The Border Band. Dan Hicks And Ry Cooder On Mojitos? Randy Newman With A Latin Jazz Rhythm Section?

New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Listen. It�s like this: A piano player slid out of the woodwork. A rhythm section accrued and made it boogie. People listened. Peopled danced. Players came and went. Natural selection prevailed. They got old-guy fuck-you attitude. The TexMex border beckoned. Louisiana lured them into the music of the swamp. A drummer brought Latin grooves and African mojo. The piano player fell in love with Monk again and set things swinging. The songs started arriving, sometimes cynical, sometimes sad. They got sharp. They got tight. They got GOOOD.

They are:
�Burn it� Smith Piano, keyboards, righteous upright bass, arranger, actor. Writes songs so good they tried to break his thumbs.

Hank Young aka Henri Lelouche. Basses. Get's away with murder, musically. Hasn�t shot a man in decades. Honestly.

Den O�Dair Latinistagroovemeister extraordinaire. Drums, percussion. Ask him for a reversed clav� rumba. Do it nicely.

Mr Carpenter. Trombone, melodica, clarinet, keyboards marimbaThis girl said "How many instruments you play?". He said, �Only one at a time.�

Seems like people are building borders these days. To keep people out. To keep people from connecting. These guys have spent years crossing over, border to border, place to place, culture to culture, groove to groove.

Some of these songs will defy you not to get down and shake it. Some of them will make you listen. And think.