The Marshall Tucker Band

I can distinguish Tucker from the other boogie bands because they favor cowboy hats, but danged if I can tell their albums apart. Country people know one cow from the next, too, but poor deracinated souls like me refuse to be bothered until A&P runs out of milk and r&r runs out of gimmicks. Toy Caldwell does write pretty good songs for a boogie man, though, about one a year to go with the album, and it's nice to have them all in one place. Pure boogie mythos, with lots of "Ramblin'" and "Searchin' for a Rainbow," though I'm pleased to report that there are more miners and, yes, cowboys here than gamblers, a reassuring token of social responsibility. I recommend this album. It's as near as you can get these days to hearing that old steam whistle blow. (Grade: A-)