Charlie Overbey – distinguished practitioner of alt-country and all things Americana – enlists the services of a host of talented friends for his new album. In Good Company? He is, indeed!
Release Date: 26th July 2024
Label: Lone Hawk Records
Formats: CD / Vinyl / Digital
The full list of artists who have offered their considerable talents to help Charlie Overbey on his new album, In Good Company, is a long one. With friends like Marcus King, Jamie Wyatt, Nils Lofgren, Charlie Starr, Rami Jaffee, Jimmy Vivino, Duane Betts, Corey McCormick, Eddie Spaghetti, Taime Downe, Chris Masterson, Stuart Mathis, Danny B Harvey, Courtney Santana, Jon Graboff and Sarah Gayle Meech all stepping forward to take their turns, a stunning album is pretty-well guaranteed. In Good Company? Charlie Overbey certainly is!
There’s a joy that pervades the ten songs that comprise In Good Company and, regardless of subject matter (and, this being an album with strong country flavourings, there’s plenty of adulterous behaviour, drunkenness and marriage breakup on offer…) that joy shines through. In Good Company is a refreshing album.
Californian by birth and now resident in New Mexico, Charlie Overbey has country music in his blood. His father owned a 1947 Gibson J-45 and, so it seemed, it spilled out Johnny Cash tunes almost on its own. Young Charlie tried to resist, embracing punk rock, but the pull of country was just too strong. But punk stayed with him, too, and Charlie’s blend of alt-country, Americana and swaggering rock has earned him the nickname: The Punk Rock Spy in the House of Honky Tonk.
He’s been around – of that there’s no doubt. He formed his first band – cowpunk outfit Custom Made Scare – in the late 1990s and he still performs with his side-project, Charlie and the Valentine Killers and, over the years, he’s toured in support of artists as diverse as David Allen Coe, Blackberry Smoke, Motorhead and The Foo Fighters. And, as if all that experience wasn’t already enough to deliver a bulging CV, he’s also a fashion designer, designing and producing hats that have graced the bonces of such luminaries as Sheryl Crow, Miranda Lambert and Miley Cyrus. No wonder his list of friends is so extensive…
Charlie sets out his intentions for In Good Company from the word go with Punk Rock Spy, the album’s strident, confident, strutting bar-room rocker of an opener. Packed with raucous piano, vibrant slide guitars and a driving drumbeat, it’s just the thing to get you up off your backside and out into the backyard, where you can pour yourself a cold beer and disturb your neighbours by Jagger-strutting the afternoon away.
Lead single, Champagne, Cocaine, Cadillacs & Cash, features Charlie’s old buddies Marcus King (on guitar, B-3 organ and vocals) and Jamie Wyatt (on vocals). Described as “A story of true love, mixed with debauchery gone wrong,” it’s a classic alt-country ballad and an early album highlight. Charlie’s deep, resonant voice channels Waylon Jennings and Marcus’s organ flourishes are simply delicious. Marcus plays some nifty guitar licks, too, and Charlie can’t disguise the triumphalism in his voice as he delivers the song’s punchline: “I’d pray for you, baby, but I gotta go. I moved on a long time ago.”
It’s Springsteen, rather than Ol’ Waylon that comes to mind with the loud, joyful Stuck In This Town, a glorious mixture of gritty vocals, rich acoustic guitars, swirling organ and magical electric guitar licks, before the pace is slowed (but only slightly) for the contemplative Dear Captain. Acoustic guitars are to the fore, the harmony backing vocals add a gospel feel, and Charlie’s lyrics: “Don’t come to me to be set free, my ship sailed long ago, Dear Captain,” pull no punches.
Charlie ramps up the volume for Let Me Love You, a bluesy rocker with a great retro-50s sound. Corey McCormack’s bass runs are a delight and Charlie delivers a vocal that even Screaming Lord Sutch would be proud of. But it’s The Stones that spring to mind with Life Of Rock And Roll, another swaggering rocker that takes no prisoners and the second of the album’s four singles. Duane Betts (son of Allman Brothers co-founder Dickey Betts) chips in with some stunning guitar and the backing vocals – from Courtney Santana, Taime Downe and Eddie Spaghetti add a dash of soulful sweetener to the rocky concoction.
The harmonies are tight and Charlie’s interesting lyrics are well-presented on the nostalgic The Innocence, before Blackberry Smoke guitarist Charlie Starr joins the party for If We Ever Get Out. A wonderful, soaring ballad, it’s the latest single to be taken from the album.
Country rocker, Miss Me, would do credit to The Byrds. Although a song of loss, it typifies the album by leaving the listener with an overwhelming sentiment of joy. The harmony vocals are sublime and Jon Graboff’s pedal steel is a true delight.
And, to wrap things up, Charlie shows us that he’s up for a spot of fun with the hilarious Two-Minute Marvin. It’s the album’s most straight-ahead country song and the genre is the perfect match for lyrics like: “She’s out with Two-Minute Marvin and I know she must be starvin’ for the love I should be giving her tonight. That Goddam Two-Minute Marvin’s out there dancin’ with my darlin’ but he don’t know I’m out dancin’ with his wife.” Splendid!
Watch the official video to Champagne, Cocaine, Cadillacs & Cash – the album’s lead single – here:
Charlie Overbey online: Official Website / Facebook / Instagram / X (formerly Twitter) / YouTube
Keep up with At The Barrier: Facebook / X (formerly Twitter) / Instagram / Spotify / YouTube