ALBUM BACKGROUND:

This record is similar to the first one in that it is still pretty raw and basic rock n' roll that's far from slick; the kind you don't hear much these days. Its different from the first Mambo Sons cd in many ways, the greatest reason being that we are now a band vs. a collection of musicians playing in the studio. The first record was done in parts, with Kenny Aaronson coming in at the end to lay down the bass. This was recorded more live, rhythmically speaking, with the four of us (including Jeff Keithline on bass) playing together... I think the energy is better this way.

Drummer Mike Hayden debuted his brand new set of DW maple drums on this recording, and Jeff played his favorite vintage electric bass, a 1966 Guild Starfire with a special switch that did something magical. Unlike the first record, I played all the guitars which I really enjoyed. Our pal Rick Derringer helped us out on the first one, which was awesome, and he volunteered for this one but we couldn't coordinate it, timing-wise. I did get to experiment with layering different guitars, tones and amps based upon what I was hearing in my head. With the exception of my Brian Moore, the album is made up primarily of well worn vintage guitars and amps.

As open G tuning is mandatory for rock n' roll, I used it on about ½ of the tunes to give them that "Stonesy" feel. Makes for some unique chords... My buddy Jay Blood turned me onto the Marshall PA20 head, which when coupled to a 4x10 or 4x12 Marshall cabinet is a great sounding amp that sounds bigger and better in the studio than the 50 and 100 watt Marshalls. I did use the '65 Vox AC30TB a lot too, although it was getting tempermental toward the end (must have been the lack of air conditioning in the studio!).

Scott and I wrote these tunes and thematically, they deal with lust, longing, rebellion, desperation, sadness and most of all, commitment. Having played in blues bands for years, the album title refers to a common concert cry we used to hear a lot from the drunks, the rednecks and the hecklers (it also clears up any confusion associated with the type of music we play)..you know "Play Free Bird....Play Some Rock & Roll!" After laboring over the mixes, the project was mastered by Jim Chapdelaine. We're selling it through the website and through www.cdbaby.com and our West Coast distributor www.OMNICIDErecords.com. We also will ultimately play some gigs to promote it! In addition, you can purchase off www.Amazon.com. - Tom Guerra (November 14, 2002)

THE SONGS:

I Get Around Too Much

Scott: This was my Mott the Hoople tribute song. "Once Bitten Twice Shy" had already been covered (sadly, and horribly, by Great White) so we were forced to write our own version. We decided to kick the CD off with a pair of straight ahead rockers, which was also inspiration for the "heckler inspired" title of the full length release. The lyrics? Well, let's just say I refer to my notes for the last track.

Tom: Musically, its an open G rocker that started life as a country blues instrumental I wrote about 10 years ago called "Freddie Surfs"...we slowed it up and I tried to play like a combination of Billy Peek and Mick Ronson. Scott came up with some very greasy lyrics for this one......our bassist Jeff Keithline, who joined us after album #1, joins us after verse #1 in this tune.

Equipment used: 1972 Fender Tele through PA20 for rhythm; lead - '65 Gibson SG Special into the PA20

Blame It All On You

Scott: Just like "Exile on Main Sreet", It has a nice, snotty, "F### OFF" quality to it. I love that mid-70's Rolling Stones sound, which is what forged Tom's musical friendship with mine way back when we first met as schoolboys.

Tom: Kenny Aaronson's (first Mambo Sons bassist) favorite song off our first cd was "Tomonga Street", and he told me to write a bunch of riffs in that open G style. One day while messing around in the studio, I played the riff to "Tomonga" perfectly backwards. Kept the chords, changed the key, and there you have it...With apologies to Johnny Winter. The double tracked slide riff is indebted to Mick Ronson on David Bowie's "Hang Onto Yourself."

Equipment used: Gibson acoustic J45 and J200 and 1958 Strat through the Vox AC30 for rhythm. lead - '58 Strat into PA20, manually double tracked.

Come On Back

Scott: A shameless attempt to write a hit single, it wrote itself. I love pop music, and have recently "come to grips" with alot of what came out in the 80's.

Tom: This one started life out as "Thanks For Coming Back to Me" and it just came to me while walking around my house with an acoustic singing (offkey of course) "You never give me something else" for the verses. Scott came up with the new lyrics and together we put together a pop song. I love Mike's drumming and Scott's Robert Plant yelp in the middle. The hammer-on solo in this was influenced by The Yardbirds "Over Under Sideways Down"...

Equipment used: 1956 Gibson Paul TV Special into PA20 for rhythm, lead - '70's reissue paisley Strat through Marshall 3203

Strawberry Hill

Scott: Strawberry Hill is in a section of Northampton, Massachusetts, where I live with my wife and two cats. It's very green and quiet and suburban, but 2 miles down the road is downtown NOHO where all the beautiful freaks live. I achieve a good karmatic balance living out here. Phil Lynott crept into my voice while I sang this... he was just too cool... kind of like Van Morrison as a Hell's Angel.

Tom: I came up with the music for this while vacationing last September at Cape Cod. It was right after 9/11 happened and I started playing that melancholy lick over and over. Initially recorded it on a clean Strat, but opted for the Thin Lizzy treatment of harmony leads.

Equipment used: Gibson J200 and 1964 Strat into PA20 for rhythm; leads using same setup and Tubescreamer

River Is Wide

Scott: My vote for the City of Hartford, Connecticut's song to advertise the riverfront revitalization project... C'mon, Mister Governor, what do you say? Seriously, we obviously like T-Rex a whole lot. Nobody in the USA really did when we were growing up, but I've got most of his records...even the "dodgy" ones, which I still love, because of their undeniable spirit and catchiness.

Tom: The first four bars is an obvious nod to Marc Bolan's tune "Mambo Sun"...The riff is something that I first started playing on both necks of my doubleneck, hitting the open chords on the 12 string neck while playing the riff on the 6 string neck. The initial solo sounded just like Dickie Betts but eventually we paired it down to the repeating major riff. Had the conga player from a local reggae band sit in with us for it cause we couldn't get Mickey Finn.

Equipment used: Brian Moore into PA20 for rhythm; leads are 1976 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe goldtop into Big Muff into the Marshall PA20

Little Live Thing

Scott: Little Live Thing is dedicated to the memory of Novelist Wallace Stegner and also dedicated to the victims of 9/11/01. When you write and record a song, an energy (or "vibe") is usually in the air, and this one had a very compelling feel to it, especially within the world weary refrain of the chorus, "Can I cross to safety now?" To me, the song is about loss, recovery and survival.

Tom: I started writing a tune called "California On My Mind" and this was the riff from it. It's a 1-4-5 in open G, but it uses a straight major scale vs. the pentatonic scale. I wanted a rhythm guitar solo for the middle, which is what you hear. It's a Les Paul through an old Gibson Discoverer amp and Tweed Champ. Overdubbed the atmospheric slide to give it some depth...

Equipment used: 1985 Les Paul Standard into 1962 Gibson 8T Discoverer and 1959 Tweed Champ

Our Time Is Getting Closer

Scott: Gene Clark should still be alive and writing great songs. I heard a very "Byrdsy" feel in Tom's riff... like something off of "Turn, Turn, Turn". I'm a HUGE Byrds fan (as are the rest of the guys in the band) and this was a natural song for us to come up with. A complete joy to record!

Tom: George Harrison had just passed away and I was thinking about the joy The Beatles gave me through my parents albums. Wrote it on the Rickenbacker 360 12 then double tracked the riff with my white Gibson EDS1275. Mike and Jeff are doing a Ringo and Paul thing, rhythmically.

Equipment used: Rickenbacker 360 v 64 direct and also into the 1965 VOX AC30 TB, clean 1964 strat for rhythm too, into PA20

Rockaway

Scott: The one "power ballad" on the record. I certainly tried to emulate the rock star power vocalists from bands like the Who, Free and Humble Pie. We wore our influences on our sleeves for this one... Steve Marriott should be covering this!

Tom: He's dead though, so we are doing it for him. The guitar is my '64 Strat lead into both a 50 watt Marshall and Vibrolux reverb...the lead is a slow burner that I imagined Paul Kossoff would have tracked.

Equipment used: 1964 Strat into both 1966 Vibrolux Reverb and 1970 50 watt Marshall into 4x10 cab

'79

Scott: "That 70's Show" needs this song as their opener. Start the letter writing campaign now! New York Dolls and Iggy Pop all show up in this track. As an extra treat... we thought that a sound clip from a Movie of that year would be a nice touch, and Tom came up with "Grease". I heard Travolta's voice, and I couldn't stop laughing!

Tom: Travolta sounds like such a liar! This is Big Dumb Rock at its finest. Used the intro snippet from "Grease", a movie that came out in '79 which I haven't seen to this day. Open G Korina Flying V through the Marshall 3203 and Brian Moore through the Marshall 20 for the lead. Played slide in this because a shreddy solo would have been too cheesy. Love Jeff's bass playing in this one...

Equipment used: rhythm - 1983 Korina V into Marshall 3203; lead - Brian Moore into Marshall PA20

What You Got

Scott: Everybody needs to write a Beatles tune! I was thinking "lets write another single" and, inexplicably, Sugar Ray came to mind. I eventually came back to my senses and decided that John Lennon was a far better influence to adopt.

Tom: Again, lots of 12 string here. This one started out as "Safe To Say Your Secret's Safe With Me" but I hadn't bought a de-esser yet! For the solo, I tried to cop that George Harrison / Badfinger double tracked lead sound, and I played it on the Gibson EDS1275 12 string neck, approximating intonation!

Equipment used: 1985 Gibson EDS-1275 for both rhythm and the harmony slide leads, into 1965 VOX AC30TB

Everything Was Mine

Scott: I just made up a story of a spoiled brat who struggles to get the attention he craves, only to lose himself within a faceless job. Sometimes when you write a song, you write about your own experiences, sometimes somebody elses, but it's up to everybody else to decide what the song means to them. We rocked it out, that's for sure!

Tom: The demo for this one was called "Time Was A Time" and this is basically the same song with better lyrics. Kind of a Beatle-y riff, made more so by the fact that it was recorded through a '65 AC-30. The energy when we recorded this tune was amazing, even though it was the last song we recorded. Jeff's doing this walking bass thing and it works great with Mike's blasting. The solo is another major key thing that is a pseudo-arpeggio thing, recorded on the Brian Moore through the Marshall PA20.

Equipment used: 1958 Strat into 1965 Vox AC30TB for rhythm; and Brian Moore through PA20 for lead

All songs (c) 2002 Tom Guerra and Scott Lawson (BMI)

THE PLAYERS ON "PLAY SOME ROCK & ROLL!"

TOM GUERRA - Guitar and Vocals

SCOTT LAWSON - Lead Vocals

MIKE HAYDEN - Drums

JEFF KEITHLINE - Bass and Vocals

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