Bill Kirchen: If He Had A Hammer

Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods
Bill Kirchen
(Proper American)

The title track to Bill Kirchen's new disc, "Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods," is an ode to the functionality and versatility of one of the world's most famous electric guitars � the Fender Telecaster. Equally adaptable is Kirchen, who ranges far from his much-deserved "King of Dieselbilly" persona on an album that takes the honky-tonk twang and applies it to hard country, ballads and R&B equally well.

Kirchen, who made his name in the '70s as the guitarist for Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, kicks off "Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods" with a simple but quasi-mythical tale of the Telecaster's creation:

Well they put six strings on a maple stick
Stuck it on a slab of ash
Sold one to Luther, threw in a pick
Sent him out with Johnny Cash

The Tele wasn't forged on Mount Olympus, of course. It was "born at the junction of form and function" in Fullterton, Calif., by Leo Fender and company. For more than 50 years it has served, nearly unchanged, as the sidearm of choice for many guitar slingers. Kirchen starts with the Tennessee Two's Luther Perkins, but the honor roll of Telecaster players listed in the song suggests the range of records the guitar has graced: country players Buck Owens & Don Rich, Merle Haggard & Roy Nichols, Jimmy Bryant and Waylon Jennings; bluesmen Muddy Waters and Albert "Iceman" Collins; rockabilly cat James Burton; masters of many styles Roy Buchanan, Danny Gatton and Redd Volkaert; rockers Keith Richards, Chrissie Hynde and Bruce Springsteen; and soul man Steve Cropper.

There are hearty helpings of Tele twang on the title track and "Get a Little Goner." Kirchen also offers up a country barroom weeper, Blackie Farrell's "Skid Row in My Mind." But it's the variety showcased on "Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods" that distinguishes the disc from some of Kirchen's other work.

The philosophical "Rocks Into Sand" starts with the provocative line "Before fish ever walked on land / Time was turnin' rocks into sand," and the rest says "serious singer-songwriter" more than anything else. "Working Man" dabbles in doo-wop. "One More Day" is an acoustic slice of Western swing. "Heart of Gold" captures the Sun Records rockabilly vibe.

Country and soul are by no means mutually exclusive, and Kirchen does a fine job of showing his soulful side here. "Soul Cruisin'" sounds just like its title. Kirchen's cover of "Devil With the Blue Dress" echoes the Shorty Long original, which is considerably slower than the famous Mitch Ryder cover. The disc closes with a convincing cover of Arthur Alexander's "If It's Really Got to Be This Way."

Like the roster of Tele-toting players in the tile track, "Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods" is a study in diverse styles. The tasteful playing Kirchen exhibits on the tour proves he's worthy of being included in the company about whom he sings.