Old Habits (1999)
Reviewed by Digital City
(Washington D.C.)
January 2000
Travis Allison Churns Out Another Chart-Topper.
Each city has it's own sound. St. Louis has the blues, New Orleans has jazz and Richmond has folk/rock. The town along the James is a breeding ground for up-and-coming homegrown talent. Indie artists continuously comb the city for club dates and fret over frat house parties.
Carbon Leaf, Pat McGee, Fighting Gravity, they've all taken the Richmond scene by storm and traveled north to stake their claim in DC. Venturing north to the city that screams of politics, the Travis Allison Band is now looking to leave their mark on the burgeoning local music scene.
Allison's career has been nothing short of impressive. His debut album, Some Other Time solidified his presence on the Richmond music circuit and gave listeners a more tangible feel to the Travis Allison Band. The album also produced, the award-winning, "Some Years Ago."
Through the years, band members have come and gone but, with their most recent release, Old Habits, it's plain to hear that they've lost nothing in transition. TAB has spiffed up their folk/rock frat house sound and given listeners a more sophisticated taste of what's to come.
From the pop/rock soundings of, "Beautiful and Tall" to the bluesy piano ballad "Marina" and the organ overtures of "Same Things," Allison and his band produce a tight sound that'll stay in the CD changer long past the turn of the Millennium.
Old Habits balances the vocal versatility of Allison with the saxophone stylings of Greg Dryden and the electric workings of Chris Vasi. The end result, a discreetly balanced CD that brings out the best that acoustic music has to offer.
Reviewed by Keith Hannaleck
Degyshop
March 2000
Now this is music! What a superlative recording by the Travis Allison Band. If you happen to like the sound of Hootie & The Blowfish you will absolutely love this CD. Allison sings with the soulful swagger of Jagger and the down home warmth of Hornsby.
I was compelled to play this again soon after the first listen. Not only is this filled with catchy songs, it's music that speaks of true life. The closing track, "Same Things" says it all. With lines like "We all want the same things and sometimes we all fit into the same shoe," clearly exemplifies how the mirror of our lives can be found in a song.
If you want someone to relate to in your own backyard, the Travis Allison Band's music will speak to your heart. The music understands the people and circumstances brought to life in each tune. There are no shortcuts taken on this excursion. There is solid content regarding the most critical factors, the music and lyrics.
This is a grade A blend of Rock-Pop-Roots music. The organ, guitar and saxophone are intermingled to make an irresistible, homespun sound. They say that the eyes are the window of the soul, these eyes don't lie (nor do these ears). With the right backing this group could be huge.
Reviewed by Tony Gisondi
April 2001
Travis's second album was released four years after the first. This left a big gap in time where TAB fans were craving music. That amount of time produced a recording with eleven of the best songs that Travis Allison Band could have put together.
They needed to make sure that the second album, which was the first featuring a set full band, was just as awesome as the first, and it sure is. Each song, none of which are less than four minutes in length, displays the signature talents of the entire band. The excellence of the guitar and piano playing of the band is present throughout.
"Beautiful and Tall" starts the disc off with an upbeat ballad type song, that can only be described as breathtaking. In fact every song on the disc is breathtaking. In fact over 400 radio stations across the country played the music. It is not often that a band with no major record label deal produces a song that gets national attention like that.
"Sweet Mellow Time" is one of the better songs on the disc, as well. It was featured on a compilation that benefited the United Way and the fight against homelessness.
Lyrically, there are not many songwriters that can put together a full collection of songs as magnificent as the eleven on this disc. There are not many words to describe the overall excellence of this recording, so I suggest you check it our for yourself. Never has good old American music sounded so good.
Also, if you are a fan of Pat McGee Band, you should definitely check this out, as Travis lended some assistance to Pat earlier in his career. Who knows, Pat McGee Band's success could be just what Travis Allison Band has to look forward to. I'm pretty sure they have a good shot.
Reviewed by Jeff Caldwell
Richmond Magazine
The second album by this Richmond musician picks up where his 1995 release "Some Other Time" left off, delivering folk and jazz-inspired acoustic pop, but experiments with soul and funk add new attraction to Travis Allison's intelligent lyrics.
"Old Habits" proves more well-rounded than Allison's first outing. Remnants of his one-man-and-a-guitar approach are still apparent, but his new band (none of the present lineup played on the first CD) functions as a unit rather than just as a background ensemble.
With the help of fret-master Chris Vasi, and saxophonist Greg Dryden, the album explores a more sophisticated instrumental plane. The folk-rock sound Travis Allison Band fans have come to expect returns in "If She's Real" and "Sweet Mellow Time," which borrows heavily from Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready," but Allison traverses new ground in the R&B groove of "Hurricane" and "River." The soulful "Beautiful and Tall" and folky "Same Things" bookend the effort and highlight the diverse styles of Allison's repertoire.
The album's schizophrenia leaves the top-down driving tune "The Road" and piano ballad "Marina" feeling slightly out of place, but it is that variety that makes this University of Richmond grad's music stand out among local musicians on the Mid-Atlantic college and club circuit.
Bottom line: A solid album marking an encouraging evolution for this young musician.
Reviewed by Mike Joyce
The Washington Post
12/31/99
The Travis Allison Band, a Richmond-based quintet, has something that sets it apart from most of the bar-band competition—songs.
Real songs. Not just party anthems or thinly disguised cover tunes, but fully realized and often ambitious songs written or co-written by Allison, the band's vocalist, keyboardist and acoustic guitarist.
From the opening ballad, "Beautiful and Tall," it's clear that Allison has developed a knack for storytelling. Several of his best songs, in fact, take the shape of narratives that unfold in poignant, sorrowful or uplifting ways.
Like a young Springsteen, he can be a bit verbose and predictable at times. "The Game," for instance, opens with the line "Stuck inside the middle of a human mess/He's got medals hanging on his blue collar chest." But much more often Allison's songs benefit from the sheer quality of his writing, whether the tale is impassioned, introspective or inspiring.
Turns out he's no slouch as a tunesmith either. With plenty of help from guitarist Chris Vasi, reedman Chris Dryden, bassist Pat Porter and drummer Grant Kersey, Allison craftily blends elements of pop, folk, rock, soul and gospel music. The result? A bar-band album that's probably best appreciated playing in your living room.