Many different styles of music on this CD, which can’t really be categorized. It’s a mix of roots music, Americana, gospel, blues, singer-songwriter, larded here and there with some rock-‘n’-roll. The second CD of the Shiner Twins is praised by specialists in this field with every possible positive comment we can find in a dictionary. Completely justified of course. Just like their first CD “All In Store” (2006), this CD, “Southern Belles”, was CD of the week on the program “American Connection” and it’s expected it will highly ranked in the “Euro American Chart”. Thirteen fine songs there are in this CD. The composers and singers of this band wrote most of them: Richard van Bergen, who also plays (slide)guitar and Jack Hustinx on electric and acoustic guitars. The rhythm section consists of Dik Wagensveld on bass and Nicky Hustinx on drums. On a number of songs the band is assisted by Roel Spanjers on Hammond B3, piano and accordion and Gait Klein Kromhof on his divine harmonica. The time between the two CD’s was filled with a lot of live shows. Because of this the band matured, became sharper and certainly tighter. As a real slide fan the opening song “Guide Me Lord” was a real treat for me, but if you think the tone has been set, you are wrong. The second song “Change For Romance” is something completely different, snappy, funky, groovin’. “Some Many Tears” gives you goose bumps and the ‘picking’ guitar on “Take You All The Way” is, together with the always-beautiful harmonica-sound of Gait, top-class. Americana throughout. The band proves it is one of the best in the field of American roots music, not only in Holland, but according to me, also in the world.

Translation by: Ton Kok