Ross The Boss is the guitar player in this band. What, you're still here?
Get to the store now!
I would love to get away with writing a review like that, and I guarantee
you that most of the fans of his work in The Dictators already went looking
for their wallets. But for those of you still reading, Ross Friedman a.k.a.
Ross Funicello a.k.a. "Ross The Boss" is one of the tastiest fret-meisters
strutting this mortal coil, and "strut" is no idle adjective. Although his
tenure in Man'O'War treaded the ponderous boards on occasion, with The
Spinatras, he returns to basics -- fun and rock and roll. As in air-guitar,
head-bobbing songs with titles like "Dog" and "Ketchup". Okay, so it's not
lyrically brilliant like Shernoff's gems for The Dictators. Just play the
damned thing loud, okay?
That's not to say that they don't sometimes bury topics in wads of Pearl
Jam; the title track takes on Internet chat rooms, and "Anti Depressant" can
get a little whiny if you don't have much patience for vocals with a little
grunge on the side. But right alongside them, there's the absolutely
unbridled pop SCHWINNGGGGGG of "Michelle" (an ode to blond Goddess
Pfeiffer), the harmonic bounce and blistering guitar of "Comfort Zone," the
generation gap opus "Guess Again" and a walloping cover of "My Back Pages" (Bob Dylan, The Byrds)
that sounds like an urban Jason & The Scorchers. In other words, when they
don't take themselves too seriously, they rock! And isn't that what it's all
supposed to be about in the first place?
Brian Corley has that oh-so-snotty snarl down to a science. The rhythm
section is no slouch, manned by forceful drummer Richie Fazio (is that a New
Yawk name or what?) and fluid bassist Ron Giordano. Extra props to Giordano;
there are no show-off bass solos, but you're always aware of what he's
doing. And Ross The Boss is the guitar player. In case you forgot, Ross
rules.
