Southern Culture On The Skids

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[3/5] For more than two decades, the appeal of Southern Culture On The Skids has been that you couldn’t dress ’em up and take ’em anywhere. So what are we to make of the Chapel Hill trio’s latest, which dandies up a set of pop and country standards in uncharacteristically slick style? One answer is that with the white-trash shtick toned down, you can appreciate how proficient of a band Southern Culture really are; check their skintight-and-sultry take on Wanda Jackson’s “Funnel Of Love,” with bassist Mary Huff contributing a sizzling vocal. However, the goofy, giddy covers of the wife-swapping “Let’s Invite Them Over” and Ray Davies’ “Muswell Hillbilly” recall a significant line from the latter song. To paraphrase: Higher-class surroundings will never make SCOTS something that they’re not. (YEP ROC) Dan LeRoy