Mike Barfield – Living Stereo
On Living Stereo, Mike Barfield, the Houston-based former singer for the Hollisters, serves up a bracing mix of his own songs and savvy selections by others.
Barfield’s R&B-flavored “Twist It” has a 1960s vibe so thick you can practically see the Hullabaloo dancers in Capri pants and fringe tops frugging their fool heads off. “Ask My Baby” starts off like “Suspicious Minds” and, oddly enough, was once sung by Elvis. Guitarists Chris Miller and Dave Biller set their guitars to stun, and Tiffany & the Gospel Motions arrive at the end with some killer backup vocals.
“Tomorrow Night” is a shimmering, doo-wop, 1950s slow dancing composition that Presley also recorded before he left the building; “Signed, Sealed and Delivered” is a sizzling cover of the classic James Brown stomper. Barfield delivers some great yelping here, and also Joe Tex’s “You Got What It Takes”.
Barfield’s sound is easy to like but encompasses so many different styles that it’s hard to pin down. But his background in Texas bar bands shines throughout, as he proves to be a bluesy honky who likes a little funk with his tonk.