Shoot That Thang is an album by the American musician Super Chikan, released in 2001.[2][3] The title comes from a phrase shouted by Super Chikan during his concerts.[4] He supported the album with a North American tour, backed by his band, the Fighting Cocks.[5]
| Shoot That Thang | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 2001 | |||
| Recorded | 2000 | |||
| Genre | Blues | |||
| Label | Rooster Blues[1] | |||
| Super Chikan chronology | ||||
| ||||
Production
editSuper Chikan decided in 2000 to concentrate on music full time; the album was recorded between July and September of that year.[6][7] The booklet contains a comic by Harvey Pekar.[8] Super Chikan constructed his guitars from crushed gas cans that he would paint.[9][10] "Tin Top Shack" looks back on Super Chikan's youth.[7] "Mennonite Blues" recalls Super Chikan's time driving tractors for a Mennonite community.[11]
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [8] |
| The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings | [7] |
| Pittsburgh Post-Gazette | [12] |
JazzTimes wrote that Super Chikan "imbues unique songs like 'Bus-Train-Rain', 'Mennonite Blues', 'Junky Trunk', 'Wrong to Sing the Blues' and 'Staingy wid It' with a playful, down-home sense of humor, and he tends to go for the wah-wah pedal a lot on his solos."[9] The Toronto Star called Shoot That Thang "full of ranting vocals, playful to heart- rending lyrics, cleanly picked guitar and rumbling keyboard harmonies."[13]
The Philadelphia Inquirer determined that Super Chikan and his band "cook up a stew with an irresistibly greasy flavor that isn't always limited to the blues."[14] The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette considered the album "tough, aggressive Delta blues, filtered through ... urban sensibilities and electric talents."[12] The Star Tribune noted that it features "some of the finest roots songwriting of our day—hilarious, poignant and memorable."[15]
AllMusic deemed the album "agreeable, laid-back, funky Mississippi blues."[8]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Guilty Man" | |
| 2. | "Don't Mess with the Blues" | |
| 3. | "Tin Top Shack" | |
| 4. | "Mennonite Blues" | |
| 5. | "Bus-Train-Rain" | |
| 6. | "Staingy wid It" | |
| 7. | "Could Have Been Me" | |
| 8. | "Junky Trunk" | |
| 9. | "Marry Me" | |
| 10. | "Wrong to Sing the Blues" | |
| 11. | "Shoot That Thang!" |
References
edit- ^ Komara, Edward M. (October 31, 2006). Encyclopedia of the Blues: K-Z, index. Taylor & Francis US.
- ^ "A Darling Birdman". Tucson Weekly.
- ^ Levesque, Roger (17 Jan 2003). "Mississippi bluesman's got a few stories to tell". Edmonton Journal. p. E6.
- ^ Petrusich, Amanda (August 19, 2008). It Still Moves: Lost Songs, Lost Highways, and the Search for the Next American Music. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
- ^ Rodgers, Larry (30 Aug 2001). "Funky Bluesman Has Down-Home, E-Cluck-Tic Taste". The Rep. The Arizona Republic. p. 38.
- ^ "James 'Super Chikan' Johnson & the Fighting Cocks". Weekender. The Columbus Dispatch. September 26, 2002. p. 8.
- ^ a b c The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin Books Ltd. 2006. p. 618.
- ^ a b c "Super Chikan Shoot That Thang". AllMusic.
- ^ a b Milkowski, Bill. "James "Super Chikan" Johnson: Shoot That Thang". JazzTimes.
- ^ Saal, Mark (August 24, 2001). "Super Chikan succeeds at making a 'buck'". Standard-Examiner.
- ^ Whitaker, Tim (July 4, 2001). "Buck Buck, Buck Buck—Super Chikan plays the blues in Doylestown". Arts and Culture. Philadelphia Weekly.
- ^ a b White, Jim (23 Sep 2001). "Blues". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. G2.
- ^ Chapman, Geoff (5 July 2001). "Furnace-heat wails and aching ballads". Toronto Star. p. G3.
- ^ Christiano, Nick (6 July 2001). "Super Chikan". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. W23.
- ^ Riemenschneider, Chris (9 Aug 2002). "Blues". Star Tribune. p. 4E.