The Bad Detectives – Look at Life
The Bad Detectives is a rocking 5-piece band from the United Kingdom that has released four albums on the Western Star label. Their history for over three decades goes through about as many versions as Microsoft’s software. Mark Hutton (guitar) and Chris Woodland (drums) first started performing together in 1974. Ivan Bojczuk (bass) appeared on the scene about 1978. Andy Stradling (drums) became a part of The Bad Detectives version 5, while Paul Tozer (guitar, lap steel) went through various bands in the 1980s and 1990s before becoming a part of The Bad Detectives version 8 (1997-present).
The generous album with 17 original tracks covers a lot of territory, but with a clear preference towards up-tempo rockabilly. They’re also not afraid to twang it up a bit with “Operators Are Standing By,” a humorous outlook on getting into a funk from so much junk. “Cider Safari” has a popular surf rock sound, “Peroxide Baby” establishes a convincing R&B groove, and I hear elements of some three-chord punk rock radiance in “The Drummer Owns the Name.” That song is a sad story about reunion bands reforming with session men “paid to play the game…and take us once around the block.” Let’s hope it never happens to these guys. I appreciate their originality, and I’d encourage them to explore even more kinds of rock-related music, rhythms and tempos without ever sacrificing their irreverence, self-deprecating humor, or bright spirits…the ways they “Look At Life,” if you will.
The band is clearly an experienced, cohesive unit that knows how to function in collaborative fashion. Although a little frenetic at times, their basic formula also has a distinctive contemporary and English flair, some elements that I think would be unique and appealing if they can cross over into the American market. Songs like “The Dunmow Flitch” and “Ton Up Vicar” definitely raise my curiosity. The bottom line is that they like to boogie. The album jacket includes all song lyrics, some serious but most are tongue-in-cheek. Most of them flow fairly smoothly from the lips of all five of the musicians who sing, but a few (e.g. “The Ballad of Bono’s Hat”) sound a tad awkward. In all fairness, “(She’s Gonna Give Tom Jones Her) Room Key” comes off with drive and tightness. These hardworking musicians, older and wiser after a few decades, seem in tune and know what’s “proper” and right for their fans. (Joe Ross, CD Insight)
