In 1997, Arthur Dodge and the Horsefeathers released their self-titled debut to excellent reviews. Arthur remained true to his songwriting roots with a combination of rootsy rock’n’roll and poignantly crafted songs about relationships gone south. Recorded in less than a week, the album is a spontaneous burst of insight into Arthur’s troubled psyche. Along with Mozier, Guy Stephens and Brock Ginther — formerly of regional favorites, the Homestead Grays and Tenderloin — provided the solid backline. Songs like “Old White Church” and “Love and Sacrifices” displays the band’s rock’n’roll roots while “True Romance” and “Pot of Gold” exhibit Arthur’s honest songwriting. No Depression writes: “For better or worse, the line ’I just spent all of my wife’s money on some bourbon and a rock’n’roll show’ from ‘She’s So Kind’ represents a fairly common sentiment in country and country-rock music. However, this couplets happy ending ‘But she’s so kind, she sees it in my eyes’ rejoinder, along with crackling good roots-rock surge that gives it a backbone, are just two of the pleasant surprises on the fine debut of this Lawrence, Kansas band.” Arthur Dodge and the Horsefeathers received seven nominations and three “Klammies” in the 1997 Kansas City Awards Show recognizing regional talent.
In 1998, the Horsefeathers released Cadillacs, Ponytails & Dirty Dreams continuing familiar themes of temptation, regret and rock’n’roll exuberance. This time, Arthur and the ’Feathers indulged themselves in two weeks of studio time, adding lots of harmonies and John Mozier on piano and organ. “Birmingham” tells the story of a girl trying to make it in Nashville. “Got a Rickenbacker/It’s brand new/pre-signed by the guy from the Who/ But it looks real good/Hangin’ from her shoulder.” “Domestic Dream” deals with the conflict of interests in a marriage when husband and wife can’t see eye to eye. Arthur received two more “Klammies” in the 1998 Kansas City awards show. CMJ writes: “Arthur Dodge can rock with a sincerity akin to Neil Young and early Springsteen, pluck through a Wilco-style ballad of hopeless love, and slip in lyrics with a Johnny Cash sense of homespun, humorous despondency.” Often compared to these roots rock giants, Arthur and the Horsefeathers are happy to carry on the tradition of solid songwriting infused with the power of rock’n’roll. Arthur also has been compared to artists as diverse as John Prine and Paul Westerberg who share a common theme — great songwriting.
Arthur and Matt recruited two new Horsefeathers in early ’98, replacing the rhythm section with veterans of the Kansas music scene, Jeremy Sidener and Kenny Pingleton. Jeremy was an original member of the international cult-favorite band, ZOOM and currently splits projects with Panel Donor. Ken is another veteran of the regional scene, putting in time with Sufferbus and various jazz combos. The new rhythm section bring years of experience and rock’n’roll credentials to the Horsefeathers. The Horsefeathers kept busy touring and played the annual CMJ Music Festival in New York and South By SouthWest in Austin, TX.
In August of 1999, the Horsefeathers recorded their latest album, Nervous Habit, at Blue Heaven Studios, a turn of the century church in Salina, Kansas, recently converted into a recording studio. The all-analog gear and the natural ambiance of the sanctuary resulted in the best record to date for the Horsefeathers. Recorded and mixed in seven days, the record is mostly live with Arthur’s direct and personal lyrics in the forefront. Arthur and the ’Feathers are at the top of their form. By turns, the songs are subtle and beautifully revealing and barely restrained rock’n’roll. “The Trouble with A Woman” is a play on words that cleverly reveals instead, the trouble with a man. “Well the trouble with a woman is/She don’t quite understand/What it’s like to be an idiot/What it’s like to be a man.” Arthur’s ability to gain perspective through the eyes of his characters is also revealing:
I knew this girl from Mexico
Who said hey man
I’d like to take your order
You know I haven’t got all day
I know you think I’m pretty
But I’m tryin’ really hard
I need this job
And no I couldn’t meet you later on to have a drink
I ain’t even kissed a girl in years
And no I couldn’t meet you by the river for a walk
or even anywhere that has anything to do with the moonlight
—Anything To Do With the Moonlight, Nervous Habit
Arthur comes by his craft naturally as the son of a son of a son of a Baptist preacher. He figures he’s preaching from one pulpit or another, carrying on the tradition — only his songs are about the demons, the fire, carnal lust and the search for redemption through the strings of a cheap guitar. On Nervous Habit, Arthur Dodge and the Horsefeathers show why they remain critically praised as saviors of the roots rock’n’roll tradition in America.