Desert Noir

We spent a recent weekend in Tucson, claiming some R&R, and we scouted out the music scene on short notice.  We were fortunate to coincide with a show offering a nostalgic nod to the '90s scene. The band Friends of Dean Martinez is doing a Sunday night residence these days at the Owl Club on South Scott downtown. Has it really been 20 years since we started buying that band's CDs?

The band shares DNA with Arizona legends Calexico and Giant Sand (notably founding members Joey Burns and John Convertino). They started out as Friends of Dean Martin, and we can imagine the cease-and-desist letter that prompted the name tweak. These days the band is led by lap-steel guitarist Bill Elm assisted by guitarist Mike Semple. They play moody Sonoran desert mood pieces, with hints of surf and a little Tony Mottola. In the dimly lit classy little joint, they played an enjoyable 45-minute set.

Friends of Dean Martinez are known for a couple of "hits" -- actually, a pair of standards, "Misty" and "Summertime":





I drove home from Tucson on Monday afternoon. I-10 was closed on both sides of the Arizona-New Mexico border (blowing dust), so we were forced into an hourlong detour -- up 191 north into Safford and then east on Route 70 to Lordsburg -- before reconnecting to the interstate. This provided the opportunity for some surfing of the radio dial.

First up was a classic R&B/dusties station -- 104.9 FM KWCX out of Willcox, Ariz. The DJ there spun a 1977 disco nugget, Joe Tex's "Ain't Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Woman)." Groove:



And then there is one of our favorite state-border AM stations, 1250-KHIL, also out of Willcox. It plays country classics, but most of the voice-overs, IDs and commercials are delivered in Spanish. We were treated to another obscure hit, Tanya Tucker's "My Arms Stay Open All Night" from 1989:



BONUS TRACK
FODM finished their set with a cover of the Hawaiian-tinged lap-steel workout "Sleepwalk." I remember a Chicago DJ, Steve Dahl, using it as his playout music (but I could be wrong). Here's the 1959 original, performed on "American Bandstand" by Santo & Johnny: