38 Special

38 Special

 Anyone who has ever seen 38 Special live can picture this: Donnie Van Zandt, who the band identifies as ‘the hardest working man in rock and roll’, running and spinning across the stage with his guitar while Don Barnes belts out some intense vocals.

The unique sound of the band is a blend of hard-kicking southern rock, with just a bit of mellow, topped off by intensely smooth vocals. What a combination!

Some favorite tunes:

• Chain Lightning
• Caught Up In You
• Rough Housin’
• Fantasy Girl
• If I’d Been the One
• Twentieth Century Fox
• Back Where You Belong
• Long Distance Affair
• Rockin’ Into the Night
• Hold on Loosely

If you only buy one disc or MP3 download of this band, I would strongly recommend the 2-CD Anthology set. It is packed with all their best and being two discs, has room for some stuff (like Chain Lightning) that they left off their Flashback CD. And you should really consider the Live at Sturgis CD, which features the band in their best element, in front of a rowdy crowd.

Personal note on 38 Special

  I’ve only seen these guys live one time.  But it was at the Great Southern Minnesota Barbecue in Rochester, Mn, in the late 1980’s.  The barbecue that year was a two day party of beer and barbecue in an outside venue.  These guys came on and totally kicked butt.  Other notable bands at the barbecue that year were Foreigner, The Gerogia Sattelites, Jefferson Starship (without Grace Slick), and a bunch of other bands.