"Houston's Best Country Rockin' Blues Band Beats It Up to Borski's"

Get out of the house this weekend, head north to Borski's Tavern (I-45 at Shepherd Hill Rd., Willis) and check out one of Houston's very best band, The Romeo Dogs. Whether you're a fan of old time rock & roll, old school country or red hot blues, you'll dig the Dogs. Together since 1994, vocalist-guitarist Danny Gardner and vocalist-guitarist Mitch Jacobs came together to form a new band, recruiting along the way bassist Rex Wherry and drummer Steve Woods.

The Dogs charted new territory in old styles, bringing together the sounds of the 70’s Outlaw movement with the burgeoning sound of roots music -- forging new sounds in country, jazz, bluegrass, blues, rockabilly and the classic rock & roll sound of the 50’s and 60’s. Opening shows for Dwight Yoakam, Asleep At The Wheel and The Blasters got the music out to the people, culminating in a live-in-the-studio CD release in 2004; but the Romeo Dogs are at the best on stage. “We really are a live band,” says Gardner. “That’s what I think we thrive on most.”

The Romeo Dogs are set to release a new CD, “Live At Joe’s Roadhouse,” on Friday, November 3. The set, originally broadcast on KPFT (90.1 FM), is pitch perfect, with rock & roll rave-ups like “Pettin’ Party,” “Set Me Free,” and “Jukebox Fool,” stone cold country like “Guitar Town” and “One Bag & A Suitcase” and scorching blues like “Flyin’” and “Hot Little Mamma.” Sometimes, there’s a mix of styles, like on the rockin’ country lope of “Mrs. Pinkerton.”

“A live album is something we’ve wanted to do for a while now,” says Gardner, a veteran of bands like The Rounders and Forty Miles of Bad Road, “but it’s not always so easy finding a set that you’d want to make into a record. A lot of times, there’s engineering glitches or performance glitches, but this one turned out pretty good. It’s one we could all agree on and there’s not a bad song in the bunch. Everyone in the band is happy about how it turned out. With all the bands I’ve been in over the years, I’ve made about six records and I think this one’s the best.” 

          -The Bulletin,"Wherefore Art Thou, Romeo Dogs?" 
                    Mark Williams-Music Editor,October 2006