Tommy Thomsen: Crazy ‘Bout Her Gravy — In the Studio At Last!
Tommy Thomsen called up his old friend, Kathryn Frederick out of the blue one day and said was coming up to Portland, Oregon with his little rescue dog, Lucy, and he’d love to visit and maybe even jam. So she brought together some of her musician friends, they all came by one Sunday evening, plugged in on her back porch and what happened was magical, what another old pal, Travis T Hipp once described as a “hillbilly backyard barbeque band.”
So about a year later, Tommy returned with another old buddy, B.B. Morse (bass player for Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and countless others from Flaco Jimenez and Huey Lewis to Jeffrey Frederick) and Kathryn took them into Gregg Williams’ studio, the Trench, along with some of her Portland boys – Turtle VanDemarr (Guitar), Dave Reisch (Bass), Roger North (Drums), Paul Brainerd (Pedal Steel and Dobro) and Lex Browning (Fiddle and Sax). The goal was to showcase this triple Western Swing hall of famer’s downhome singing and playing in a relaxed studio setting… and, again, magic happened.
The CD begins with “Bar Talk,” a hilarious compilation of what the late Michael Clark heard through the floors when crashing at Silver City, Nevada’s infamous Golden Gate Bar. Deeper in, you’ll find Tommy’s cover of his late, great pal,
Norton Buffalo’s “Watching My Children Grow,” perhaps the most serious and emotional tune on the record. There’s just one original, “Crazy ‘bout Her Gravy,” which Tommy wrote as Kathryn was fixing dinner one day, featuring his honky tonk piano (and making you want to scream, “More! More!).
The rest of these 11 tracks are an eclectic mix of country, jazz, blues and Western Swing standards, from “I Always Get Lucky With You,” “Redwing,” and “Hesitation Blues,” through a gorgeous version of “Trouble in Mind.” Tommy’s sonorous baritone soars and dips over the tight ensemble playing and solos, reminiscent of Bob Wills’ bandleader style, letting you know why this Sonoma, California hometown boy has won the hearts of country greats like Johnny Cuviello, Rose Maddux and Slim Pickens, and audiences around the world.
You only wish there were more of Tommy’s originals on the album and more of that hard-driving piano. It’s clear why he’s such a legend, why his record release party was sold out, SRO, with Western Swing dancers driving 70 miles to fill the huge dance floor. And it’s also clear why producer and engineer, Gregg Williams is himself a legend.