AustinExperience.com - Bob Schneider

Bob Schneider

I've never been disappointed at a Bob Schneider show, and I've never known anyone who stumbled onto one of Bob's performances and didn't leave as a disciple ready to spread the word. I've seen Bob perform under a few different arrangements. As lead of the Scabs, he has an opportunity to push the limits of raunchiness, singing with the Texas Bluegrass Massacre, he can put a country twist and instrumentation to his masterpieces, and as a solo artist, he has an opportunity to go from mainstream rock to experimental electronica.

My 11-year old daughter has become a big Bob Schneider fan, but I've always had to regulate what songs she's heard, and I'd never risk taking her to one of his live shows until she gets a little older. But a unique opportunity presented itself. Bob Schneider hooked up with Will Taylor to perform with Strings Attached during their regular performance season. I have a few reviews that feature Strings Attached, so you may have already read about the concept. Musicians scrap their regular band, Will Taylor and the other members of Strings Attached craft new arrangements to the musician's work. The arrangements typically include violin, cello, viola, piano, bass, and trumpet. Not your typical band setup. The result is an unforgettable performance. When I learned that Bob was scheduled for a Strings Attachment performance, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to let my daughter see him live. I knew that the Strings Attached audience was typically older than Bob's regular crowd, and being broadcast live on KGSR, I knew that Bob would be forced to tame it down a little. That's not to say that he'd still have an opportunity to rock.

Always being blown away at Strings Attached shows, I had high expectation, and Bob delivered. Some songs lent themselves to an easy translation to the Strings Attached format because they started out as stripped down, raw tunes. Lorena and I Have Reason to Believe fell into this category. Beautiful arrangements gave these a more polished feel. What was more interesting, was hearing songs that had full instrumentation swapped for string arrangements. I was caught off guard when Cap'n Kirk emerged from an dramatically altered intro. Most amazingly, Bob can't help but find and crank out a groove regardless of the instruments around him. This is a testament to both Will Taylor and Bob. I imagine that if I gave Bob a touch tone phone and a mic, he'd find a way to crank out a rump shakin' jam. If anyone's heard Honey Bomb, they know Bob is a linguistic acrobat. Seeing it live heightens the appreciation for his talent. Listening to the song crescendo with the backing of a muted trumpet, piano, cello, drums, and violin was unbelievable.

I have to admit that even though I have a lot of Bob Schneider's work, there were a couple of songs I hadn't heard before. One began, "I had a dream that I was dying... to see you." This had to have been one of the most beautifully written songs that I'd heard. Now I have it on CD. I still don't know what it's called. At a Texas Bluegrass Massacre show, Bob had mentioned that they were recording the performance, and that people could by CDs of the performance immediately following the show. I thought, "What kind of crap is Bob trying to pull? How could he possibly have CDs right after the show?" But before the Strings Attached show, Will sent an email stating that they would have recordings of the show immediately following it. I had to get in on that action. Now I have a CD of the Strings Attached show with possibly Bob's most beautiful song ever. Since it just shows up as Track 4 or whatever number it is, I'll just have to keep showing up at Bob's shows until he mentions the name of the song.

Bob has been considered musician of the year in Austin several times. Go to a live show, and you'll know why. Bob is one of the few artists that will go from ballad to jazz to folk to rap to country and somehow make it appear that these are meant to be strung together.

I have listened to Bob Schneider in one form or another ever since I moved to Austin. I used to catch Joe Rockhead at the Blackcat Lounge. I've lived through the Scabs and Ugly American years, and have thoroughly enjoyed Bob's solo releases. I'm Good Now is the first CD that I recall that I can listen to from beginning to end without censoring it when my daughter is listening with me. That simple fact alone is going to sell a lot more CDs. That's not to say that the CD won't offend some folks. God is My Friend puts God on a white fluffy cloud with some cocaine, a Coors Light in his hand, and smoking a cigarette. As much as the idea might put off some narrow-minded folks, they'll have a hard time resisting singing along when the chorus kicks in.

Bob has mastered the magic formula for constructing songs with an irresistible hook and clever lyrics. If this was the first Bob Schneider CD ever, I would say that some songs sound influenced by Counting Crows, Barenaked Ladies, and The Wallflowers. It's not a bad crowd to be compared to, but some people look down on those without a distinct sound of their own. The reality is that no one can be completely original. Having listened to Bob for a decade, I can trace the roots of songs from I'm Good Now to earlier works of his own. Who knows, maybe they've been influenced by him.

Is this the best work that Bob has offered to the world so far? That's a tough call. In the past, some songs have really stuck out as favorites. On Lonelyland, I really love Round & Round. On Galaxy Kings, I love Sunkist. The Wrong Direction stands out on the Ugly Americans' Boom Boom Baby. But on each of those CDs, there tended to be a couple songs I was inclined to skip. I'm Good Now is rock solid from beginning to end, but I'm not sure that my all-time favorite Bob Schneider song is to be found on this CD. There are a few that have been stuck in my head and I tend to gravitate toward: Cap'n Kirk, The Way Life's Supposed To Be, and Getting Better. These tend to be a bit on the bouncy side. Now that I think about it, Bob has achieved his goal of appealing to the masses. My wife, 9-year old daughter, and I all sing along when we get to any of those songs. We usually have difficulty finding something that all of us enjoy. Maybe that's why I'm Good Now has stayed in the CD player as long as it has.

Rather than me simply saying the CD is worth your hard earned cash (which it is), go check it out yourself on Bob Schneider's website. It's the best music website I've seen so far, and it has more info about Bob than you'll ever want to know. Tons of music is out there, along with commentary.

To sum up, it must be tiring for Bob... kickin' ass continually.

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