A Record Store Day exclusive, the album serves as a tribute to Doug Sahm, featuring twelve songs that span Sahm's solo career as well as his work with the Sir Douglas Quintet and Texas Tornados. Alongside the main tracks, the album includes intro and outro segments with phone messages Doug left for Jay Farrar over the years.
What Worked
The connection between Farrar and Sahm go back to the early 90s and Uncle Tupelo, when Sahm guested on the final record of the band for a cover his song "Give Back The Keys To My Heart." It makes perfect sense for Farrar to tackle the Sahm catalog, sharing the same musical sensibilities he gives each song a chance to shine, showing off Sahm's songwriting and lyrical chops that have unfortunately flown under the radar of mainstream music fans. Sahm mixed country, Tex-Mex, rock, rhythm and blues, folk, and psychedelia, and the band both do him justice and sound inspired by the material, which will hopefully translate into stronger Son Volt albums in the future.
What Didn't Work
Those unfamiliar with Sahm and his body of work may not want this as entry point, as the tracks are mostly deep cuts and personal favorites, rather than some of his more well-known material covered by everyone from Willie Nelson to Los Lobos.
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