More Songs of Route 66: Roadside Attractions, a follow-up to the 1995 various artists album The Songs of Route 66, Music From the All-American Highway, is, like its predecessor, a project put together by
Asleep at the Wheel drummer David Sanger for his Lazy S.O.B. Records label. It can be thought of as an
Asleep at the Wheel side project, featuring the band itself on one track ("Albuquerque") and band members like Cindy Cashdollar and
Jason Roberts on others. The idea is to create a musical trip along Route 66 on its way from Chicago to Los Angeles, utilizing existing songs like the inevitable "Route 66," "Sweet Home Chicago," "You Came a Long Way from St. Louis," and "California Sun" where possible, and adding some newly written ones to fill in stops such as Tucumcari and Gallup. The musical style shifts with the geography, beginning with Chicago blues, including a large portion of Western swing, and concluding with rock and folk. (Particularly notable is the previously unrecorded
Woody Guthrie/
Pete Seeger composition "66 Highway Blues," sung by
Steve James, which closes the disc.) Sanger has assembled a talented team of musicians ranging from established figures like
Marcia Ball to up-and-comers like
Two High String Band, most of them hailing from Texas. The sound is consistent from one track to another, making the whole album sound like a really good night in a roadhouse somewhere along Route 66. ~ William Ruhlmann