Andre Williams: Silky

In the Red Records

Until now, Mick Collins and Dan “Doll Rod” Kroha haven't recorded together since the demise of Detroit garage rockers the Gories in 1992—that alone is news. But as trashy chic as the background music gets, Andre himself is the real star here. His voice has all the burn of a shot of cheap scotch. Even more surprisingly, the 61-year-old singer's delivery betrays all the energy of a 16-year-old boy—and Andre's twice as horny.

Half of Silky's 12 tunes relate directly to sexual intercourse. Check the glam-infused roadhouse blues of “I Wanna Be Your Favorite Pair of Pajamas,” the smoldering Delta shuffle “Bonin',” or the eloquent, Blacktop-meets-black-tar stomper “Pussy Stank.” There's nothing even remotely suggestive about Williams' work; his intent is completely explicit. And it has been since 1957, when the man released “Jail Bait.”

There's more than a whole lotta shakin' going on here though. Andre screams like a lunatic through the wildly creative “Bring Me Back My Car Unstripped,” an Einsturzende Neubauten–damaged psychobilly rave-up that features auto-trunk lid, beer bottle, gas tank, and car bumper among more traditional instruments like bass and drums. Andre's got a knack for story-telling, too. Check “Car With the Star” (and the red and blue lights), the self-explanatory “Only Black Man in South Dakota,” and “Country & Western Song,” a twangy tip of the ol' Stetson to the only black man in trucker music, Charlie Pride.

The rest of this killer is some of the downest and dirtiest, raunchiest and rankest old-school rhythm & blues you'll get nowadays. And by all means get it—or get your sorry ass back to Sunday school.

—John Pecorelli

Alternative Press magazine