Willie Heath Neal's studio albums made the Georgia-born singer/songwriter sound like some kind of mix of the young
Steve Earle's hell-raising country-rock and
the Cramps' rampaging psychobilly, but the youngster wasn't up to the level of his influences yet. His fourth album is a lo-fi live recording of a representative set with his backing band, the Damned Ole Opry, and on
Live from Somewhere Unknown,
Neal's music finally gets its proper representation. The sound is authentically cheap, just this side of bootleg quality, with the low end and
Neal's out-front vocals largely obliterating his guitar work, but the energy level is about five times higher than it is on any of
Neal's studio records. Even better,
Neal shows off an excellent selection of vintage covers, including a rough-edged punky take on
Johnny Cash's "Big River" and a terrific heartfelt version of the classic
Ernest Tubb ballad "Thanks a Lot." Newcomers are strongly advised to start here. ~ Stewart Mason