Search - Old 97's :: Hitchhike To Rhome

One of the top alt.country albums...must have

thisismyname | nowheresville, USA | 12/29/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you're an alt.country fan and you don't own this album, then what the heck is wrong with you? This ranks up there with any of Uncle Tupelo's albums, though certainly different, but equally as good.I knew little about the 97's when I bought this album. A friend of mine recomended that I go out and purchase an album of theirs, and this was my first. I went out the next day and bought all of their other albums, driving all across town to complete my collection.This album has a very distinct Texas sound, and I knew right away where these cats were from...ok well the title helped a bit too.If you've never heard of the 97's then start here. This album is the best of the best, and they start to go downhill after this, with maybe the exception of Too Far to Care. Not to say that the other albums are bad. On the contrary, actually, each are very distinct and good within their own right, but when you make an album as perfect as this it is hard to follow up. Don't buy just this album, go get 'em all!"

I wish I had found this sooner >>

Smaug | Round Lake Beach, IL United States | 12/31/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is my favorite CD. I never thought I'd find anything even remotely country I would like. I like mostly Classical, rock, and metal. The songs are all original. On this CD, there are 3 songs that are outstanding, (Miss Molly, Doreen, and Mama Tried) and the rest are really good. For owners of the Old 97s' newer CDs this one is not the same. The newer ones are more like pop, this one has a definite country/bluegrass influence, but without being country per se. It's hard to explain. By the way, I just discovered that Mama Tried is a cover of an old Merle Haggard song, you may want to check out his greatest hits album. I might get that one soon too.I'm glad I read the other Amazon reviews and got this one."

A twang classic

Smaug | 04/19/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"*Hitchhike to Rhome* is one of the classic "alt. country" albums and a defining document in the band's history. Fans of the Old 97's newer releases may not be prepared for this album's fusion of raw country aesthetic and indie-rock abandon, and even genre fanatics will note some limitations. Mediocre production and immature arrangements don't always do the material full justice: Rhett Miller hadn't yet learned to use his voice, and the guitars don't always sound as great as they should. The key to Old 97's records, though, is Miller's songwriting, which has some fine moments here. Not many albums can reinvent classic genres ("Doreen," a classic paean to the joys of an underage girl's affections), resurrect the tried-and-true (a loving treatment of "Mama Tried"), and top it all off by sneaking in what may be country music's first, last, and only allusion to Plato's Allegory of the Cave (the otherwise unpretentious "St. Ignatius"). The album's major flaw is its inclusion of tracks which should've remained on the cutting room floor ("Hands Off", "Desperate Times"). A band of this caliber is allowed a few lapses, though, and the album remains a rare achievement in country-rock songcraft."