******************************************************
North of the Border Magazine
CD Review by: Dave Miller
December 2006
Honey House – HillTone Records
Local favorites Cass Hunter & Billy Hillman have been pleasing crowds in this area for some time now, and they finally put their homespun pickin’ and singin’ down for all of us to take home and hear all the time. Vocalist Cass has the soothing voice than can calm nerves, but also soars with the more exciting tunes, while master guitarist (and Mandolin player) Billy Hillman (formerly with Monty & The Pythons of Nashville fame) keeps the pickin’ end of the bargain. Other musicians of note include Geronimo Calderon on drums, Scott Nutter on upright bass, Lee Garner on accordion, Lee Mounger on fiddle, and Claude Wooley on bass. Their well-chosen tunes range from originals to great covers. Billy treats us to his own song, “Simple Place” with a wish to go back to when times were slower and things a lot simpler, and the title cut makes fun of the notion that money buys you happiness, when a home and family and the true pleasures of life are a “baby cuter than a speckled pup” and “food you grew and picked ripe from the vine”. The heart-felt ballad “It’s You” is sure to be a favorite, with its sincere declaration of love, and “Going Places I Have Never Been” also expresses thanks for found love, while the serious ballad “No Chance of Parole” looks at “serving 99-to-life”. Instrumentals like “Do You Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans”, “Peace of Mind” and “Twilight Over Texas” give Billy a chance to show off his amazing guitar-playing skills, especially with the closing cover of Cream’s “White Room”. The pace picks up with original “When You Find Love” and “Let the Good Times Roll On” became one of my favorites at their live shows (thanks for including it, guys!) with some spine-tingling slide guitar and Cass’ soaring vocals giving me goose bumps. This is a wonderful collection of love songs and guitar picking and highlights the incredible talent this pair brings to their music. Do yourself a favor and buy yourself a Christmas present of this CD and enjoy many moments of musical pleasure. They play at several venues up this way, so get out and check them out. Find out more at their web site at www.cass-music.com
******************************************************
The Bulletin, Dec. 15, 2006 - www.thebulletin.com
Mark Williams,
Music Editor
Cass & Billy Create a Buzz with Debut Album
Welcome to "Honey House"
If you've been to Borski's Tavern or Traditions Bar & Grill (formerly the Hoffbrau) or any number of places around here in the last year or two, there’s a good chance you’ve heard the music of Cass Hunter and Billy Hillman, better known simply as Cass & Billy. Whether they play as a duo or with their full band, Cass & Billy offer up real country music with a ray of sunshine. While both have recorded separately, Cass & Billy strike the right chord with their first album together, “Honey House.”
The title track is a old-timey country tune, a perfect way to kick off the album. What follows is more pure country goodness, with tunes that showcase Cass’ great voice (which is somewhere between Brenda Lee and Patsy Cline) and Billy’s total mastery of any instrument he picks up; he also produced the album at the couple’s home in Huntsville. “Billy really has a good ear,” says Cass. “He can listen to the playback of a song and hear an instrument has gone flat and go back and fix it. He can pick out things no one else can hear.”
Cass and Billy wrote some of the songs themselves, while Cass co-wrote others with her Nashville pals, rocking it out a little on songs like “When You Find Love” and “It’s You.” Meantime, songs like “Going Places I Have Never Been” and “Mr. Pillowfeather” show off the duo’s softer side. Billy spices things up with instrumentals like the tranquil “Peace of Mind,” “Twilight Over Texas” and a couple of cool covers: Cream’s 60’s rocker “White Room” and Louis Armstrong’s “Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?” “We started out doing two records,” explains Cass. “One with vocals and the other was Billy’s instrumentals, but, as time went on, the two just seemed to merge together.”
Cass calls “Honey House” the couple’s “love child,” explaining that “it was something we worked on for three years on and off. The songs have all been written during that period and took time to buy and learn to use the equipment we used to record it. The time it took was worth it, though. We’re really proud of the way it turned out.”
Both veterans of the Nashville scene, Cass & Billy returned to Texas to care for Billy’s ailing father; but instead of putting their dreams on hold, the duo has forged ahead in recent years -- playing gigs across the area while still managing to opening shows for country notables like *George Jones and Marty Stuart. Plus they still lead the weekly song swap every week at Borski’s in Willis.
“Honey House” will definitely make that country music lover on your Christmas list very happy this holiday season, so check out the couple’s website at www.cass-music.com to find out how to get a copy of this cool new CD sent to your mailbox. “We just received notification that CD Baby is up and running with our album,” says Cass. “So it's still available through our website with no shipping and handling throughout the end of the year, and now through CD Baby. Samples are available there, as well as an area that listeners can review the album.”
The album is also available at Hastings Music in Conroe and Huntsville; for even more information and music from Cass & Billy, go to their new My Space page at www.myspace.com/cassandbilly...
*Cass & Billy never opened a show for George Jones, but Cass sang the closing song of the 101st Airborne's Freedom Concert in June, 2002, on stage with Colte Bradley, George Jones, LeRoy Parnell, The Whites, and a few other artists who had performed earlier in the day.
******************************************************
The Daily Home (www.dailyhome.com)
Laura Nation-Atchison, The Daily Home lifestyles editor
12-19-2006
Cass & Billy Come to Cafe' Avanti
If you’re into rap or hard rock, she says, “You’ll hate us,” but if you like traditional country, maybe a little rock thrown in and some great swing songs form the past, they’re for you.
The duo that calls themselves “Cass and Billy” and has connections to Pell City comes through town to play for friends usually around Christmas, and this year, their visit comes Friday night at Café Avanti.
Cass and Billy will play from 7 p.m. until 10 p.m., and with it being Christmas and all, plan to thrown in some Christmas songs along with their usual offerings, plus requests “if we know them,” Cass said.
Cass said they’re calling the visit their “Pell City CD Release Party,” because they’ve just gotten their new CD out titled “Honey House.”
They wrote most of the music for the CD, all but four, and most are a result of the two working together.“Billy is great with melodies, and writing with him has put a new twist on some of my songs,” she said. “He has more of a rock influence than I do, and he has such a great ear for chord progressions.”
Cass said she started writing music when she moved to Nashville in 1992 when she was 19.“I’m still learning, of course, but I had some song writer friends in Nashville who helped me,” she said.
Her interest in music started at home, with an older sister who was a church pianist at age 15 at Southside Baptist Church in Trussville where the family lived at the time.
Cass was 12 years younger than her sister, and would sit by the piano at age 3, fascinated while her sister played.
Her sister sang harmony, and Cass said she got hooked. She then went on to sing in school events and competitions and in church, and sang in every talent event she could find.
Billy had his musical ambitions turned on by a sibling, too.
His older brother played guitar, and listened to lots of records at home. Billy would use pillows for drums and play with wooden dowel rods, playing along with the records. When he was about 13, he picked up his brother’s guitar and before long, his parents arranged for him to take lessons. After catching on, he started playing with bands in high school and college in Huntsville.
He moved to Houston, played with some more groups until 1994 when he moved to Nashville and started playing with musicians there, including David Ball, Sara Evans, Monty and the Pythons and others.
Cass’s parents and a sister still live in Pell City.
Now, Cass and Billy have a recording studio in their Huntsville, Texas home, where they are care providers for his ill father.
That’s where they worked on the new CD, “Honey House.” They play often in the Huntsville area, and perform regularly in Nashville and in Alabama, also in Little Rock, Mississippi and Louisiana and on the Florida-Alabama coast twice a year. They recently added a trip to play in San Diego two or three times a year and travel every few weeks.
Cass and Billy started playing together in 2000, when Cass was brought in to fill in for a female vocalist who was sick.
Cass and Billy have played for the Pell City Block Party and for several locations in and around Talladega.
It’s recommended to call for reservations for their appearance at Café Avanti Friday night. You may call the restaurant at (205) 338-8900. Pell City, AL.
******************************************************
TAXI - The World's Leading Independent A & R Company
Name(s):
Cass Hunter & Billy Hillman
Critique of Cass & Billy's "Honey House" CD's title track, "Honey House"
Listener ID # 34 - Dec. 2006
-------------------
Style:
I hear this song's style as authentic, traditional country swing.
Melody:
_X_ Good music in verses
___ Verses could be stronger
_X_ Good music in choruses
___ Choruses could be stronger
___ Verses/Choruses sound too similar
_X_ Memorable "hook"
___ Hook not obvious enough
Note: Adorable melody -- I think it's so appealing.
Structure:
___ Intro too long
_X_ Well-written structure
_X_ Good sectional contrast
___ Not enough sectional contrast
___ Could use a bridge
Note: Effective song structure.
Lyric:
_X_ First line makes me want to hear more
___ Engaging
_X_ Cohesive
_X_ Good use of imagery
_X_ Rhymes well
_X_ Communicates emotion to listener
___ Lacks focus
_X_ Unique
___ Too abstract
___ I don't understand it
___ Too predictable
___ Too many cliches
___ Awkward phrasing
_X_ Vocal does help to sell song
___ Vocal does not help to sell song
Note: Excellent imagery (I like "cuter than a speckled pup"). The lyric is more old-fashioned, but very well-done.
Title:
Unique and visual title.
Overall Comments:
Dear Cass & Billy,
What a pleasure to hear this song. The musicians sound so smooth. I like the melodic hook in the CH. I also like the relaxed, natural feel of Cass' vocal. The style is more old-time, country swing, which may not be currently hot on the charts, but is a respected, beloved genre in country music. It's the right style for the Grand Ol' Opry, and traditional bluegrass groups. FYI, Taxi runs country listings year-round. I think all the photos enhance the CD's enjoyment. I was wondering how that house got up in that tree (ha). Some excellent books are listed on the back of this form. You may enjoy Zollo's which is a collection of interviews with famous songwriters. All the best and Merry Christmas to you both in Huntsville.
Overall Rating: <1-10, 10=best>
Music: 9
Lyrics: 8
Marketability: 7
Arrangement: 9
Production: 9
Engineering: 9
Signed off by: TAXI Listener ID # 34
******************************************************
Local Artist Spotlight: Cass & Billy
Katie Breaux – ITZ (In The Zone) Magazine, Huntsville, TX
August 2007 – Vol. 2, Issue 4
When Cass Hunter laid eyes on guitarist, Billy Hillman, she would never have guessed that she was looking at a man she would still be in love with and working with seven years later. Cass and Billy make a living by performing and recording a mix of original cover songs that range from country, rock, swing, and bluegrass.
The two have both held an interest and passion for music since they were young children, and the drive to express themselves through their melodic art has only welled with time. They both have prideful claim to individual album releases as well as one they recorded together, which is sure to be the first of many. Hunter’s album, which was recorded in Nashville and released in 2000, is entitled “Cass 2000 / My First Album.” Hillman lays claim to “The Real Thing / Monty & the Pythons,” which he recorded right here in *Huntsville in 2001. Fans of this talented pair can find the latest release from Cass and Billy entitled, “Honey House,” which they recorded in Huntsville last year.
While many couples gasp at the thought of working with their significant other, Cass and Billy find it therapeutic and healthy to produce and perform music together. “Your practice partner is right there with you. You don’t even have to make a phone call and drive across town, just break out the instruments,” says Cass of working with her boyfriend.
Although working together does produce some challenges, they choose to embrace them and take something positive from what would otherwise be trying. When asked what the hardest part about working with his girlfriend is, Billy replies with a smile and hearty laugh, “Leaving to the gig on time.” Cass humors him saying, “Very funny, Billy. We are together 24 / 7 so when we are playing, even though we try to let it all go and get lost in the music, sometimes we still have some personal deals that sneak through into our work. The music will always win in the end, though. Sometimes more emotion will pour out and make the music more solid.”
Both learned a lot about music throughout school and by taking lessons from artists at the professional level, but Cass and Billy have both arrived at this thriving point in their career by experience and their own passion for music.
Both of them exclaim without a doubt that they will never give up music. Billy eloquently states, “There are plenty of sacrifices made, but there are plenty of rewards that are earned when you do what I do. Its very gratifying when you connect with someone by a song or riff you just played on guitar.” Of her profession, Cass says, “The music is positively in my blood. I will sing and perform as long as I am able.”
Cass and Billy’s work together is solidified by their passion and love for music and for each other. No matter what you’re a fan of, their albums are a great listen and their shows are an unforgettable experience. Their CD is also available at Hastings. Check out more from Cass and Billy at
www.cass-music.com or www.myspace.com/CassAndBilly .**
*"Monty & the Pythons / The Real Thing" was recorded in Nashville, TN.
**No longer a valid address. www.myspace.com/CassundraIsom is current!
|
