Review of "Selected Shorts," Dan Hicks' Latest

Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks return to the Narrows on Thursday, June 16. This will be Dan's 3rd visit; he sold out the first two, so if you're planning to attend, you should get your tickets soon.

Late last year, Dan released a new studio CD called "Selected Shorts." On the back of the CD case, Dan is quoted as saying (as only Dan can say), "No song too long!" How many musicians give that kind of guarantee? Dan continues to pioneer new concepts.

Of course, with Dan's dry sense of humor, the front of the CD has a drawing of a man in boxer "shorts," which is not what one would immediately think of upon hearing the title. But that's Dan. If you don't enjoy an extreeeemly dry sense of humor, you probably won't "get" Dan, which may be why he's not a household name. Still, he's probably selling out more concerts than he did in the 1960s and 1970s.

"Selected Shorts" has Dan putting on the "folk jazz" sound in a big way, with snappy numbers like "C-mon-A-My House," which I think was a hit for Rosemary Clooney fifty years back. But Dan promises more than "candy": he promises a laundry list of items such as a short-wave radio, wall-to-wall carpeting, some DVDs, some BVDs, your own sitcom, a backyard swingset, a deck of cards, a contract on your mother-in-law, a four-slice toaster and more!

Speaking of pioneering, Dan does a duet with the lead singer for the Butthole Surfers, Gibby Haynes. Maybe not a big deal at first blush, but this may be the first duet ever phoned in. Literally. In fact, the track is entitled "That Ain't Right" (Gibby Phones It In Mix).

By the way, Dan also duets, more conventionally, with Willie Nelson and Jimmy Buffet. But for the use of their names, there's really nothing special about what they do, though the one Jimmy Buffet sings on (he and Dan sound so much alike it's difficult to tell who's singing what), "Barstool Boogie," is destined to be a classic.

Perhaps the oddest track is called "First I Lost My Marbles," which features a spoken-word part between what sounds like cartoon characters. One of them wonders why the other doesn't call him anymore. "Is it because I have a mullet hairdo?" he inquires. "Well, I got one too," she replies. However, when he inquires whether he should change his brand of toothpaste, she replies "Maybe you should!"

My pick for a classic, along with "Barstool Boogie": "That's Where I Am," which has Dan deadpanning and proclaiming "wherever I go, that's where I am"--a kind of offshoot of "How Can I Miss You When You Won't Go Away?" from decades back.

If you love Dan, you won't be disappointed with "Selected Shorts," particularly if you listen to it a few times. There are a lot of subtleties worth searching for. Just be patient and listen closely.

For another observation on the CD, click here.