Kitty, Daisy & Lewis "Mean Son of a Gun"
Published May 16, 2008
I don't know what's more baffling about this adorably named trio: the fact that they're aged 16, 19 and 18 (ages are according to name) or the fact that they're from London, England of all places. Why is that? Well, they sound like a proto-rockabilly band who were cryogenically frozen in a block of ice around 1950 and thawed out 50 some odd years later, a la Brendan Fraser in Encino Man. Kitty, Daisy & Lewis Durham were raised on a diet of R&B, swing, jump blues, country & western, blues, Hawaiian and rock'n'roll by parents Graeme Durham and Ingrid Weiss, who also serve as guitarist and double-bassist, respectively, when they perform live. If Ms. Weiss' name looks familiar that's because she was the drummer for the late, great post-punk act, the Raincoats. The only thing cooler than that is the trio's music.
Following a regime that includes strictly recording without the use of computers, the band are so serious about the authenticity of their music that they release all their shit on 45s and 78s. They already have a two-disc compilation out called A to Z: Kitty Daisy & Lewis - The Roots of Rock 'n' Roll, and are set to release their eponymous debut on July 28 via Sunday's Best (with a limited edition 78 rpm box-set consisting of a hard-bound book with five sleeves, each of which contain a ten-inch record.
"Mean Son of a Gun" was originally released back in 2006, but finds itself a home on the new album. A cover of Johnny Horton's 1951 single, the threesome manage to avoid sounding their age, ripping through the 57-year-old number with tenacity and twang. Daisy's every bit the spitfire needed to pull of such a cranky tune, as her siblings match her 'tude with skills you'd never expect from someone too young to drink in Canada. Perhaps the best thing about this band is knowing that they've been at it for six years already.
A cover of Canned Heat's "Going Up the Country" is scheduled for release prior to the album on July 7.
Kitty, Daisy & Lewis "Mean Son of a Gun"