The Reverend Revisited

Hi-Fi Stereo
Reverend Organdrum
(Yep Roc)

Jim Heath, aka “The Reverend” in Texas rockabilly/punkabilly/psychobilly trio The Reverend Horton Heat, has always had great guitar chops. The problem is those skills have a tendency to be overshadowed by his flame-trimmed suits and the fierce fuzz blaring from Heath’s big, orange Gretsch.

In Heath’s new side project, Reverend Organdrum, the amps are turned down a bit, and the musicianship is cranked way up. Instrumentally, there’s a major alteration: Slap bass is replaced in this trio with the Hammond B-3 organ, manned by Tim Alexander (formerly of Asleep at the Wheel). Todd Soesbe rounds out the lineup on drums.

There’s another significant difference. Twisted humor, a staple of Reverend Horton Heat recordings and shows, doesn’t factor into Reverend Organdrum’s debut disc, “Hi-Fi Stereo.” (With the possible exception of a brief segue into Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs”). There’s not a “Wiggle Stick,” a “Cowboy Love,” or a “Bales of Cocaine” to be heard. Instead, “Hi-Fi Stereo” comprises a set of covers representing a wide variety of American music from the 1950s and ’60s.

There are songs associated with crooners Frank Sinatra (“Bim Bam Baby”) and Dean Martin (“Ain’t That a Kick in the Head”), a couple of cuts from composer/arranger/conductor Henry Mancini (“Experiment in Terror,” “A Shot in the Dark”) and themes from film (“James Bond”) and television (“Route 66”). Famous soul men James Brown and Ray Charles receive nods via “Night Train” and “I Got a Woman,” respectively. And, perhaps predictably given Heath’s background, “Hi-Fi Stereo” includes two numbers gathered up from guitar heroes: Duane Eddy’s “Moovin’ and Groovin’” and T-Bone Walker’s “Strollin’ with Bones.”

More than any other artist, though, the influence of Booker T. & The MG’s is apparent on “Hi-Fi Stereo.” The mostly instrumental 18-song set includes five tunes – “Hang ’Em High,” “I Got a Woman,” “Can’t Be Still,” “Groovin’” and “Time is Tight” – recorded by the organ-oriented Stax Records house band still regarded as one of the finest outfits in rock history.

Booker T. & The MG’s were renowned for their tight grooves, and Reverend Organdrum likewise puts the focus on the group dynamic rather than showcasing a soloist, though Heath and Alexander each get plenty of time in the spotlight. Heath, whose playing ranges from twangy to bluesy to jazzy, is at times is much more of a sideman than a frontman. On the keys, Alexander certainly lives up to the high standard set by Booker T. Jones and Jimmy Smith, among other notable organists. The interplay, on display in tracks such as Bill Doggett’s “Honky Tonk” and Duke Ellington’s “C Jam Blues,” contributes to the overall success of “Hi-Fi Stereo.” Though many of these songs are familiar, they never sound tired.

In the dirty-joke and double-entendre world of Reverend Horton Heat, “infectious” might have a less than pleasant connotation. On Reverend Organdrum’s “Hi-Fi Stereo,” it’s merely referring to good, clean fun.