Hot Press

SOMEDAY

"Ruthie and the Wranglers' "Someday" is clearly the product of many days well spent writing and recording songs -- songs vibrant or clever enough to make most of what passes for country music these days sound dead on arrival.
Of course, lead singer Ruth Logsdon's live-wire soprano could probably jump-start a collection of hopelessly fatigued tunes. But with help from her bandmates -- bassist Greg Hardin and guitarist Phil Mathieu -- she has come up with 13 fresh tracks that radiate plenty of energy and personality, not to mention a good amount of torch ("It's Blue"), tears ("For Cryin' Out Loud") and twang ("New Love").
You'll also find a few honky-tonk admonitions here, including the album's title track and the defiant "I'm Not Your Doormat," plus an occasional sonic twist, as in Mathieu's venturesome (and very Ventures-like) instrumental "Revenge of Surftilicus" and his stealthy minor-key blues "Catwalk."
In addition to writing and co-writing some of the tunes, most notably the engaging novelty "I Say Tomato," Hardin, a recent recruit, occasionally contributes vocals to the mix that warmly complement Logsdon's voice. His bass work, meanwhile, helps anchor a band that features a small but notable cast of rotating musicians, including drummers Pete Ragusa and Robbie Magruder. Rootsy and fun, "Someday" is something worth searching out.
Mike Joyce, Washington Post, September 5, 2003

"Ruthie Logsdon knows about fun, God bless her blonde hair and socks. The thirteen numbers on Someday conjure up a roadhouse Brigadoon of 1950's and 60's country, rockabilly and sundry other genres, and most of the music comes from the sunny side of the bar. Sample the saucy "New Love" or belly up to the barrelhouse "Tell 'em What They Oughta (And What They Oughta Not Do Too)¾. Logsdon adds spice even when she isn't singing, as we hear halfway into guitarist Phil Mathieu's tour-de-force „Revenge of Surftilicus.¾ All the tracks on Someday are originals and the writing is strong. Logsdon gets most of the credits, but the best line is in the opening of a co-write with bassist Greg Hardin: „I say tomato, you say it's over/I say potato, you say we're through.¾ In more ham-fisted hands this could have degenerated into a wink muscle workout, but Logsdon and Hardin don't go for cheap parody. In context, the line reads as a cri-de-coeur by someone who knows it doesn't matter what she has to say. Logsdon's soprano doesn't have the wallop of a hardcore honky-tonk angel but what she lacks in brass, she makes up for in sass. Combine that with Mathieu's impressive guitar playing and soem dandy duets with Hardin, and the Wranglers' fourth album is a winner. ćAllen Stairs"
Allen Stairs, No Depression, September/October 2003

LIVE AT CHICK HALL'S SURF CLUB

"With 'I Wanna Be Your Auctioneer', Ruthie and the Wranglers deliver that traditional honky-tonk hillbilly sound. The sheer volume of songs to choose from means a CD can last longer and everyone can find something they like. Too many times, bands just can't reproduce the music that they record in the studio. With Ruthie and the Wranglers, it's obviously the real deal. If this is a taste of things to come, put me on the list for seconds!"
Fred Boenig, WDVR - Sergeantsville, NJ, GAVIN, July 7, 2000

"... Honky tonk attitude and roadhouse atmosphere come together here, creating a natural fit for a band that revels in country twang and rockabilly rhythms.
...veteran honky-tonk saxman Joe Stanley makes a couple of robust cameos, and the opening and closing sets are punctuated by four new studio tracks that reaffirm (Ruthie) Logsdon's flair for writing cleverly worded songs that sound as if they could have been penned on a barroom napkin two generations ago.
...guitarist, Phil Mathieu ....broad vocabulary of riffs and licks evokes images of Luther Perkins, Carl Perkins, Chuck Berry, Scotty Moore and other guitar legends throughout the album, adding plenty of rootsy tones to the mix."
Mike Joyce, Washington Post, April 2000

"... Ruthie Logsdon and the Wranglers play some of the best honky-tonk music you can find. Ruthie and her guitar-slinging, finger picking Wranglers perform honky-tonk country music the way Hank Williams (Sr.) his-own-self intended it--lively, quirky, sad, and with more than a touch of rockabilly. ...The band plays fast and loose (guitar player Phil Mathieu is unbelievably hot) on classic rockabilly and fantastic originals. Even their covers of Elvis's "Too Much" and "Dirty Dirty Feelin' " sound true and new. Ruthie's own songs, "Low Life" and "Wave Goodbye" in particular, sound as good as anything by the other songwriters on the disc, including Leiber and Stoller and Loretta Lynn."
Char R. Leslie-Miller, Dirty Linen, September 2000
(*The complete Dirty Linen review can be found on the CDNOW site for "Live At Chick Hall's Surf Club" info and ordering.*)

"...Ruthie and the Wranglers, who kick the Nashville right out of country. ...smart lyrics with wit and irony...irresistible combination..."
Carolyn Feola, Takoma Voice, April 2000

"Like the Dead and the Fillmore, the Stones and Altamont, or Johnny Cash and Folsom Prison, a band and a venue can harmoniously converge. Such is the case on the new CD by Ruthie and the Wranglers, which also has the best album title in memory: Ruthie and the Wranglers Live at Chick Hall's Surf Club.
...There really is a Chick Hall's Surf Club... "It's D.C.'s best kept secret," says Wrangler Mark Noone of the club. "It's like the last real honky tonk." And the band plays there every Wednesday. The CD is a rocking document of a hot night out.
The CD is arranged in two "sets." After Ruthie announces a break, there is an "intermission," with four studio-recorded songs before the "second set." Kinda like turning on the jukebox when the band leaves the stage.
...the disc captures a very tight and confident band. The first "set" features mostly well chosen covers by such notable writers as Leiber/Stoller ("Dirty Dirty Feelin'"), Doc Pomus ("Boogie Woogie Country Girl"), and Hammerstein/Romberg ("Lover, Come Back to Me!") as well as Tex Rubinowitz's "Ain't it Wrong." The second "set" and the "intermission" feature mostly originals by the band members, including Logsdon's rave-up "If It's the Last Thing I Do" and guitarist Phil Mathieu's blistering instrumental workout, "Mt. Airy Stomp."
Dave Nuttycombe, Washington City Paper, April 7, 2000

"...Ruthie and the Wranglers boast a heartfelt, high-energy sound that's got people talking..."
Hot Tickets The Gazette, April 19, 2000

"Chick's is to Ruthie as the Continental Club is to Toni Price. So imagine a live CD made at a honky tonk Hippie Hour in Bladensburg, MD and you've just about got it. This disc packs in an incredible 24 songs; 4 from the studio, the rest are live, live, live. Eight of these tunes were penned by Ruthie, Ruth Logsdon, herself, and for me these are the highlights of the CD. OK, so these folks live back East, I hereby declare them Honorary Texans."
Bill Groll - Holiday 2000 Gift Guide, Austin Americana, AustinAmericana.com, December 2000

LIFE'S SAVINGS

Life's Savings..."WELL SPENT. The CD features 11 songs that fit comfortably into the electrified honky tonk category. ...unlike many of their poser colleagues, the quartet has also packaged genuine and timeless twangy soul in their very solid second album."
Bill Craig, Richmond Times Dispatch, Oct./98

"No Depression" calls Life's Savings honky tonk, "Country Music People" calls it rockabilly & honky tonk with a little shuffle thrown in and "Billboard" calls it "nothing short of brilliant." I call it jumped-up-country-boogie and ditto "Billboard"'s assessment. But whatever you want to tag it, Life's Savings is one of the coolest CDs I've heard in a while. This music is a fusion of all that's good about American roots music -- country, rockabilly, boogie & blues. Dammit -- this is what more major labels here in Nashville should be doing: great lyrics & licks that don't sound like every other song on the street; underlying wry humor that doesn't in any way mar the authentic country flavor; energy and depth and range. ...Phil Mathieu's wonderful "Farewell Polka." ... Key cuts for me were the aforementioned "Farewell Polka," Ruthie's self-penned (and hilarious) "He's A Honky Tonk Man," Ruthie & Phil's "What Mama Don't Know" and "Forgive and Forget," and Ruthie's on-target cover of Loretta Lynn's "Fist City." Actually, there's not a throwaway cut on here. It's all good. Go immediately to www.ruthieandthewranglers.com and buy this CD! If you don't love it send it to me. I'll give you your money back myself. And that's the safest offer I ever made.
Patsi Bale Cox, Patsi Bale Cox: Music & Book Site, Nashville, TN, Nov./99

"He's a Honky Tonk Man, concerns a character who's going through a lot of changes. Big changes. No doubt [KD] Lang and other musicians who've lampooned Nashville's macho stereotypes would eagerly embrace Logsdon's spirit and wit. ...the Wranglers aren't in it just for laughs. As on the band's previous album, Logsdon rides galloping rockabilly rhythms and mines traditional country heartache with considerable flair and confidence. This time she also perfrorms Loretta Lynn's "Fist City," delivering the message with a defiant vocal punch, and frames the tune with several original compositions that make the most of what comes out of Music City these days seem pale by comparison."
Mike Joyce, Washington Post, Oct./98

"This swinging, country-billy foursome is the best thing to come out of Washington, D.C. since Abraham Lincoln. Led by vocalist Ruthie Logsdon, a perky cross between Wanda Jackson and Tammy Wynette, the band blisters a set of twangy rockers you'll be whistling long after your speakers stop smoking. The band is buoyed by Ruthie's wicked sense of humor. "He's a Honky Tonk Man" is about the not exactly universal dilemma of a cowboy trapped in a cowgirl's body. And their cover of Loretta Lynn's "Fist City" is raving mad. But this isn't just a chick-up-front band. Phil Mathieu's guitar work sizzles on songs like the instrumental "Farewell Polka" and the weeper "A Dime at a Time." All together, Ruthie and the Wranglers makes commercial Nashville sound even more like the Vanillaville it is."
Chris Jorgensen, The Jackson, MI Citizen Patriot

"It's a shame that you will probably never hear country music this interesting on commercial country radio."
Peter Cooper/Baker Maultsky, Creative Loafing Greenville, SC Oct./98

"Life's Savings" is reviewed by Rick Teverbaugh, Anderson (IN) Herald Bulletin, and WAXT, in his online column, "Face The Music."
Central Indiana Online, Central Indiana Online, Oct./98

"Logsdon...is one of the most engaging country singers on the road today."
Jim Beal, Jr., San Antonio Express News, Nov./98

"Guitar slinger Phil Mathieu is one of those guys who comes to town and makes everyone gasp, `who is that?'"
Buzz McClain, No Depression, Jan.-Feb./99

"I love them. They have great energy and passion..."
Jessie Scott, Americana Editor, Gavin

"She's got a lot of attitude...I think they're a band to watch."
Jon Grimson, President, CounterPoint Music, Producer, "This Week In Americana."

"Ruthie Logsdon and her Wranglers ...play a lively blend of rockabilly and honkytonk, mixing their own authentic sounding tunes and genre classics in roughly equal measure and imbuing both with plenty of vim `n' vigor - a sort of typical Bloodshot Records group meets Rosie Flores if you will... ...their enthusiasm for what they do spills out of the CD and into your living room, making this album a very worthwhile - if not essential listening experience." ...
Country Music People, the UK's No. 1 Country Music Magazine, April/99

"Phil Mathieu,...a force to be reckoned with in the close future when one thinks of hot guitar players in the country/rockabilly genre."
"Ruthie Logsdon,...is writing some of the most original, witty and insightful compositions I am hearing at this time."
"...a group that should be considered for sheer energy, and they have the chops and intelligence to blast you out of any lethargy."
"...putting life into the country/rockabilly music world."
Bob Gottlieb, All Music Guide, Apr./99

"... "Life's Savings" brings together a lot of so-called retro musical styles into a contemporary, interesting package with highly polished production. With the exuberant Logsdon's vocals backed by good musicians on both solid originals and classic covers, it'll be interesting to see what they do for an encore."
Linda Dailey Paulson, Dirty Linen, June/July '99
(*The complete Dirty Linen review can be found on the CDNOW site for "Life's Savings" info and ordering.*)

 

WRANGLER CITY

"Wrangler City," ...it's the sort of place where fans of seminal rock and country music will want to hang their hat for a while."
"Key to the "City's" pleasures is singer Ruthie Logsdon. When her live wire voice isn't throwing a shower of sparks on the rockabilly romps, celebrating a new love on "Hot Potato" or energetically covering Elvis Presley on "Dirty Dirty Feelin'," Logsdon deftly conjures the aftermath of a love gone wrong with plenty of emotion and humor."
"[Billy] Shelton's [lead guitar] playing is particularly impressive--concise, fluid and colorful--and a pair of contrasting cameos by guitarist Bill Kirchen add to the album's many charms."
Mike Joyce, The Washington Post, Oct./96

"...a song writing flair ...nothing short of brilliant."
Billboard Magazine, April 1997

"...the kind of sound we like, the way country and roots should sound on disc."
Bruce Kidder,
PD KHYI 95.3 FM, Dallas/Plano, TX

"RECORD TO WATCH" - Rockin' rockabilly with that countryfied twang we all desire is what's in store on this independent CD from this D.C. outfit. With a similar flair a la Rosie Flores, look for the Wranglers to make plenty of Americana friends.
Rob Bleetstein, Americana Editor, GAVIN (1997)."

"If anyone can make a "You left and don't love me anymore" song fun, it's Ruth Logsdon. Ruthie and the Wranglers' self-produced Wrangler City has an uncommonly live feel for a studio project. A live-wire, gutsy, and novel approach is given to lyrics that take the worst of times with a grin. Logsdon's powerful delivery and vocal range are showcased on tracks like "Gone But Not Forgotten," "I Wanna Be Your Auctioneer," and "I'm a Little Confused."
No smoke, no mirrors, no gimmicks. Just a band, led by a delightful singer, having fun with the music, making it refreshing and available."
Anna Donohue, KWXE/KWXI,Glendale, AR, contributing toGavin (1997).

"The crowd just lit up when you [Ruthie and the Wranglers] were performing"
Bob Eubanks,
Host, Prime Time Country, TNN

 

MISC. 1999 + 2000 PRESS, LINKS & WEB BROADCASTS

R&Ws have had some great press, internet links and on-line audio and video feeds. Here are some info and links for some of them:

The John F. Kennedy Center Millennium Stage in Washington, DC, has two archived performances by R&Ws:
-Thursday, September 16, 1999
-Saturday, November 11, 2000
*Both hour long performances were broadcast live on the internet with audio & video feed. The concerts can be watched & listened to from the Millennium Stage Archives.

For the adventuresome internet explorers, Ruthie and the Wrangler's performance on Billy Block's "Western Beat Roots Revival" at the Exit/In in Nashville on Tues. 11-30-99 was broadcast live on the internet, rebroadcast on the radio in Nashville, and can be found in the Archives, with some searching at LiveOnTheNet,, go to bottom of page, use the ARCHIVE SEARCH feature, search for the words: Ruthie,
Wranglers.

WAMU 88.5 FM's "Metro Connection" broadcast two live studio interview & performances by R&Ws that can be found by going to their archives at
http://www.wamu.org/mc/mcarc_990807.html#5 - Aug. 7, 1999 Episode
http://www.wamu.org/mc/mcarc_000715.html#4 - July 15, 2000 Episode
-You can listen there with real audio. Take note of Phil and host David Furst's discussion of playing the b-bender Tele, with some fine examples in the live version of "One More Lie" that follows.

The Washington Area Music Association (WAMA) kicked off their annual "Crosstown Jam" on Tuesday, September 21, 1999 and Washington Post.com highlighted the duo performance by Ruthie & Phil at IOTA in their article about the showcases which feature many of the finest artists in the Wash., DC area, the article site is at http://yp.washingtonpost.com/E/E/WASDC/0001/30/62.