Today a friend of mine from Texas sent me a brand new CD "Oh No!" of a San Antonio based band I had never heard of before, named "Two Tons Of Steel". When I played it I was pleasantly surprised, this is a very nice package! The CD opens with the title song "Oh No!" which is an authentic honkytonk-rockabilly song with a great slapping bass and raving rhtyhm, you'll like it the first time too. Very good lead- and steel-guitar. "Standing On A Rock", though at a slower pace, is also a great rockabilly song. The band has surely been influenced by original Sun performers as the likes of Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash. "Southbound Train" is a true country rocker in the classic Johnny Cash style with a fast paced slapping bass rhtyhm, good job! "Old Nights" is kind of a bayou-blues ballad with a great Louisiana type accordion by guest musician Joel Guzman and "Don't Stand Too Close" is another good rockabilly song accompanied by some real good steel guitar by Denny Mathis. "Big Big Love" again has a Louisiana bayou influence, this time with Ron Kanuth on fiddle. "Havana Moon" is a country ballad, not the strongest song to my humble opinion, but it is followed by another very fast paced rockabilly song called "14 days". The next song "Heartache Of A Fool" reminds a bit of Johnny Horton, a great honky-tonk song. The last track (too bad there are only 10 tracks on this CD) is "Two Tons Of Steel". A great rocking song, the only track with additional saxophones by Evan Christopher, trumpet by Ed Sherry and trombone by Fred Mendoza. Very good slapp again and a lot of jazz influences mixed with a hot lead guitar. This last track is definitly my favourite. Just play it loud, I'm sure you can't sit still either. Did you pay attention? This CD contains a great mix of roots music, including rockabilly, country, western swing, cajun, blues and jazz. This of course totals up to only one thing: Rock and Roll!

TTS about themselves:
Two Tons of Steel perform their unique blend of roots rock meets country with an unbridled passion leading them to become one of the premier bands in this genre. Formed in 1994 as Dead Crickets, the group changed their name as a favor to Buddy Holly's legendary drummer Jerry Allison. Two Tons of Steel live show have garnered them acclaim across Texas and a write-up in Billboard magazine, where lead singer Kevin Geil was described as a cowboy-hat-wearing, guitar swinging, hip-swiveling showman. It has also made them the top drawing band at the Historic Gruene Hall. And the bands annual "Two Ton Tuesday's" at the hall have become legendary, drawing over 600 fans a night. Shiner Bock, the nation's largest independent beer brewer, used the song "Two Tons of Steel" in a year long national advertising campaign. Shiner also has featured them twice as headliners along with Delbert McClinton, Robert Earl Keen and The Fabulous Thunderbirds in their annual Bocktoberfest concert that draws over 20,000 fans a year. Two Tons of Steel got radio air play across the US ranging from Houston's KPFT to WBOS in New York and over seas on radio shows like Rolf Mauer's Country Music Express Show which reaches over 1 million listeners in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. The high powered, energetic Two Tons of Steel have amassed a loyal following of young and old that are making Two Tons of Steel unstoppable.

Line-Up:
Kevin Geil - Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Ric Ramirez - Upright Bass, Backing Vocals
Dennis Fallon - Electric Guitar, Backing Vocals
Stephen Hartwell - Drums, Percussion

Management and Booking:
Big Bellied Records
2807 N. main Ave.
San Antonio, Texas 78121
(210) 738-1498

E-mail: bigbellied@twotons.com
Web:  http://www.twotons.com