a country album. The lyrics are very questionable throughout, and every song sounds a bit too similar for my liking. Overall this album left me with many questions. What is going on, what even is a "honky tonk", and why are the lyrics of "Because Of The Wind" so bad? Two stars. (Favorite track: Boxcars.)
Not for me
Joe Ely – Honky Tonk Masquerade Honky Tonk Masquerade felt like a "forgettable" detour that failed to capture my interest. While the "vintage" Tex-Mex instrumentation shows a level of "technical" variety, the overall "body of work" lacks the "triumphant" energy or "immaculate" hooks needed to leave a lasting impression. It’s a "low-stakes" listen that simply "came and passed" without providing a "thought-provoking" reason to return. A "carefree" but ultimately unidimensional experience that lacks the "lasting power" required for a Month Two standout.
I want to live in the mountains.
Whatever honkey tonk really
Country...
Country music is not good, it just isn't. However, this wasn't terrible. Boxcars was actually a pretty good song, few others were okay. I didn't like this album, but i didn't hate it either. That's as good as you can from me when it comes to old school County music.
About as big standard a country record as you will ever find. Some of it was fine, at times it was a bit cheesy. It sounds like a hundred other country albums. Meh.
"Mach bitte es Foti vo mir, dass die ganz Welt und s ganz Universum weiss, dass ich en chline Cowboy bin und chlini cowboymusic mit minder chline cowboymusicguitarre mache" Da bechömed chlini cowboy-grossmamis vo chline cowboy-städt füechti höslis. Ich zell mich da aber ned dezue. Het aber viel schlimmer chöne sii. Trotzdem nur zwei ganz chlini Cowboy-sheriffstern für de Honky-Tonky-Guitarre-Pete
Wie de timon bi so Albe immer seid: „isch mir vill z fest us cöntry“ Und das mal gib ich ihm recht. Da mid-westereds mir z fest eine ineh. Heilandsack, strohbölli wehed dur d prerie wenni das lose. 2 honky tonkys
I’m far more amenable to country music than a lot of people, but honky tonk is just a bridge too far for me. I’m sure Joe Ely is the finest honky tonk man there is, though.
Not sure this is necessary to listen to but it’s ok
Not my kind of music
Nei takk.
Heelt ok, ikke noe country fan da. 2/5
Heilt OK. Blir nok ikkje meir av dette.
Helt okei, litt funky country. Fint å lytte til, men kommer ikke tilbake til det.
What even
It was fine.
Moyen
I think my enjoyment of this album was heavily lessened by getting it right after Red Headed Stranger by Willie Nelson. I just like Willie-type country way more.
Honky Ton .. masquerading as much. Nothing but whiny grating hee-haw
In a bar this might sound fine. At home it is lacks any finesse and sounds dated.
1. MOON - 1.5 2. uuind - 2 3. boz- 1.5 4. jericho - 1 5. tonight - 1.5 6. honky -1.5 7. fool - 1.5 8. Finger - 0 9. West - 1.5 10. Tonk - 1.5
01) Cornbread Moon - 6,5 02) Because of the Wind - 5,5 03) Boxcars - 7,0 04) Jericho (Your Walls Must Come Tumbling Down) - 5,5 05) Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown - 5,5 06) Honky Tonk Masquerade - 6,5 07) I'll Be Your Fool - 6,0 08) Fingernails - 6,0 09) West Texas Waltz - 5,5 10) Honky Tonkin' - 6,0 TOTAL: 6,00 (60/100) Current ranking: 606/769
Awful
Interesting but not insightful
Not my drift, but nice country mixed with different influences from neighbouring genres.
I think I’ve discovered a new hatred alongside nu metal. It’s honky Tonk country rock. This is well made in the sense of production, vocals, instrumentation is simple but well executed. But fuck me this has no taste (esp the fucking harmonica oh my god). Some tasty guitar and nasty slides but buried under so much corny country shit and old school 50s grooves that do nothing for me apart from annoy. Percussion is particularly irritating
Tsg nelabai. Bob dylan draugelis. Blogiausia daina buvo apie tai, kaip nenori nusipirkti nagų, nes patinka, kaip skamba ant pianino....ir girdisi dainoj tie nagai.
Why is "honky tonk music" the way my mind wants to define this album? Right, because Joe Ely sings about it ALL the time. There's nothing wrong with this album but nothing stands out either.
Anyone up honking they tonk?
It wasn't terrible. But this isn't really targeted at me. I'm not interested in this southern brand of Americana at all.
Not a country fan.
What the heck is a "Honky Tonk," and why does he have to say it multiple times throughout the album?
I'm not into the Honky Tonk thing at all.
Bättre country än den vi hört en del av i detta projekt. Men knappt. Lite mer singer-songwriterfeeling. Sen visar det sig att den överlägset bästa låten, boxcars, är skriven av någon helt annan än Joe. Så nu vette fan. Låg runt en trea, svag. Men tror nog Joe får en tvåa tillslut.
Den första låten var inget vidare men sen tändes ändå hoppet med andra och framförallt tredje låten Boxcars, som är skivans absoluta (och tyvärr enda) höjdpunkt. Därefter är det faktiskt inte särskilt bra eller i varje fall inte i min smak.
Too much honky Tonk. Not my album, I think there is better country music around.
This just didn't resonate with me the way other Texas singers do
Sounds a bit average to me, listened fully to this at least once and sadly did not pick up many memorable moments. Just your average country album it seems so probably around 2 stars and 2.5/5.0 on RYM
Boxcars is a fun one but otherwise, this one just washed by in the background without any real impact. I think for what it is it is fine, but it just wasn't really for me. High 2.
Lidt for country TSK
The song about long fingernails is fucking weird, and not in a good way
Country Jerry Lewis. Not really necessary.
Wow really not my thing
Best Song: Boxcars. If the whole album was full of songs like this, it could have been merely boring instead of downright annoying. Worst Song: Fingernails. Absolute dollar store Jerry Lee Lewis. Overall: Why is it that the only type of tonk we ever hear of is honky tonk? I find it telling that there are no examples of non-honky tonk.
I don’t like Honky Tonk. Extra star for musicianship
A decent country album today, enjoyed the last track a lot but a lot of the rest simply passed me by as it’s not my thing, high 2 from me
Not my style of old country at all. Much prefer outlaw.
2,4/5
I am somehow not familiar with this album or Joe Ely at all. Which is surprising because it sounds like most of what I was exposed to listening to WIVK every day growing up in East Tennessee. And I'm sure he was in heavy rotation on that station back then. As a teenager I would have hated this. Having (mostly) shed my lifelong disdain for all things Country, I don't love it but I definitely find it listenable and interesting. I'm now reading the Wikipedia entry for Ely and I can't believe this dude toured with The Clash. (He sang backing vocals on "Should I Stay Or Should I Go?"!!!) Time really is a flat circle. "Fingernails" is bizarre.
Snore country
More country.
This is why I hate country music. This guy has some great ideas and I was impressed the way the songs would jump between grooves! Everything was clearly thought out. But. And I mean but. The lame country lyrics, that horrible country twang, and the synthy honky tonk really brought this album down. I listened to this album while doing school work in my classroom. It really brought down my already miserable Sunday morning. It was listenable. Just. 2 stars.
This was OK. I get it, you're from Texas. Starts off slow, then picks up a bit. Not for me.
How cliche. My pick em up is broke, my honey left me, wha wha wha. 2
de rocknummers vallen mee.. het echte countrywerk is niet aan mij besteedt (en al zeker niet als er bijbelse taferelen mee gemoeid zijn)
Decent country blues twang thing in places; noise and sub-standard country shit in others.
I laughed listening to this - it's like a self-mocking meme. There are several good moments, but there's also "....pickup truck is actin' up, the sewer is backin' up..." and a reference to "...mah dawg...."
Some cool guitar work but probably won’t be coming back to this one
Just a regular country album, don’t know why it’s so revered, if you’re really into country you’ll like this album
recórcholis :/
It's a country album
brz brz
Polished, but still finding all this honky tonk country to be shallow, dull and soulless.
The arrangements are a far cry from the stultified country schlock churned out by the overwhelming majority of country music artists during the late 1970s. “Boxcars” alone almost defies categorization, and it’s a shame there aren’t more songs like it on the album. As it stands, there’s too much nostalgia-ridden hokie-ness in just about everything else to warrant its “progressive country” reputation. I would take it in a heartbeat over most of the god-awful pop/country and outlaw country prevalent at the time, but that isn’t saying much.
20 seconds into the opening track and things have already spun on its head! I couldn't figure out what this album was meant to be. Sure, it's country, but those random balladry-electro-swing-bluesy moments, gawd knows, did I enjoy it? I dunno, maybe, I'm so confused!
I don't like country, but this was kind of okay. I would consider listening again if the mood struck me
I can appreciate some old country like this at times but its generally not music I gravitate towards. The standout to me was the ending guitar solo in Boxcar.
Country 2,5
Old country, extremely honky tonk. To much even.
4/10 So this is where the horrible sanitised music if Garth Brookes. Lame and disappointing
Hmmm…strange rockabilly meets Hank Williams thing happening here. Not wild about it. Only managed 3 tracks…
Someone needs to make forgettable background music. This album pairs best with a lukewarm beer and bar peanuts.
I did not need to listen to this before I died. Personal enjoyment: 2/5 Relevance to this list: 1/5
70s Country... just ok.
Well produced, but country is just not for me…
Cornbread moon is the sort of thing Chat GPT would come up with, this whole album had a bit of an uncanny valley feel to it actually. Still not a country fan but to be fair this guy could sing a bit and it was a short album so I wasn't immediately begging it to end. But it's pretty bad and I won't listen again. 1.5.
I quite enjoyed the first track which was a surprise given a lot of the other country albums we've had on the list. I do think this was better than most of the others, but it still doesn't really grab me. As far as country goes though, I enjoyed it. 2.5
Starts off strong with Cornbread Moon. Unfortunately, that’s as musically ambitious as this album gets. After that, every song just sounds like a different version of a song you’ve already heard. Very generic country.
Great if you want to drink moonshine and stare longingly at someone across a cornfield I guess
I heard the first 10 seconds and instantly guessed the time this album came out. Not necessarily a bad thing. The fact that I don't love it was a bad thing however.
It wasn't really my thing. Good for me to experience it nonetheless, given all the praise by critics
Pretty standard - I'm sure there's a reason critics like this guy particularly, but it goes over my head.
Heard enough to know. It’s not for me. 2.25
Normalito, sin más. Es un disco muy plano donde todas las canciones suenan prácticamente iguales. Sonido country clásico sin pretensiones. 2/5
There is nothing objectively terrible about this album, and I can understand the appeal of this is the type of music that you gravitate towards, but it’s just not for me. There are very few country albums that I like, and this one can be added to last list. Sure, it’s composed fine, and it’s not a mess of sound, but I just found myself bored while listening.
It was fine overall but not great Standout songs Boxcars
Track 1 - Cornbread Moon Changed vibes several times which I thought was cool, pretty stock standard twelve bar blues type stuff. Literally "they're groovin'" meme. Track 2 - Because of The Wind Some absolutely beautiful guitar playing, gives very melancholy but nothing super crazy. Track 3 - Boxcars Some absolutely insane instrumentation, is that an accordion? Not too bad. Track 4 - Jericho (Your Walls Must Come Tumbling Down) Not much to say about this one, kinda just generic late 70s - early 80s country shit. Track 5 - Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown I didn't know the accordion could sound so gorgeous. Also his guitar is fantastic. Track 6 - Honky Tonk Masquerade Ooooh shit we got a title track! Unfortunately I have very little to say about it, it's perfectly fine. Track 7 - I'll Be Your Fool I fucking hate that sort of yodel voice Track 8 - Fingernails Gross fingernails sound but kinda a vibe Track 9 - West Texas Waltz I think I'm getting sick of the accordion. This song did have me swaying though. Track 10 - Honky Tonkin' Back to just some good fucking vibes. Thoroughly enjoy this one. Summary Ultimately I already know that country isn't super my thing (with some exceptions) but I am impressed with the instrumentation in some points of the album. There's some really cool parts where old country meets new which I really really appreciated but I can not for the life of me get past Joe Ely's vocals. They are very impressive but his tone is just not for me. Might give it a relisten one day, also might not. 2.5-3
Not my thing, sounded like generic upbeat country music. The piano is good. Fav track is "Fingernails" it was kinda funny and had an enjoyable piano. 2/5
First impression pre listen: White guy with a guitar on the cover? Check. Cliche southern motif in the title? Check. A two word "average joe" name? Check. Will this be the least interesting thing ever created? I don't know, but all the signs are pointing there. The more contemporary country tries to be the less I'm likely to like it. So far country has had to have some stripped back folkiness to it for me to really appreciate it. This does not look like that. Going into this with low expectations and hoping for the best. Individual track notes: Cornbread Moon Mixed really loud. Very "blues-rockey". Steel guitar sounds nice. Did not expect it to be so jammy. Bland and corny premise. It's fun and some good energy to it. Fine. 3/5 Because of the Wind Very cliche. Typical pandrering country crooning, makes me fall asleep. I get it... Texas. I guess the slide guitar is kind wobbly and cool. Minus points for rhyming "bend" with "wind". Strongly dislike. 1.5/5 Boxcars Cool opening, the instrumental sounds almost in distress. Tropey as hell. Whatever makes that alarm like sound in the transition is pretty cool. (guitar maybe?) Great keyboard solo, love how it transitions into the guitar solo. Fun and attention-grabbing track. Good. 4/5 Jericho (Your Walls Must Come Tumbling Down) Middle of the road. The castle imagery is pretty fun I suppose. Okay premise. Fine. 3/5 Tonight I Think I'm Going Downtown Whole song went by without me finding anything to comment on. This speaks for itself. The only emotion I felt was annoyance at having to type in the title. Dislike. 2/5 Honky Tonk Masquerade Definitely a song. The musical equivalent of a plain ricecake. Inoffensive but as bland as it probably gets. Dislike. 2/5 I'll Be Your Fool I mean the little yodel he does in the opening is kinda cool. I like that he continues the gimmick throughout the song. Let's not talk about the rest of the song. Average. 2.5/5 Fingernails Kinda charming premise I suppose. I hate the way he says "piano". Very rock n roll. Kinda anticlimatic solo. Decent energy. Average. 2.5/5 West Texas Waltz It's very hard to get more cliche than this. Only missing "dirt road" at this point. Tells a story which panders to a nostalgia that is very hard to relate to unless you're from West-Texas or similar regions. Dislike. 2/5 Honky Tonkin' That I have had to type "honky tonk" multiple times today says everything you need to know about this album. The song does what it says on the tin, nothing more, nothing less. Kinda annoying to be honest, though it sounds like he's having heaps of fun at least. Predictable but harmless, got a decent atmosphere to it at least. Fine. 3/5 Final Review With this entry Joe Ely joins the elite company of George Jones and Steve Earle in the prestigious "male-country-artists-I've-given-a-2-to-club". It's a WIP name, but the main idea behind it, is that it's a club for cliche-laden, inoffensive sounding filler country with little replayability. It's not where you'll find the worst of the worst, instead it's the grade slightly above royalty free slop. It's not bad, it's not even notable enough to be boring. It just goes by, barely registering before it ends. This album specifically has maybe half a dozen moments where you'll actually realize there's audio playing. About a third of them are unpleasant, another two thirds are pretty cool, though half of those moments are in a single song. The rest melts into the background, and is exactly what you'd expect by looking at its cover. It's an overall forgetable experience, but at least I didn't want to rip my ears off. 2/5
Unwichtig.
Starting an album with a song called Cornbread Moon is tough. I almost feel like this is a parody album. Very few listens and baffled why this is on the list. Even the instruments bother me and seem more poppy than country. What's with the synths? Made it halfway through and had to stop. 3/10 (1.5/5)
Good album, classic country music. Solid listen. 5.9/10
classic country
Ok, I'll give it a spin. Puns galore. This is a Saturday night at the bar located on the city limit line. Lot's of sweaty beer bottles and trips to the bath room. Is this early Bro-Co? If your a country band you need the steel guitar and Joe Ely does.
Not really sure how this made a top 1000 album. It’s listenable enough but it’s hard for me to say this album is anything unique or interesting. Just a bunch of country western Texas trope
Not really my thing.
No gaire el meu estil, curios la vritat
Cornbread Moon - 2/5 Because of the Wind - 3/5 Boxcars - 4/5 Jericho - 3/5 Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown - 3/5 Honky Tonk Masquerade - 3/5 I'll Be Your Fool - 1/5 Fingernails - 1/5 West Texas Waltz - 1/5 Honky Tonkin' - 1/5 Average score: 2.2/5 i had a feeling this would be a big fat 3 just looking at the album title i was wrong it's a 2
Not sure why this is here when there is so much better and exciting country albums from that era that could have taken its place. It came off pretty generic and no songs really stood out. I didn't hate it but wish we had more Kris Kristofferson or Waylon Jennings on here
2.5
36/1001. Unknown artist for me, and I can't really claim to be a country music afficionado. By the third song I think I have to get to know the artist and the genre better, but then Jericho drops the mood down, and it just keeps going down. A promising 4 turns to 2 as I walk by the railroad tracks towards the next album.
I’m sure country music fans appreciate this more than I do.
I'm not an expert on country music, and don't really enjoy the genre in general, but this album for me doesn't really rate that high, even in comparison with other country albums. The first half of the album is quite alright, and I didn't mind listening to it, but the second half just sounds kind of goofy, with bad lyrics and instrumentals. All in all, not a very enjoyable listen
Not really an album for me. I won't be going back to it. 4/10
I wanted to be harsher on this one because it still does nothing to change my negative opinion on country music. However, despite disliking the majority of songs I have to admit that the guitar work was pretty impressive, he can actually play.
джинсики крутые у старины. в глории джинс брал наверное.
It was a nice fluid country album, just not my thing
Was hoping this would sound a bit more classic, but I guess the late 70s is still too new to sound like the kind of country music I really enjoy.
This is some Honky Tonk bs Eagles did it better. This album is basically a tequila sunrise but boring and lame singing
Country + nick cave vibes. 2
As i’ve got older, i’ve found more ‘country’ music seepiing into my music. Modern country is not that fair from more mainstream Americana or more general modern folk. This is not that. This is old fashioned county with lots of Honky tonking. Best i can say is that is generally easy listening and moves along at a reasonable lick
It wasn’t awful, but it wasn’t close to being good either.
"Ely sang backing vocals on the Clash single "Should I Stay or Should I Go?"." 😳 I always, without listening to much at all, assumed I didn't like Country music. It turns out that's true. I liked Boxcars, and can objectively see this is probably a good example of a Country album, but it just doesn't grab me like other genres of music. 2/5
Correcto
Pretty boring, all sounds mostly the same country from the 70s
decent record, country ain’t really my thing all that much but tidy
I like the pedal steel, but that's the only thing I like about this record. It's not awful, but it's far from great. Current rating is 2.68. That's pretty accurate. Somewhere between 2 and 3. Closer to 2 for me. Favorite song: boxcars.
I like country but I didn’t like this. I’m trying to figure out why but I can’t quite place it. Too much rock? Corny in that 70s way? His voice isn’t very interesting either (I like my country singers to sound like Randy Travis ooo baby). I feel like I’m dining at a Famous Daves listening to this. I’ll give it a 2 because I appreciate it being 33 mins and he didn’t try to hot dog his way to an hour 15.
..
Vomissement incessant, suivi d’une période de paix intérieur, enchaîné par une immense diahrée
Not a genre I enjoy. Some of the songs were fun, despite the subjects.
Argh, country and horns and harmonium and that all in a stompy setting. Whatever that might represent to the genre's lovers, for me that is too hardcore. Likely the same as UK anarchy for country lovers. Execution is flawless, production flawed an flat
3.5/10
Throughout these past 4 years I've discovered that not only do I actually not hate all country music but I legitimately enjoy quite a bit of older country; outlaw, folky type music etc. ... This is not one of those. I can't say it's *bad* because it probably isn't for what it is, but... with a combination of twangy American vocals + slide guitar + semi-predictable chord progressions + plaintive paeans to the midwest plains .... I'm sorry we're just never going to agree on this - I just don't enjoy it. 3/10 2 stars.
cool but not my style
I suppose this isn’t a terrible country album, but there’s something about it that feels weirdly and vaguely inauthentic. It really feels like a guy playing country music, rather than a country music singer playing music. That’s not to say it’s objectively bad or unenjoyable to listen to, but it’s not really something I personally enjoyed. It’s almost like this is a turning point when country music started going down a very questionable road, which has led to the absolute nightmare of the current Nashville music scene. Is this proto-pop-country? Unclear but I won’t be listening to it again. 2*
Not for me. I can see how this is different than some of it's contemporaries, but I just don't see the appeal. 2/5
Honkey tonk basic
I don't mind a good honky tonk song/album, but felt this was more of a straight country album. I know some may ask what's the difference and I probably couldn't appropriately explain, but there is a big difference to this listener. Anyway, thought Joe was OK. Reminded a little of Alan Jackson at times. A few decent tunes and probably would enjoy more if I had a few beers in me, at a live show. Who am I kidding, beer makes everything better. Cornbread Moon and Honky Tonkin were my favorite tunes. Got a little too country at times, but overall, thought this was an OK album. Not sure why this made the list, but here we are. 2
2 This list has opened my mind up to some country music, but this really didn’t do it for me at all. It had more backing instrumentation to it than I was expecting, resulting in a sound that almost bordered on rock at times, but I think that was actually to the album’s detriment - it largely came off to me as feeling overproduced. I think I like my country music a bit more stripped back, and this is not that. At the very least, it should have some sort of interesting songwriting to grab me, and once again, this does not contain that either. Wtf is a Cornbread Moon? Boxcars at least made me think of Boxcar by Jawbreaker, and the opening reminded me of A Horse with No Name by America, but it was ultimately nowhere near as good as either of those tracks. The religious song sucked, and don’t even get me started on Fingernails… I physically cringed imagining the dude’s long, dirty-ass fingernails hitting the piano keys. This is also coming from a chronic nailbiter, so do with that what you will. Ultimately going with a 2 being that I didn’t find this outright terrible - this is one of those albums that I would say falls more under the “not for me” category than it does the objectionably “bad” category. Still, as someone who has Nashville as a bucket list destination, this is the exact kind of honky tonk I’d like to avoid.
There’s a couple tracks I liked, but isn’t really the kind of country music I usually go for. 5/10
Hmmm. Not for me.
This is tough, but not horrible enough to warrant a one
Honkey tonkey?
It's exactly what it says on the tin, so I can't fault it for that. A dull, uninspiring listen nonetheless.
Buen country setentero, pero el 78 iba por otros derroteros con discos que marcaron época: The Man Machine de Kraftwerk, debuts de Kate Bush, Pere Ubu, Magazine, , Public Image Ltd., Dire Straits, Police, The Only Ones, Devo, The Cars y Siouxsie and the banshees, (también Chris Rea y Midnight Oil), así como discos esenciales: C´est CHic, Plastic letters y Paralell Lines, Some Girls, This year´s model, Darkness on the Edge of Town, Incantations, Équinoxe, Ambient 1: Music for Airports, All mod cons, Some girls, One Nation Under A Groove, Outlandos d´amour los directos de Cheap Trick, Thin Lizzy, Bob Marley, AC-DC y The last waltz, e incluso Grease.
Kind of sounded like that song in team America world police, that goes “what would you do?”
Pretty chill twangy county. Not my cup of tea, not sure why it's on the list, but an okay listen.
It was alright, not really my jam tbh.
it was a bit boring tbh and I still haven't go a clue about what a honky tonk is, even though i have heard so many songs about them
Somewhere between “Trying to Do Too Much” and “Line Dancing Lessons on Groupon,” this record is a unique brand of bad. The opener, “Cornbread Moon,” sets us up for failure right away, bouncing between vibes in a way that feels dishonest for a country boy. The production is also as clean as a whistle. For 1978, this sounds as sharp as 1988, but that isn’t a compliment here. What should sound sincere and raw sounds workshopped and dishonest. Thankfully, the opener is the worst offender, although the whole record suffers from the shine of overproduction. “I’ll Be Your Fool” does have some of that vibe shift in its bridge, and “Boxcars” does not need that extra guitar up front, but at least “Boxcars” is a song that can win you over with hooks. To me, that’s the bigger issue here. Honky Tonk Masquerade is pretty much hookless. I’ll support “Boxcars” in a cheesy sort of way, and the title track does have something to it. Hell, I’ll even admit that I can gel with “Fingernails” for wholeheartedly being both silly and Nashville. The rest of this record, though, has very little to latch on to. Maybe if I liked this style of country more I’d be sold more easily, but like, I’ve been known to enjoy a Queer Line Dancing Night or two, so I think I can be broken by good quality honky tonk tunes. Joe Ely just doesn’t have any to offer me. I think “Jericho” and “Honky Tonkin’” are perhaps the two worst offenders, because they try to burn the barn with a wet matchbook. The entire rest of this record is slow dance country, with all the pathetic blandness of every romantic tune Nashville tried to churn out in the ‘80s. I think that might be the most frustrating thing about Honky Tonk Masquerade. For a Texas man, this screams Nashville in its emptiness, so much so that I wasn’t surprised to learn that it actually was recorded outside of Nashville. And that inauthenticity is palpable on every track of this record. I feel like I’m listening to a record any Joe Shmoe could’ve made. It just so happens that this Joe Shmoe was Joe Ely. Sure, he has his moments despite the production’s shine and basicness, but they are few and far between, and what’s between is more frustrating to listen to while you wait for something mediocre to come up.
hmprf
Ik ben gene country fan, maar ik heb geprobeerd. Klinkt wat te Amerikaans. 2.1
< the Beatles
primera canción jamás se me había ocurrido que se pudiera meter un acordeón a hacer punteos de roquerito, ahora entiendo perfectamente por qué. La segunda de repente me transporta a estar tomándome la quinta budweiser en la barra de un bar de nashville con señales de carretera en la pared y deprimentes luces de tonos rojos y morados, arropado por mi sombrero de cowboy, de ahí lo de honky-tonk, claro. Empieza la tercera y ya estoy hasta la p**la de este disco, aun quedan 7 temas, pero bueno la guitarrita esa que aparece primero en el 1:20 tiene un puntito, VUELVE EL ACORDEÓN, la echaba de menos, ahora hasta me gusta. Lo voy a acabar pero la review está hecha, el disco da lo que promete: las pivas nunca entendieron a los vaqueros, emborráchate, juega al billar, súbete al toro mecánico y reza para que no llegue terminator a pedirte amable pero taxativamente que le des tu ropa, tus botas y tu motocicleta.
Country blows, this not as much
It was forgettable
Absolutely nothing wrong with this, just not for me at all.
1.5 Got as far as the first 5 seconds of "I'll be your fool". I should get a medal of honour for that. Can we please have an option to filter country out of the list?
"Honky Tonk Masquerade" wasn't so bad! TBH country just isn't my thing but this was a very tolerable country album.
Meh
Ekki minn tebolli þó hann hafi verið vinur Strummer.
Eh, not my kind of country.
Right... Just how many "honky tonk" albums must this generator give me? I've really tried to keep an open mind and in some cases, but I'm really struggle. Buck Owens was a little interesting for breaking with tradition and influencing Johnny Cash. But now it seems that we've gone backwards from that with a return to traditional honky tonk country. Ok, I guess it's well made, production is clear, Ely throws in some unexpected choices like the odd accordian or electric guitar. But sorry, I just don't really see the appeal of this sub-genre. It has made me crave some cornbread though.
Honk honk
Nothing revolutionary for its time - in fact, I'd argue that it's a step backwards for 1978 - but it's perfectly passable as an average country-rock album. The production is slightly too clean to be from the 60s, but other than that, Joe Ely may as well be a spitting image of his predecessors. Even the slide guitar feels too perfect, too stereotypical, for me to unironically enjoy it. Instead, this is just kind of bland, empty, soulless stuff that fills an album-length of time adequately. Nothing more. In addition to the numbers of Spotify listens, which indicate that this band isn't popular, there's no way in heck Honky Tonk Masquerade belongs on a list of the 1000-odd most important albums in history. 2/5 Key tracks: Cornbread Moon, Boxcars
Fingernails was the only song on this album that I genuinely enjoyed listening to. I started skipping about half way. Giving it a 2 for making me stop skipping temporarily. When I don't know a genre, all I can fall back on is "did I find this interesting/entertaining to listen to", and this album failed pretty hard for me.
I’m not into country and had never heard of this. It was pleasant but forgettable.
I see your toes you little freak. This entire project is teaching me that, 99% of music made isn't bad, isn't good, it just is. Some folks might be struck a certain way by it, most folks won't be. That's alright. You don't have to enjoy everything. 2
I like country, I really like outlaw country. I was excited because I thought “hey I don’t know this one maybe it’s an uncovered gem!” It wasn’t. Surface album that’s only stand out point was how often I thought he was playing a different song, then came in with lyrics that were in fact not that song. Forgettable and I could have died without hearing it.
Good clean music - just don't love me honky tonk unless I am in Nashville, which I am not.
Meh
Honky tonk isn’t my thing, but “Boxcars” has a dark and interesting vibe. Nothing else stood out to me or broke through the trappings of the genre, but Ely has a good voice that fits well.
I feel like there's a story here. Robert Demery, the creator of 1001 Albums..., was reluctantly dragged out to a country bar by a friend where Joe Ely happened to be playing. Not wanting to be there, he drank a bit more whiskey than intended, and caught the eye of a not unattractive Joe Ely fan. Maybe he learned to line dance from said fan. By the end of the night, they were clinging drunkenly, sweatily and sexily to each other and could barely make it back to the fan's one room apartment before they were tearing their clothes off of each other. With strains of Honky Tonkin' throbbing in his ears, Demery had a night of love making the likes of which he had never before experienced and hasn't since. From that day on, he's held out that Joe Ely is a genius musician and one of the only "true" country artists. This story would be about the only reason I can discern why this album would be one of the few country albums on this list, as opposed to the literal thousands of others that would be more worthy.
Only tolerable because of some great guitar solos.
I had a very hard time believing my country ratings are above my overall average because of albums like this. But the I see the generator categorizes some albums as country that I don’t think of as country (CSN, The Eagles). Agree to disagree.
First song is a banger then it's all downhill from there. The fingernails one is extra weird.
Remarkably not offensive at all
If you liked this kind of stuff, I’d say it would be great. He has a good voice. However, I do not like this kind of stuff.
Really not up my alley making it hard to rate objectively.
Too much honky tonk.
I mean sure, ok. Wait, why is there an accordion? What is going on with this first song? It can't decide what it is. A few tracks in, everything is more or less as random, and I don't know why I'm listening to this, so I'm going to stop trying to work it out and instead tell you about retired professional wrestler, the Honky Tonk Man. The Honky Tonk Man once had the longest Intercontinental Title reign in WWF history, at 454 days. He held this record for over 35 years, when it was finally broken by a far superior performer, Gunther, in 2023. The match when Honky dropped the title to the Ultimate Warrior at Summerslam '88 is objectively funny, and extremely short, go check it out. Honky would dress as an overweight Elvis with a huge face and terrible hair, and twat people with guitars and generally cheat to win or DQ to keep the title, which is obviously good heel work. I had a feeling he would be a massive bell end in real life but I cannot find any solid evidence for this (other than the fact he has maintained that hairstyle to this day, but I guess it is his livelihood) and so I will therefore not state it.
southern accent, steel guitar, the usual. First 10 seconds promising, but then it changes and is just run of the mill country
I enjoy the honky tonk mix of country and rock to an extent. A few redeeming qualities, but some of those sad wind songs were too much.
I do enjoy the sound of a steel guitar. This album didn't wear my patience down as much as other country music, but nah, still not a fan of this genre. Might be fine if you're out dancing a two-step (in small doses).
This one is tough to decide. I am generally not a fan of country, but this isn't the usual country: there's some inventive stuff going on here, with a lightness without the usual twanginess. I liked Boxcars and Cornbread Waltz was pretty good. I disliked both the imagery and vocals of Fingernails, but the tune is a bit of an earworm, and it is a fairly original set of lyrics despite being distasteful. I did not like Because of the Wind because I didn't like the instrument, although stepping past that, it was a reasonable representation of wind. Tonight I Think I'm Going Downtown was the most stylisticly like the country I don't like. Hard to decide: I might listen to a couple of these again, but I probably won't seek out the album overall. Strong 2 stars, but just not quite enough for 3.
At least the album title accurately described what was coming...
Just not for me.
Three or four nice songs but the rest are pretty run-of-the-mill and non-memorable. 4/10
Honky Tonk has to be the corniest sub genre of country around. I literally cannot distinguish between singers or songs in the genre.
Just country music to me. Fairly inoffensive, but not my style.
I've listened to enough honky tonk on this list to know it ain't for me.
A couple of grooves, but not really my kinda honky tonk.
Ok country.
Classic country. Not really my style, but it's certainly well executed.
It all merged into one for me. Not really feeling it.
1970s honky tonk with a Texas focus - not my style at all, but I guess it's okay if you like the genre (a la boot-scootin' boogie)
Didn't feel like there was a lot to this one
First listen. Nah.
Pleasant background noise
Not for me. Sophomoric lyrics and totally predictable melodies. Some creativity in the guitar playing but for the most part it's just par for the course honky-tonk/country.
Well made and fun, but not crazy good by any means. Doesn't feel like a landmark album for anything. Favorites were Boxcars and Fingernails
Why is this album on the list?
Jakie jest country każdy widzi. A to nawet, moim zdaniem, nie jest jakieś dobre country. Chłopiec z gitarą i niewiele więcej. 5/10 zaokrąglone w dół, bo czas zacząć się szanować.
Boxcars is a solid song, so is Jericho, though Cornbread Moon is just silly. Though this delivers on the promise of honky tonk for sure. I mean good god they say it enough in the lyrics.
Didn't really like this. It had a lot of elements that I might usually enjoy, but they were not put together in way I enjoyed. 2/5
country né pra mim não papo reto
Just not good enough to be on here...
Turns out I don't like honky tonk music. I guess it was short and a couple of the tracks weren't too awful, so I'm going with 2 stars.
C+ country. The Texas Waltz was fun, but other than that there is nothing here for me that I’ll be coming back to.
What the shit is going on here lads? That’s like a moog synth pretending to be an accordion or something? Weird. And then it settles down to standard boring country. Not my thing.
Exactly what the title implies. Completely mediocre. 2.5/5
This was a bit too country for me.
Meh american rock country
Honky Tonk 2/5
If you’re gonna country, you might as well full country.
Not Bad. Just C&W
Makes me want to eat grits and spit tobacco. But as a tofu eating member of the European wokerati, this is not a good thing.
There are two genres of popular music that I really don't care for, probably because of cultural background. The first of this is hip hop, and the second is country and western music. My heart sank a little when this album came up, particularly since I aim to listen to each album two or three times. Perhaps mercifully, this one is only 33 minutes long. Aside from the tooth-grating C&W flourishes such as yodels and pedal steel, the album is at its best when Joe Ely is rocking out. Unfortunately those moments are all too fleeting. I can't really rate this particularly highly, though I note from Wikipedia that Ely was quite broadminded when it comes to crossing genre boundaries. I think this and subsequent albums may have been more influential than I know - for example on The Clash's growing interest in Americana.
Decent for that type of music.
Honky Tonk - it's a waste of good musicians.
I don't hate it. But I don't like it.
någon nånstans kallade det här för progressiv country och någonstans kan jag väl höra det, det är inte 100 % rak country, en lite pluspoäng för det.
This is a masquerade alright! I tried to keep an open mind, but I don’t see at all why this album is on the list. Two stars because it might be the best honky tonk out there.
I honestly thought I was going to like this a lot more. It's just ok.
At best I wasn’t completely annoyed by this… until Fingernails came on which just grossed me out.
Not really my thing.
Reminds me of the music my mom would put on when we had to clean the house on the weekend. Not horrible, but not something I'd choose to listen to on my own.
Classic country. Not my thing, but didn't hate it
I'm learning that the early '80s, And the late '70s leading into the early '80s was a pretty distinctive era, regardless of the music genre. It's crazy how you can hear it even in country western. This was fine, dated though.
Sounds corny most of the time, but there are a few instrumental moments that gets interesting here and there, mainly the use of a moog, which I don't really remember hearing on a country album
This guy clearly didn't shoot the sheriff.
I'm sure this man has never urinated on a railway or jumped from a moving train.
Honestly, not my thing.
I did not enjoy this
Folk country aburrido.
I hate this genre so much soz I was so bored
🥱😴
Listenable, but old fashioned country music is not really my jam. 2,5
Late 70's Honky Tonk..........FFS I've just listened to Throbbing Gristle before this. My head is messed up but this is so mainstream it could be a theme tune to a corny 80's TV show. I can't bring myself to hate it though and I truly love Joe.
4/10 Look, this was very well made country rock, I get it, but it just wasn’t for me. Good voice, nice mixture of traditional and modern instruments, nice vibe to the whole thing. Just not for me. Best: Jericho
Some okay stuff here, but I wouldn't doubt if you could trace today's (mostly) terrible country music to this.
I can tolerate a little country, but not this.
Keeps those fingernails long so he can make that chalkboard sing. Nice to have my ears bleed a little before I die.
If I was in a pub in Tennessee I'm sure I would want to listen to this music. But I couldn't be any further away from there, so it is just basic background music which is nice, but not something I would revisit again.
I'm a huge fan of classic country. There's nothing memorable about this album.
I don't understand how it is that, whenever the words "Honky Tonk" are uttered, ot makes the song sound exactly the same as every other song that uses the same phrase. At least this album has some scattering of more unique lyrics and instrumentation scattered about, but not enough to raise it much in my estimation. Preferred track: probably "Boxcars."
Honky Tonk Masquerade is a disappointing end to a fairly good week, it's prosaic country with a bit more tempo to it, fun at times (Cornbread Moon, I'll Be Your Fool) but really it's not anything special (Fingernails is enjoyable too but it's a standard blues shuffle you've heard from hundreds of acts) and we've had better country or country-adjacent albums. Probably only a high 2, I don't care for it much.
Another filler album, without the decency of at least having one big hit on it. Pretty generic country plus (the plus being a bit more energy and more of a backing band), but, yeah, nothing we've not had better before. 2/5.
A lot of country.. too much for me
Yeah, nah. Really? Why is this on the list? The mind boggles.
It's ok but it doesn't speak to my heart the way other country music does.
I tough it was just another country album from a singer not so well known when i received it. I was correct this time but it at least contaims some sparklings of old rock n roll. It ewas fun to see these signs with good guitar work.
2 fine but forgettable
First two songs had me thinking that this album was going to be pretty bad but Boxcars brought me back into the fold. That was the best track. The rest was underwhelming
Middling
Not my thing