POP MUSIC REVIEW : Gaffney Celebrates Debut Album

If despite the likes of Rodney Crowell you still think that honky-tonk music is the territory of dumb rural types, you’ll have a problem with Chris Gaffney. He’s certifiably honky-tonk. But he sure ain’t dumb.

Gaffney--who for 10 years has worked on the Los Angeles docks--writes songs that smartly twist and sometimes laugh with (not at) honky-tonk conventions. On Tuesday, he and his band the Cold Hard Facts (even the group has a smart name) celebrated the release of their debut album by giving those songs fine treatment at the weekly, no-charge Palomino “Barn Dance.”

Gaffney, switching between guitar and accordion, led the band through material ranging from hot Spanglish Tex-Mex to I’m-so-sorry weepers to jumpin’ country-rockers, all notable for the clever way they spell out the simple truths that have always been honky-tonk’s foundation.

Gaffney’s not too rural either. The two best songs of the night handled the quite urban themes of losing oneself in the sprawl (the wondrously titled “When the Wind Blows Out From Artesia, You Can’t Smell 1965”) and feeling trapped by inner-city tensions (“In the Gardens”). A long-time favorite of local country/roots players and fans, many of whom turned out to join in the celebration Tuesday, Gaffney’s ready for all smart music lovers to discover him.

Among the several other acts on the bill was the equally promising veteran duo of Liza and Kenny Edwards (he was in the Stone Poneys with Linda Ronstadt; she later sang back-up for Ronstadt).