The Blasters: “Mandatory: The Best Of The Blasters” (2023) CD Review

The Blasters were founded in 1979 by brothers Dave Alvin and Phil Alvin, along with bass player John Bazz and drummer Bill Bateman. They became popular in the early 1980s with the release of their first couple of albums – American Music in 1980 and a self-titled disc in 1981. In 1984, they had a couple of songs featured in the film Streets Of Fire, directed by Walter Hill and starring Michael Paré and Diane Lane. Two years after that, Dave Alvin left the group to pursue other projects, and Phil Alvin kept things going with various configurations, to today when the band is nearly back to its original lineup, with the exception of Dave Alvin. Dave Alvin and Phil Alvin do play together, however, and I was fortunate to see them at The Federal Bar in 2014 when they were promoting Common Ground, an album they recorded of Big Bill Broonzy songs. Though they focused on Broonzy material at that show, they did deliver a great rendition of “Marie Marie,” a song that was included on both of those first two Blasters albums. That song is also included on the new compilation, Mandatory: The Best Of The Blasters. This disc contains twenty-one tracks, most of them coming from the band’s four studio albums released in the 1980s, presented largely in chronological order. This release also contains liner notes by Chris Morris.

The compilation gets off to a great and proper start with “American Music,” the title track from the band’s debut album, where it was also the lead track. It has a delicious rockabilly sound, which still completely holds up. It was great then, it is great now, and is very American, indeed. “We got Louisiana boogie and the delta blues/We got country swing and rockabilly too/We got jazz, country western and Chicago blues/It’s the greatest music that you ever knew/It’s American music.” This track features some excellent rocking guitar work. And speaking of American music, that track is followed by a cover of “Real Rock Drive,” a song written by rock and roller Bill Haley. These guys do a tremendous job with it, delivering more excellent guitar work, a great rhythm and a lively vocal performance. This song also comes from that first Blasters album, as does “Flat Top Joint,” an original song by Dave Alvin. It’s a song from 1980 that could have come from 1955, and it mentions some folks from that earlier era: “You know they got this jukebox/With Gene Vincent and Jerry Lee/Lightnin’ Hopkins and Jimmy Reed/And the machine, it plays for free.” Everything about this track is fun.

This compilation then moves to the band’s second album, that self-titled release, and includes several songs from it, including the first four tracks in order. The first is “Marie, Marie,” a song that had actually appeared on the first album as well. It’s a delicious rock and roll number, with something of a Chuck Berry rhythm. Phil Alvin gives one hell of a great vocal performance here. I especially love the way he delivers the lines, “I said hey, pretty girl, don’t you understand/I just want to be your loving man.” We can’t help but believe him. They keep the energy high with “No Other Girl.” “No other girl could take it/Another girl would just give in/Another girl would throw me out on the street/No other girl would take me back again.” Sounds like true love, doesn’t it? And listen to that work on piano. That’s Gene Taylor on piano; he would later join The Fabulous Thunderbirds. Then the horn section rocks on the band’s cover of “I’m Shakin’.” On this album, Lee Allen plays tenor saxophone and Steve Berlin (of Los Lobos) plays baritone saxophone. The band is clearly having a good time with this song, and at the center is that fantastic vocal performance.

They go back to original material with “Border Radio.” “This song comes from 1962,” Phil sings at one point in this one, and indeed it has that vibe. This track also features some wonderful work by Gene Taylor on piano. On that self-titled album, “Border Radio” is followed by “American Music,” as that song too had been re-recorded for that record. And then comes “So Long Baby Goodbye,” which wrapped up the first side and is also included here (so apart from that second version of “American Music,” the entire first side of the self-titled record is included in this compilation). This is another excellent and lively rock and roll song. The final song from the self-titled record to be included on this compilation is “Hollywood Bed,” a fun track that features great stuff on both saxophone and piano. “What’s that you say, you got a rich old man/I live on the streets, doing the best I can/Now he can call his friend, he can raise a fuss/He can call the cops, but he won’t find us/Hey hey hey, rocking in our Hollywood bed.” And how can you help but love that delivering of “Ooo-wee,” which itself of course calls to mind some early rock and roll, such as “Sea Cruise.”

The compilation then goes slightly out of chronological order with regard to release date, jumping to the two songs included in the 1984 movie Streets Of Fire, “Blue Shadows” and “One Bad Stud.” Both songs are performed by the band in the movie. I need to revisit that movie. I haven’t seen it since the 1980s. “Blue Shadows” features some rockin’ piano work and some great stuff on guitar, particularly toward the end. “No other place for me to go/No other place for dying slow/So I’ll be killing time in the blue shadows.” And “One Bad Stud” comes at us at a fast pace. It’s another totally enjoyable rockin’ number. “If he likes your baby, you can kiss your baby goodbye/Because the girls all love him like a schoolboy loves his pie.” Oh yes, this is a great reminder of what rock and roll can be.

The next three tracks are from the band’s 1983 LP, Non Fiction, beginning with that album’s lead track, “Red Rose.” This is one to keeping things hopping, and features some good stuff on guitar. “Well, we hid in the weeds and we hid in the grass/Listening to the cars on the highway pass/Then you put me to the test/One red rose on a new black dress.” The compilation then jumps to the last song of the first side of that record, “Jubilee Train,” a song about the Great Depression. The Blasters played this song at the first Farm Aid concert in 1985. The last of the three tracks to come from Non Fiction is “Long White Cadillac,” which opened the second side of that record. It’s a strong, rocking country number. Dwight Yoakam later covered it and had a hit with it. “The highway fades to black/I’ll take my time/In a long white Cadillac.”

This collection includes six tracks from the 1985 LP Hard Line (the same number coming from the self-titled 1981 record), beginning with that album’s opening track, “Trouble Bound,” which has a different beginning, the word “Trouble” repeated a cappella. Soon the band kicks in and things have a somewhat rawer vibe. “This old world is a tired place/The same sad story on every face/I’m trying to make a living during the day/Deep in the night I throw it all away.” Gene Taylor delivers some good work on piano. The band then gets further into blues territory with “Dark Night.” This one also has more of a raw energy, and a dark one at that, fitting for the song’s theme. “He held her so close/He asked about her dreams/When a bullet from a passing car/Made the young girl scream/I thought these things/Didn’t happen anymore/I thought all that blood/Had been shed long ago/Dark night/It’s a dark night.” And that was in 1985.

The tone then changes with “Little Honey,” which was written by Dave Alvin and John Doe. John Doe is of course a member of X, a band Dave Alvin would soon join after leaving The Blasters. This is a country tune. By the way, X also recorded this song, releasing it on Ain’t Love Grand! that same year, that version having a different sound from this one. That is followed by “Samson And Delilah,” a traditional song that the Grateful Dead also did. Phil Alvin did the arrangement for this version, which is a mix of blues and gospel. A pretty cool rendition. Then “Help You Dream” is an original song written by Dave Alvin, this one taking us back to the early days of rock and roll and featuring an excellent vocal performance by Phil Alvin. “‘Cause you’re the prettiest woman I think I’ve ever seen/And tonight if you let me I’d like to help you dream.” Oh yeah, I think that line would still work. And I love that work on piano in the track’s second half.

On Hard Line, “Help You Dream” is followed by “Common Man,” and so it is here. This is one of that record’s strongest tracks, a song about the bullshit that politicians spout in order to get elected. Here are its first lines: “He wasn’t born in a cabin/He never fought in a war/But he learned to smile and quote Abe Lincoln/And get his foot in the door/He knows all your problems/He shares all your dreams/When he laughs, his wife laughs too/As they ride in their limousine.” This song has more of an edge, which works so well. “He says he’s your friend/A friend of the common man.” People still fall for it. The compilation then concludes with “Kathleen,” an outtake from the sessions that yielded Hard Line. It was originally included on The Blasters Collection, released in 1991. Interestingly, this song fits more with what the band had recorded on its earlier albums. It’s a rocking, fast-paced number, featuring some fantastic stuff on piano, particularly during that final section, when the band jams. It’s a delightful way to wrap things up.

CD Track List

1. American Music
2. Real Rock Drive
3. Flat Top Joint
4. Marie Marie
5. No Other Girl
6. I’m Shakin’
7. Border Radio
8. So Long Baby Goodbye
9. Hollywood Bed
10. Blue Shadows
11. One Bad Stud
12. Red Rose
13. Jubilee Train
14. Long White Cadillac
15. Trouble Bound
16. Dark Night
17. Little Honey
18. Samson And Delilah
19. Help You Dream
20. Common Man
21. Kathleen

Mandatory: The Best Of The Blasters was released on November 3, 2023.