The Courettes: “Hold On, We’re Comin’” (2024) CD Review

The Courettes are a garage rock duo with some punk and 1960s girl group action added to the mix. Basically, these two create music that is a whole lot of fun. The duo is made up of Flavia Couri, who is originally from Brazil, on vocals, guitar, bass, piano, organ, Mellotron, and glockenspiel; and Martin Couri, who is from Denmark, on drums, percussion, Mellotron and backing vocals. They are joined on this album by Soren Christensen on piano, organ and Mellotron. And they are joined by, or rather, they are joining the original artists on these tracks. So they are creating new layers to existing songs, a strange sort of collaboration. Perhaps unnecessary, but certainly enjoyable. Hold On, We’re Comin’ features all covers, several of them from the 1960s, including “Wait A Million Years” and “Never My Love,” but also some more modern songs, including a Taylor Swift tune.

The album opens with “Hold On, I’m Comin’” from Sam & Dave, this track having the great raw energy of the original, because it sort of is the original. The Courettes add a drum part to the beginning to get the song going, and also add some nice vocal touches, echoing certain lines and phrases. The track feels like a live recording, with a whole lot of sound coming at us. “Hold On, I’m Comin’” was written by David Porter and Isaac Hayes, and was a hit for Sam & Dave in 1966. That’s followed by “Wait A Million Years,” a song by The Grass Roots (erroneously listed as “The Grasroots” on the back of the CD case). And again, there is such a great force once the song kicks in. They are clearly having a great time adding their own flavor to these songs. I love what Flavia Couri adds vocally, “I would follow you/If you want me to.” That’s an area where they especially leave their own mark.

The Courettes then move into the 1970s with “Shake Some Action,” the lead track from The Flamin’ Groovies’ 1976 album. Again, there is so much power, so much sound, it will make you think of Phil Spector productions. They add some energy to this number. The disc again moves forward in time to the early 1990s for The Cramps’ “Bikini Girls With Machine Guns,” and things become even more fun. This track seems to be a cover, not a collaboration, with the Courettes taking over lead vocals on this song: “Well, I’ve been a drag racer on LSD/And I rode bare-assed on top of the Sphinx.” This is one of the best tracks. The original version comes from The Cramps’ Stay Sick! album. Then it is back to the 1970s for Johnny Thunders’ “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory,” which was on his debut solo album, released in 1978, and is another great choice. The energy is there, and these guys add something of a 1960s girl group vibe to it, particularly in the rhythm.

They return to the 1960s for “Never My Love,” my favorite song by The Association, one that gets in my head frequently. The Courettes give it more of a garage sound, which doesn’t diminish the joy and love of the song. And they add a final little something at the end. That’s followed by “Baby Now That I’ve Found You,” another song from the 1960s, this one being one of the two biggest hits from The Foundations. The album then takes us to the very early 1960s with “Stay,” a song that Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs released in 1960 (though apparently Maurice wrote the song several years earlier). It was later covered by several other bands, including The Four Seasons (which makes total sense). It is the Zodiacs version that The Courettes are joining on here. That is followed by another song from the early 1960s, “Peppermint Twist,” by Joe Dee And The Starliters. This track is a whole lot of fun.

They switch gears then with the Taylor Swift song, “Shake It Off,” the only song on the album with which I was not already familiar. Like The Cramps song, this one is a cover, rather than the band joining Taylor Swift on the track. The Courettes give the song something of a 1960s vibe and it works quite well, particularly that spoken word bit, which is wonderful. I don’t dislike Taylor Swift (the little I’ve heard so far), but I absolutely prefer this rendition by The Courettes. The album concludes with another 1960s song, “Come A Little Bit Closer,” which was a hit for Jay & The Americans. It was written by Tommy Boyce, Bobby Hart and Wes Farrell. Boyce and Hart were responsible for several of the great Monkees song, and this song predates that band by a couple of years. The Courettes add a great deal of energy and sound from the very beginning, plus an excellent guitar part in the middle. They also add to that jam near the end. A very cool ending to the disc.

CD Track List

1. Hold On, I’m Comin’
2. Wait A Million Years
3. Shake Some Action
4. Bikini Girls With Machine Guns
5. You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory
6. Never My Love
7. Baby Now That I’ve Found You
8. Stay
9. Peppermint Twist
10. Shake It Off
11. Come A Little Bit Closer

Hold On, We’re Comin’ was released on May 24, 2024 on Cleopatra Records, and was released on both CD and vinyl (the vinyl is red). The vinyl does not include the final track.