HOLLY GOLIGHTLY AND THE BROKEOFFS - Dirt Don’t Hurt

Between the two, the one with the pedigree is without a doubt her, Holly Golightly. A past in Thee Headcoatees with Billy Childish, and then a hugely prolific solo career that has already yielded about ten albums from 1995 to today, to which we must add at least a few important friendships, like the one with the White Stripes, who wanted her on their masterpiece "Elephant" to duet with Jack White on "It's True That We Love One Another". He, on the other hand, is apparently a complete nobody. He's from Texas, his name is Lawyer Dave, but he's known out there under the name of his band, The Brokeoffs, responsible for a now-unfindable self-produced album, and whose Myspace page lists, under "band members": Head on vocals, Feet on drums, Fingers on guitar and bass (!).

A likeable goofball, in short, who last year joined Holly for their first record together, titled "You Can't Buy A Gun When You're Crying".

They're now back with a second album, "Dirt Don't Hurt", which, just like the first, is manna from heaven for anyone into country, pre-war folk and earliest rock'n'roll, all of it played with a sparky, minimalist garage spirit in their hands and the ghost of the wackiest Tom Waits in their heart. Add to that the beauty of the fourteen songs on offer, almost all sung as duets, graced by writing that's clear, fresh and always effective, plus the irreverence, traditionalist as it may be, of a Bob Log III, and the job is done.

Country'n'roll blues of unrivaled charm (“Bottom Below“, “My 45“), country ballads pierced by slide guitar where Holly seems to almost channel Lucinda Williams (“Up On The Floor“, “For All This“), Appalachian folk tunes that sound as if they came straight out of the 1930s (“Cluck Old Hen“, “Boats Up The River“), parched blues ballads that let you breathe in the air of the desert (“Indeed You Do“), songs that evoke the most romantic, nocturnal side of Tom Waits (“Burn Your Fun“, the gorgeous “Slow Road”, “Three Times Under“, which in some ways also recalls the duets between Campbell and Lanegan).

If you're not obsessed with novelty at all costs, if you have even the slightest interest in American music, if you're looking for a handful of songs that can keep you glued to the stereo without ever growing tedious, then in “Dirt Don't Hurt” you might find that classic “minor” album, one that's nonetheless capable of brightening far more than just one day.

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05/10/2008