Izzy Stradlin was the dirty, bluesy, Keith Richards-y character in GNR. His backing vocals, all raspy smoke and whiskey, were an ideal compliment to Axl Rose's. He wrote a number of their cool songs too. As a result, when I heard he was going to put out an album in the early nineties, I thought that it had potential. When it was called "Izzy Stradlin' and the JuJu Hounds," I must admit that I was a little confused.Izzy's debut ended up being a little Stones with some reggae thrown in. He actually did a scorching cover of Pressure Drop, the Jamaican standard, however Izzy's was more of a great speed-metal version. It was awesome. He ended it with a little reggae too, in a nod to the song's origins. All in all, the album was solid and ended up being the first of many Stradlin releases. Regular contributor Rick Richards from The Georgia Satellites brought his great guitar to the records and you can always find something good to hear on them.
The JuJu Hounds record came out the year I started dating my wife. I can remember driving around Patriot Circle on the back side of campus, listening to this album on my car stereo. I'm pretty sure I even copied the words to this song in a note to her once. Smooth? Cheesy? Who knows, but eighteen years later we're still together. "How Will It Go," Izzy Stradlin asked me? Not too badly, my friend.
"How Will It Go" is from the album Izzy Stradlin and the JuJu Hounds. To hear the song, click on the icon in the widget jukebox along the side of the blog.
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