Funny songs provide welcome relief in tough times

Country parodist Cledus T. Judd follows closely in the footsteps of Ray Stevens (to whom he recorded a tribute album, Boogity, Boogity), and earlier acts like Homer & Jethro and Sheb Wooley. To the MTV generation, weaned on video hits of the ‘80s and ‘90s, he’s more likely to appeal as the Al Yankovich of country music. Like all of these humorists, he’s a passable vocalist who treads a fine-line between clever and sophomoric as he lampoons the melodies of much-loved hit songs and pokes fun at Nashville stars. The parodies work best as singles, sandwiched between the real McCoys on radio, and will most please those familiar with the originals. Judd also writes original material that keeps his albums from becoming formulaic.

Returning from radio stints at WQYK, Tampa and WUBL, Atlanta, Judd’s parody excels when he bites into contemporary events. His rewrite of Brad Paisley’s “Waitin’ on a Woman” snapshots the societal disaster of W and the political ineptness of McCain, and he catalogs outsized hopes with “Waitin’ on Obama.” He translates Larry Cordle’s sharp “Murder on Music Row” into the even sharper “Merger on Music Row,” digging behind Nashville’s crossover trends to consider the shrinking landscape of the music industry. His originals are infectiously silly as he celebrates the Dukes of Hazzard’s “Cooter” (with killer harmonies to accent the very mention of “Cooter”) and gives one of Santa’s original eight his chance to escape Rudolph’s bright red shadow on “Dang It, I’m Vixen.”

The album’s other seasonal tune, “Christmas in Rehab,” gives junkies, crackheads, coke fiends, tweakers, alcoholics and glue sniffers a surprisingly cheery start to the holiday season. The fantasy “(If I Had) Kellie Picker’s Boobs” is cornpone, and “Tailgaitin,” written and recited with Colt Ford answers the question of whether anyone really needs country rap (that’d be ‘no’). Judd is joined by Ashton Shepherd, Brooks & Dunn, The Grascals and Daryle Singletary, who clearly find him as likeable as does his audience. As the world economies continue to convulse and global politics spin further out of control, it’s good luck to find someone who’s retained their sense of humor. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com]

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