When it comes to vintage country music, Moon Mullican isn’t the most recognizable name like his buddy Hank Williams or western swing king Bob Wills. Yet, enthusiasts of the genre are probably familiar with a few originals the “King of the Hillbilly Piano Players” left behind, like “I’ll Sail My Ship Alone” and “Pipeliner Blues” that occasionally pop up in the repertoires of others.
Unlike Williams and Wills, who have had countless tribute albums pay homage to them, full-length Mullican tributes have been practically non-existent, though Cornell Hurd’s 2008 tribute comes to mind. Over 50 years ago, fellow Texas roots musician Johnny Nicholas became so moonstruck with Mullican that he realized the piano-pounding entertainer’s body of work was so massive and deep that any cursory examination was futile.
For this blockbuster two-volume LP, 20-track CD, Nicholas assembled a collective of mostly Texas/Louisiana vocalists/instrumentalists that reads like a who’s who of roots music. The album highlights luminaries as Earl Poole Ball, Floyd Domino, Linda Gail Lewis, Marcia Ball, and Augie Meyers. Louisiana musicians include Kelli Jones, Tif Lamson, Steve Riley, and Joel Savoy, who also recorded the bulk of these sessions in Cherry Spring, Texas.
Considering it’s his name on the marquee, surprisingly, Nicholas is involved only on half of these tracks, singing and/or playing piano, guitar and harmonica, though piano is his primary instrument. Instead, he selflessly shared the spotlight and allowed his collaborators’ artistic freedom to interpret the material accordingly. Los Texmaniacs barrel full steam ahead on “Moonshine Polka” in its rip-roaring Conjunto style. Silvery-voiced Peter Rowan croons “I’m Waiting For Ships That Never Come In” with fineness and agility featuring both pianist Danny Levin’s and saxophonist Greg Piccolo’s jazzy lilt. Fiddler Katie Shore brings her swinging sunny outlook and unique phrasing to “There’s a Little Bit of Heaven.”
Of course, this bumper crop of stellar performances and seemingly infinite highlights pave the way to a deeper appreciation of the lyrics, regardless of whether Mullican penned ’em or interpreted them as his own. On the lovely “When Love Dies,” Jones and Lamson ask “If I were to look inside your heart/Would I find you there?” that’s essentially the emotional apex of the song. Similarly, on the lamenting “Bottom of the Glass,” Lamson sings the sorrowful but penetrating lines: “The bottom of the glass is just as empty as your life / You know it holds no secret way to help you in your strife.”
Whether it’s Lewis ripping it up on the 88’s on “I’ll Sail My Ship Alone” or Riley leading the brigade on “Seven Nights to Rock” on Cajun accordion, it’s just a delightful treasure trove that’ll be impossible to top. Even though the New Year is barely here, Nicholas’ participatory Moon Mullican tribute could easily be the best of 2023 when it comes to western swing and retro honky tonk music.
