Johnny Floor & the Wrong Crowd | self titled

Self sufficiency can be a wonderful thing for an artist. In the case of Johnny Floor, this means having a group of musicians that you’ve played with for years, and managing a recording studio. A pretty nice one, at that. He’s also an engineer, bassist and a vocalist. Possibly, he’s a very fine chef, as well. I wouldn’t know. The disc in my hands, however, looks quite — it’s one of those CDs that resembles an old LP, complete with little fake grooves on the top and the label in the middle.

Make no bones about it, this is “classic” rock. It’s original stuff, the majority of which was written by Floor, but it would sound just as at home on a little bar’s jukebox as it does on your home stereo. It’s not edgy or angry, it’s just music made by a bunch of guys that grew up on blues, southern rock, country and Budweiser. Maybe Coors. The opener, “Would You Be There,” has all the double tracked, snapping guitar boogie and whining, gritty slide that’s come to define this style. The parts lock in perfectly, and Floor’s voice has that unhurried, Mark Knopfler vibe. As a vocalist, he’s not over the top like Delbert McClinton, but he delivers what he’s got to say comfortably and leaves space where it’s needed.

“Crazy ’Bout You” goes a little more in the key blues direction, with some really fine playing from keyboardist Chuck Glass and guitarist Mario Lacasse. Those glassy Strat textures and the bluesy electric piano fit the tune perfectly. In fact, it’s hard to find a song on the album where the musicians don’t play exactly what is needed, and that’s a nice thing to hear. The lyrics tend to revolve around travel, love (having it, losing it, questioning it), memories and observations about life. These aren’t bad subjects. Maybe not the most challenging stuff out there, but this is where the listener has to just appreciate it for what it is.

There’s no controversy on this album (OK, he uses some colorful language in “So So Tired”) and it’s doubtful that there’s supposed to be. Just fun stuff to listen to and enjoy in a “Saturday night blue jeans and a beer” kind of way.

The ‘Nawlins strut in “Zydeco Man” stands out as a great groove with a sense of humor. “Lands Creek Hoedown” satisfies the instrumental chicken-pickin’ jones one may have, and the imagery in “Spring time in Kentucky” is appropriately warm and .... horsey, I guess. There’s a slickness and professionalism to the whole record that you’ve got to appreciate, and there’s no doubt these guys just had fun with the project. You can hear it on the disc. Plus, the guy’s got a cool name, even if he does hang with the wrong crowd.

(Chris Cooper is a Sylva-based guitarist and In Your Ear guru also known to have an affinity for Leo Kottke and the comic strip Get Fuzzy. Write to him at thumbpick43@yahoo.com.)