Red Guitar: Based On A Blue Story Jangle rock peaked about two decades ago, but
Based on a Blue Story is a nice reminder of why people liked it so much the first,
second and third time around. This Kansas City five-piece is centered on the harmony
vocals of songwriters John McKenna and Nick Nave, who channeled the dusty, sweet
harmonies of the Jayhawks and the '60s yearning of the Connells into a comfortable
and comforting sound of their own. The band's nondescript name comes from the mysterious
song "Inarticulate Blue" (Heart like a red guitar/A red candle dreaming), and though
not particularly marquee friendly, the tag does the band justice. Red Guitar isn't
afraid to sound mournfully pretty on "Rosemary" (the kind of song everyone wishes
Ryan Adams would slow down and write) or the banjo-filled "Better Way to Move On."
Its melancholy has enough depth to move into new territory opened up in the '80s,
during the first "rediscovery" of Gram Parsons. By Mike Warren Article Published
Feb 12, 2004
The Pitch
Red Guitar: Based On A Blue Story
Red Guitar: Based On A Blue Story Sometimes a really good album lands in your lap
that you just didn't see coming. That's what it's like to pop in Kansas City band
Red Guitar's debut, "Based on a Blue Story." Out of nowhere these guys come along
with a moving rock album driven forward by acoustic guitars and piano with a tinge
of country reminiscent of the Gin Blossoms or the Jayhawks. Songwriters John McKenna
and Nick Nave have released a simple, slick album with beautiful songs and flawless
production. That might sound a little too slick for some tastebuds, but really it's
just a good Midwest album that appeals to basic pop sensibilities. "Based on a Blue
Story" has some real personality. The album isn't anything new or innovative. It's
not going to change music, the world or anyone's political views. It won't even
make you think much. But it's good, solid songwriting with modest, well-executed
musicianship and a very listenable and irresistible sound. The album starts on a
good foot, with "Jump Out On the Water," one of those driving-down-the-highway-to-something-new
songs. The band reveals its Eagles influence as they sing "All the lonely hearts
out on the freeway / Are shining like a desparate parade." "California" is a late
stand-out track with a slow drive backed by a falsetto wail before the first words
of the Wilco-esque vocals proclaim: "We were dreamers and we could listen / We could
see farther than we could believe / Yeah, we're watching the skies / Above California."
The album's got a couple of slow spots, but overall, this is a very solid release.
By JJ Duncan RockKansas reviewer
Rock Kansas
Red Guitar: Beauty Will Save The World
CD of the Day: Beauty Will Save The World It's time for some power pop and roots
rock straight from the heartland of America - Mission, Kansas, the home of Red Guitar.
Their brand new release Beauty Will Save The World is turning out to be one of the
more enjoyable releases of this barely 2 1/2-month-old year. Red Guitar seems to
be an amalgam of The Jayhawks, The Gin Blossoms, Matthew Sweet and a slower, midtempo
Weezer (i.e., "Island In The Sun"). There really isn't a bad track on this album,
which came to my attention during a recent wade-through of cd baby releases. Things
start off smashingly with "V-Day", which has a bit of "With or Without You" U2 behind
the verses, but the chorus is pure power pop. The title track follows with a more
modern sound, kind of like Millicent Friendly, for those familiar with that fine
2005 release. "Leave It In Another Day" is a slight bit slower, but with a punchy,
anthemic chorus, and "The Sting" is where the "midtempo Weezer" sound is most apparent.
And the ones I'm not singling out aren't slouches either; most of the remaining
tracks have memorable chourses at the least. Discoveries like these are what make
the CD Baby listening marathons worth undertaking.