Jambalaya (On the Bayou) was a 50s country number by Hank Williams. The pace reminds one of exactly those meandering and circuitous swamps, and the lazy glance of alligators as they bobble between the cypress trees waiting to catch you unawares while enjoying a beer and jambalaya with your “cher ami-o”. You would think injecting rock energy into this kind of music would be very difficult. Enter Dash Rip Rock. With a high-octane, high-proof repertoire spanning 30 years and 13 albums, not to mention their Louisiana roots, this was almost second nature to them. Although I’d argue there is no speed slow enough for me to ever understand the lyrics – it’s a little like listening to Newfoundlanders (and I don’t mean it in any negative way).
This Jambalaya cover, of course, is just the tip of the iceberg. Since being inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame in 2012, Dash Rip Rock had put out a few more albums, the latest one is titled “Wrongheaded”, which we will no doubt find on the set list when they play at SXSW. While I can’t even begin to articulate the difference between roots rock, country rock, and Rock rock, I look forward to being enlightened while turning temporarily deaf.