JASON & THE SCORCHERS: HOT CRACKERS TO GO!

Even if Willie Nelson only releases 10 albums this year, 1985 has already distinguished itself as a truly terrific time for good old-fashioned Amurrican music. Just think about it: In the first few months alone, we’ve been bit by Los Lobos, burned by the Blasters, and fried by John Fogerty! What a deal! And if that’s not enough, you can always get another copy of Eliminator and pretend it’s new, too.

None of these fine recorded efforts, however, outshine Lost And Found, the first feature-length offering from Jason & the Scorchers. After two promising EPs, the homegrown Reckless Country Soul and the widely-praised Fervor, Jason Ringenberg and his boys have hit the jackpot. Forget that they used to be called the Nashville Scorchers, if it makes you nervous, ’cause on Lost And Found these guys just plain burn, the way classic rock ’n’ roll's s’pozed to. I like to think of ’em as a down-home Ramones, which doesn’t come close to describing the sound, but does give a pretty good indication of the level of intensity.