LOS LONELY BOYS
''REVELATION''
JANUARY 21 2014
42:30
1 /Blame It on Love
Los Lonely Boys / Radney Foster/3:26
2 /Give a Little More
Los Lonely Boys / Matthew Gerrard/4:02
3 /It's Just My Heart Talkin'
Los Lonely Boys / Radney Foster / Gordie Sampson/3:29
4 /There's Always Tomorrow
Los Lonely Boys / Matthew Gerrard/4:03
5 /So Sensual
Los Lonely Boys/3:45
6 /Familia
Los Lonely Boys / Keith Harris / George Pajon Jr. / David Quinones/3:22
7 /Don't Walk Away
Los Lonely Boys / Matthew Gerrard/3:43
8 /Can't Slow Down
Los Lonely Boys / Matthew Gerrard/3:16
9 /Dream Away
Los Lonely Boys/3:21
10 /The Greatest Ever
Los Lonely Boys / Radney Foster/3:15
11 /Rule the World
Los Lonely Boys / Raúl Pacheco/3:16
12 /Everything About You
Los Lonely Boys / Raúl Pacheco/3:32
Carmelo Torres /Percussion
Fernando Castillo /Flugelhorn
Rushad Eggleston /Cello
Henry Garza /Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Keyboards, Vocals
JoJo Garza /Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Bass), Keyboards, Vocals
Ringo Garza /Drums, Guitar (Electric), Percussion, Vocals
Jeremiah Larralde /Accordion
Tom Peterson /Sax (Baritone), Sax (Tenor)
Lee Thornberg /Trombone, Trumpet
Kym Warner /Mandolin
REVIEW
By Stephen Thomas Erlewine
As the first album the band recorded after guitarist Henry Garza suffered a serious spinal injury when he fell off-stage during a concert, 2014's Revelation finds Los Lonely Boys revitalized. The Texan trio has never been constrained by genre, but here they let their imagination wild, dabbling in every sound or style that's ever tickled their fancy, easing into proceedings with a teasing bit of traditional Tex-Mex -- "Blame It on Love" opens with little more than guitar, accordion, and voice -- before diving into every roots or rock style they've ever hinted at in the past. This does include melodic AOR adult pop -- "Give a Little More" could be mistaken for the great lost outtake from Santana's Supernatural -- and one of the pleasures of Revelation is the ease with which Los Lonely Boys can do this kind of soft rock without losing earthiness. Much of this comes toward the front of the album, particularly in the one-two punch of the breezy island vibes of "It's Just My Heart Talking" and the sublime yacht rock homage "There's Always Tomorrow" (which could've torn up the airwaves in 1981), and although Revelation shifts gears toward the end of the album, accentuating both their conjunto and blues roots, they keep winding back to this easy melodic touch, whether it's in the steeped-in-the-'70s soul of "So Sensual" or crooning sweetly on "The Greatest Ever." Such a soft, welcoming touch is the thing crossovers are made of, and if there is an adventurous AAA station somewhere in America, it's possible to imagine about half of these songs providing the backbone of a regular playlist, but even if Los Lonely Boys don't strike radio gold with Revelation, its freshness proves that ten years after their 2004 breakthrough, the band is as lively as ever and, in some sly subtle ways, better than ever too.
BIOGRAPHY
By William Ruhlmann
Hailing from San Angelo, TX, Los Lonely Boys are a sibling trio whose music draws equally from rock, blues, Tex-Mex, conjunto, and tejano. Such a combination is shaped by the band's three brothers: guitarist Henry Garza, bassist JoJo Garza, and drummer Ringo Garza, Jr. The siblings' father, Ringo Garza, Sr., was a member of another sibling band, the Falcones, who played conjunto music around Texas during the '70s and '80s. After that group broke up, Garza went solo, backed by his three sons even before they reached their teens. The family relocated to Nashville in the 1990s, and gradually the sons emerged as a group separate from their father.
After moving back to Texas, the boys recorded their debut album, 2003's Los Lonely Boys, at Willie Nelson's Pedernales studio in Austin with Nelson sitting in. Epic Records picked the album up for major-label distribution in March 2004, resulting in a high chart placement for the album's lead single, "Heaven," as well as a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance the following year. The Boys released their eagerly awaited sophomore album, Sacred, in 2006, and Forgiven followed in 2008. A holiday album, Christmas Spirit, also appeared in 2008, and the band hit the road for an acoustic tour one year later, punctuated by the release of the covers-only 1969 EP. They released their last recording for Epic, Spirit of Christmas, in 2008.
Though touring nearly constantly, the trio has stayed deeply rooted to community causes. They recorded the single "Solid Ground," about the Family Justice Center of Erie County (which won the Austin-based CTK Foundation's Heart and Soul grant for 2009). The FJC provides services for victims of domestic violence. Written with poet Nancy Ghoston, "Solid Ground" was released in January of 2010.
During touring in the spring of 2010, JoJo Garza developed vocal problems. Physicians discovered lesions on his vocal cords and recommended that he rest them, causing the band to cancel its April and May appearances in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. This also pushed back the release of their debut independent offering, Keep on Giving: Acoustic Live!, their first release on the Lonelytone/Playing in Traffic imprints; the album was eventually issued in the fall of 2010. Los Lonely Boys returned with their first new studio offering of all original material in three years with 2011's Rockpango (a made-up Spanish word that the band translates to English as "rock party").
''REVELATION''
JANUARY 21 2014
42:30
1 /Blame It on Love
Los Lonely Boys / Radney Foster/3:26
2 /Give a Little More
Los Lonely Boys / Matthew Gerrard/4:02
3 /It's Just My Heart Talkin'
Los Lonely Boys / Radney Foster / Gordie Sampson/3:29
4 /There's Always Tomorrow
Los Lonely Boys / Matthew Gerrard/4:03
5 /So Sensual
Los Lonely Boys/3:45
6 /Familia
Los Lonely Boys / Keith Harris / George Pajon Jr. / David Quinones/3:22
7 /Don't Walk Away
Los Lonely Boys / Matthew Gerrard/3:43
8 /Can't Slow Down
Los Lonely Boys / Matthew Gerrard/3:16
9 /Dream Away
Los Lonely Boys/3:21
10 /The Greatest Ever
Los Lonely Boys / Radney Foster/3:15
11 /Rule the World
Los Lonely Boys / Raúl Pacheco/3:16
12 /Everything About You
Los Lonely Boys / Raúl Pacheco/3:32
Carmelo Torres /Percussion
Fernando Castillo /Flugelhorn
Rushad Eggleston /Cello
Henry Garza /Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Keyboards, Vocals
JoJo Garza /Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Bass), Keyboards, Vocals
Ringo Garza /Drums, Guitar (Electric), Percussion, Vocals
Jeremiah Larralde /Accordion
Tom Peterson /Sax (Baritone), Sax (Tenor)
Lee Thornberg /Trombone, Trumpet
Kym Warner /Mandolin
REVIEW
By Stephen Thomas Erlewine
As the first album the band recorded after guitarist Henry Garza suffered a serious spinal injury when he fell off-stage during a concert, 2014's Revelation finds Los Lonely Boys revitalized. The Texan trio has never been constrained by genre, but here they let their imagination wild, dabbling in every sound or style that's ever tickled their fancy, easing into proceedings with a teasing bit of traditional Tex-Mex -- "Blame It on Love" opens with little more than guitar, accordion, and voice -- before diving into every roots or rock style they've ever hinted at in the past. This does include melodic AOR adult pop -- "Give a Little More" could be mistaken for the great lost outtake from Santana's Supernatural -- and one of the pleasures of Revelation is the ease with which Los Lonely Boys can do this kind of soft rock without losing earthiness. Much of this comes toward the front of the album, particularly in the one-two punch of the breezy island vibes of "It's Just My Heart Talking" and the sublime yacht rock homage "There's Always Tomorrow" (which could've torn up the airwaves in 1981), and although Revelation shifts gears toward the end of the album, accentuating both their conjunto and blues roots, they keep winding back to this easy melodic touch, whether it's in the steeped-in-the-'70s soul of "So Sensual" or crooning sweetly on "The Greatest Ever." Such a soft, welcoming touch is the thing crossovers are made of, and if there is an adventurous AAA station somewhere in America, it's possible to imagine about half of these songs providing the backbone of a regular playlist, but even if Los Lonely Boys don't strike radio gold with Revelation, its freshness proves that ten years after their 2004 breakthrough, the band is as lively as ever and, in some sly subtle ways, better than ever too.
BIOGRAPHY
By William Ruhlmann
Hailing from San Angelo, TX, Los Lonely Boys are a sibling trio whose music draws equally from rock, blues, Tex-Mex, conjunto, and tejano. Such a combination is shaped by the band's three brothers: guitarist Henry Garza, bassist JoJo Garza, and drummer Ringo Garza, Jr. The siblings' father, Ringo Garza, Sr., was a member of another sibling band, the Falcones, who played conjunto music around Texas during the '70s and '80s. After that group broke up, Garza went solo, backed by his three sons even before they reached their teens. The family relocated to Nashville in the 1990s, and gradually the sons emerged as a group separate from their father.
Though touring nearly constantly, the trio has stayed deeply rooted to community causes. They recorded the single "Solid Ground," about the Family Justice Center of Erie County (which won the Austin-based CTK Foundation's Heart and Soul grant for 2009). The FJC provides services for victims of domestic violence. Written with poet Nancy Ghoston, "Solid Ground" was released in January of 2010.
