Chuck Mead

Roots-rocker extraordinaire and card-carrying handsome SOB Chuck Mead is the frontman for honky-tonk country band BR549, an unabashedly retro outfit that never forgot that the old songs were made for dancing. The band was so infectious on its 1996 full-length self-titled debut album that it even spawned a minor hit, “Cherokee Boogie,” despite garnering little support from country radio. On his own, Mead doesn’t stray far from the BR549 template on the new Journeyman’s Wager—the guitar riffs are trashy and twangy, the humor is of the down-home variety, and the whole thing reeks of cigarettes, stale beer, and hard fellers who aren’t quite as tough as they look. 

Updated 06/10/2009