I love to stay home with my Redbone
My favorite bands are The Ramones, Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, and The Misfits. So why do I listen to Leon? Because I appreciate artists who do their own thing their own way. Leon, if nothing else is an original performer. You won't see a guy like this on American Idol, because he is a true artist with integrity. Now on to thr review....

This is my favorite Redbone album. He had me hooked on the first song, Diddy wa Diddie. What does it mean? Who knows? Leon doesn't even know! It's a good little foot tapper. I also like his rendition of Shine on Harvest Moon. The only other version I know of this song is when Laurel and Hardy sang it in 'The Flying Deuces". So I know it is an old old song.

Perhaps the crowning acheivement on this disc is the wonderful "Jelly Roll Man" song. It has a sexy nurse, gunshots, and the healing power of the jelly roll. Mississippi Delta Blues is a great tune too. I love the whole album. I love to sit in the dark with a couple of bottles of Boone's Farm and let the Redbone rip. This is some great stuff. There is no voice in the world like his. It's like a cartoon character with a mouth full of marbles, but he makes it work.

Music to booze with!
Late at night, all you need is a jug of wine - or 2 or 3, "Viva Terlingua", friends to enjoy. Who needs karaoke??

A great favorite
This album contains two of my favorite Leon Redbone songs. "Shine on Harvest Moon" is, of course, a classic -- but this album will teach you the wonderful introduction that almost no one knows (except dedicated Leon Redbone fans). And then there is "Diddy Wa Diddy" which is sort of an old-time-blues vehicle that may have inspired Alice Cooper's "No More Mr. Nice Guy." I'll always wonder if it did.

Most relaxing music from Leon Redbone
Released in 1977, "Double Time" was Leon Redbone's follow-up to his debut LP titled "On the Track", which had went gold after its 1975 release (see my review of the latter somewhere on this very site).
This album follows the directions already pursued on the aforementioned debut: Leon Redbone's sources of inspiration remain blues, jazz, country and cabaret songs from the pre-WW2 or even pre-WW1 era.

These great old songs regain all their appeal thanks not only to Leon Redbone's intrinsic talent but also to his always fresh, sometimes "tongue-in-cheek", even irreverent approach towards choice material he genuinely loves and understands. Listen to him whistling through Mamie Smith's 1920 "Crazy Blues" before conjuring a swing jazz depiction of country singer Jimmie Rodgers ("Mississippi Delta Blues") before finding his way through pistol shots (!) on the wonderfully double-entendre "Mr. Jelly Roll Baker" (a Jelly Roll Morton composition). He can also be delightfully tender, but never maudlin, on tunes like "My Melancholy Baby" (a 1912 composition made famous by Judy Garland in the aforementioned "A Star Is Born").

The stellar backing of a cast of high calibre musicians further enhances his rich, throaty baritone and seemingly unassuming finger picked guitar playing. Redbone's varied arrangements are always to the point and bring a lot of contrasts and shadings to the proceedings. In this domain, he gets masterful help from jazzman Al Cohn (horn arrangements) and William S. Fischer (strings). All the while, Joel Dorn's production is a predictably classy affair.

This is, personally, my favourite Leon Redbone recording thanks to, among others, its inspired song selection and sequencing. After listening to it once, I often find myself pushing anew the "play" button on the remote. Of course, some affinity with some of the original artists' music might still enhance your listening pleasure. For other people, Leon Redbone might also well open new paths to the appreciation of the original work of now relatively neglected artists. The music is so relaxingly satisfying that the original working title for this album - "Takin' My Time" - would have been a more appropriate choice.

The sound quality is okay, although the original digital 1988 digital mastering cannot help showing its age. Any hopes for some remastering for an artist who is not only still recording but whose catalogue has luckily remained available through all these years? Are you reading this Rhino?

Good, Fun, and Happy music fron Uncle Redbone
This CD brings back memories of my drinking days. This music is good to keep from being sober. The first time I played the album back in 1980, everyone wanted to know who was this man with such unique voice and his music that made you sing along and enjoy. To me it's a mixture of jazz and Dixieland. I like his style, if you want to be different with class buy his CD's and play them when you have company over. Someone will not resist the temptation to ask, who is this man?