Ted Nugent
““Full Bluntal Nugity””
(Spitfire Records)
Live Ted Nugent. You need more than that? You probably don’t deserve it. Being raised in the Midwest, I don’t even mind the UberHunter Ted Nugent. But living in this vegetarian plastic wasteland of Southern California, I have felt the politics shadow the music. Ted has opinions. Often. And he likes to share them with you. Whether you asked him or not. And anytime you mix a political personality with musical charisma, many impressions are made. And for those who missed the Motorcity Madman’s heyday a couple of decades ago, it’s these media based images of Ted most are currently familiar with. But if ‘Wang Dang Sweet Poontang’ means more than a bathroom wall scribble or an undeserved slap in the face, a live Nugent album is rock central. This album offers little new and basically shows Ted rocking out live with no overdubs. The break comes in the bizarre shape of an acoustic song called “Fred Bear” that is just a little too literal in Ted’s hunting fix to be a real song. He introduces it as a “Michigan Blood Brother Camp Fire” song. And then inquired to how everyone’s hunting season is going. (Hey this was recorded in Detroit. They actually let kids out of school to go shoot deer in the Midwest.) The obvious are included, “Free For All”, “Yank Me Crank Me”, “Hey Baby”, “Cat Skratch Fever” (which is introduced by Ted humbly admitting to the audience as being “the No.1 guitar lick in the history of the world.”). One thing Ted has never been accused of is a lack of self-confidence. “Stranglehold”, “Great White Buffalo” (truly showing the guitar howls Ted is famous for) and “Motorcity Madhouse” close up the disk. Ted reminds us of when guitars truly rocked and a solo was nothing to be ashamed of.
