Elizabeth McQueen
Happy Doing What We're Doing
Freedom Records

Austin's Elizabeth McQueen (with her Firebrands and various friends) turn to England's early 1970s pre-punk/pre-new wave roots music scene, known as "pub rock," on Happy Doing What We're Doing - a tribute to early Graham Parker, Dave Edmunds, Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello, and others. In the convoluted world of modern music, pub rock, in turn, drew heavily on American roots music styles.

The CD is joyously danceable, if not particularly deep. (In this case, it doesn't need to be deep.) "It's happy music and I dig it," McQueen said. "And I dig it so much that I went back and learned all I could about it."

Thirteen songs, nine keepers - a few of which you might have heard before - rooted in pop-rock, old-style R&B, blues, country, and jazz; not a bad average. The music pretty much rocks, as do McQueen's easy, relaxed - but with a bit of an attitude when called for - vocals.

Dave Sanger of Asleep at the Wheel produced and added percussion. The Firebrands are Andrew Nafziger (guitars), Lindsay Greene (bass), and Eric Hughes (drums). The Conrads are Earl Freedom (bass), David Beebe (harmonica and organ), Landis Armstrong (guitar), and Andrew Gerfers (drums). John Michael Whitby, Nick Connolly, Austin de Lone, and David Webb each contributed keyboards on various songs; others in the big cast included Chris Miller and George Sanger (guitar), Jimmy Murphy (pedal steel), Dan Torosian (saxophone), and Jimmy Shortell (trumpet). (www.elizabethmcqueen.com)

- Tom Geddie