photo by Andy Laing; photo courtesy of Lander PR

Album Review of The Vintage Explosion: Havin’ Such a Good Time

So, do your musical tastes include swing and soul-infused, ’50s-style rock ‘n roll? The Vintage Explosion delivers a lot of music you might expect at a Happy Days sock hop or at Back to the Future‘s Enchantment Under the Sea dance, but the band’s repertoire extends far beyond that, as well. Riding the inimitable, versatile voice of singer/bandleader William Hitchell, the group’s talents span great swaths of early rock ‘n roll, swing, and even blues. How good is Hitchell’s voice? As the band notes in its promo material and on its website, Rod Stewart has stated, “The Vintage Explosion’s Willie is the best white soul singer I’ve ever heard.” Stewart’s high praise is certainly not misplaced.

Among famous contemporary artists, who’s most comparable to The Vintage Explosion right now, you ask? Well, if you’re a Michael Bublé fan, you’ll love these guys. Will you like them better than Bublé? Their delivery, while similar, is a little different, so it’s a toss-up.

image courtesy of Lander PR

The Vintage Explosion boasts a following that fills clubs, concert halls, and theaters, yet Havin’ Such a Good Time, is the band’s first album of originals. It’s an album with a big, theater-filling sound centered in ’50s soul-inspired rock ‘n roll. As you listen to the disc, you’ll be sure you’ve heard many of these songs before, they sound so familiar. They’re also so well-written that, in many cases, you’ll be sure they’re old favorites. They’re not. I’ve checked. They’re new favorites.

The title track, “Havin’ Such a Good Time” is, itself, a good-time rocker with a bluesy lyric and a humorous turn of events over the course of the song, so pay attention. Featuring flashy ivory-tickling, including as the opening lead-in, a prominent, rhythmic horn line, and an old-school, ’50s rock guitar solo, the song showcases a broad range of The Vintage Explosion’s capabilities, including the fact that, regardless of what’s happening musically, Hitchell’s expressive, “vintage” voice is always the star.

“Tired of Runnin’,” next, is a slow-paced crooner, ideal for the first slow dance of the night.

“Stupid Heart” is a jump, jive, and wail kind of uptempo oldies rocker, with some cool use of the drums to bring about mid-song resets each time the musical energy comes to a head, providing some attention-maintaining variance to the tempo.

“Take My Troubles Away” is a soulful, blues-leaning song, with vocals and harmonica providing a different vibe to the group’s by-now-familiar big, swinging rock ‘n roll sound.

photo by Andy Laing; photo courtesy of Lander PR

“Ain’t Got Enough (Money Honey)” is another swingin’ rock ‘n roll number. If you’re up for it, try doing the twist to this short, barely two-minute-long, fun song. Some Jerry Lee Lewis-esque piano-playing and jazzy hornwork help drive this song at breakneck pace.

“Lay in Your Arms” is a mournful ballad that reminds me a bit of “Try a Little Tenderness,” particularly in the opening. (I can almost hear Bull Durham‘s Nuke LaLoosh misquote the lyric “she may get woolly.”) But I digress. “Lay in Your Arms” is powerful, in no small part thanks to the way singer Hitchell gets at least five syllables out of the word “arms” during certain runs through of the chorus.

Soulful mid-tempo ’50s rock ‘n roll returns next, on “Just a Little Bit.” It’s a very AM-radio, oldies-station number with some clever back-and-forth between the lead and background singers to distinguish the song’s vibe a little from the other tunes in this collection.

“That Girl is Mine” is a fun, uptempo number driven by a plucking, thumping bass line. The song accelerates ever so slowly throughout until it’s at nearly a breakneck pace by the time the extended late-song horn solo comes along, closing at an almost-quick stop, like a good swing number or as in many ’50s TV theme songs.

photo by Andy Laing; photo courtesy of Lander PR

The penultimate song, “Don’t Knock Upon My Door” is yet another crooner, the third true danceable ballad on this album, even though there’s a little stronger soulful wail than in some ballads and some places where the tempo speeds up that’ll need to be ignored to maintain that good ol’ sock-hop slow-dance sway.

Havin’ Such a Good Time closes with perhaps my favorite song on the album, “Rockin’ Chair.” It’s a song that sounds so familiar I had to check a few times just to believe it’s a new original. It’s another song I might try twisting to, but mostly I just sing along. You, too, will find yourself joining in on the lyrics “Get out! Get out! Get out of my rockin’ chair.”

And that, sadly and far too soon, is the end of the album. In Havin’ Such a Good Time, The Vintage Explosion has composed a clever, invigorating, nostalgic album – pre-nostalgic for most of us, in fact. It’s a style not widely available in the music marketplace right now, which may be one reason this album is so much fun. The other reason, of course, is that the performance is nearly flawlessly executed. And, while The Vintage Explosion maintains a cohesive, identifiable sound throughout the album, it’s the small song-to-song differences that make Havin’ Such a Good Time such a wonderful listen. Take my word for it – give this LP a spin!

photo by Andy Laing; photo courtesy of Lander PR

Looking Ahead

The Vintage Explosion has shows scheduled in the UK and Ireland, from a November 29, 2023 gig at The Cavern Club in Liverpool to a November 9, 2024 concert at Usher Hall in Edinburgh, with several other dates scattered in-between. Be sure to check out the “Tickets” page on the band’s website to see when and where, and then check back periodically to discover new dates as they’re added.

Looking Back

Before Havin’ Such a Good Time, The Vintage Explosion released a couple albums of covers. Earlier in 2023, the band released Live at The Liquid Room, and in 2022, the group released The Vintage Explosion (Live at The Blue Arrow Club). On those cover song albums, you can find the band’s renditions of classics like “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” and “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.” You can stream those releases, along with the new album, on the band’s Spotify page and elsewhere.