Terry Anderson – What Else Can Go Right
Unless you’ve lived in Central North Carolina at some point over the last 15 years or you’re a big Dan Baird fan — and I’m guessing there’s some overlap there — you probably aren’t familiar with the name Terry Anderson. The former group would know Anderson as the drummer/part-time vocalist for quintessential bar bands the Fabulous Knobs and the Woods, while the latter would recognize him as the author of “Battleship Chains” and “I Love You Period”, hits for the Georgia Satellites and a Satellite-free Baird, respectively. (And, sorry Dan, but any red- or beer-blooded Tarheel will tell you that the Woods’ versions of those two songs are the definitive ones.)
What Else Can Go Right, Anderson’s second solo release, both begins and ends with “Jesus in the Alley”, a hymn suitable for a tavern singalong. In between, Anderson — supported by lead guitarist Mike Krause and bass-playing crony Jack Cornell (no relation; I’ve always wanted to say that) — alternately stampedes and strums through frills-be-damned rockers, acoustic guitar- and mandolin-tinged mid-tempo tunes, and a courageously faithful cover of “Street Fightin’ Man”.
The genuinely touching “Gettin’ Back Together” shows there can be a soft side to a roadhouse rawker’s heart, and “Read My Picture” showcases Anderson’s gift for both the quiet and the loud as it neatly builds steam. Most telling is a blazer called “Man, That Rocks”, which offers a three-minute glimpse into Anderson’s music and muses with references to Elvis, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Otis Redding.
To call on a relatively more current reference, What Else Can Go Right is one of the two albums Dave Edmunds would have made if Wales was just a little closer to Bunn, N.C., on the map. The other, of course, being Anderson’s ’94 debut You Don’t Like Me.