The Felice Brothers may actually sound more like Bob Dylan than Bob Dylan does. I started listening to “Roll on Arte,” the first track on Tonight at the Arizona, and it was instantly familiar to me. It could have been Dylan’s lyrics and voice muttering words of hope to a friend as I heard “Roll on Arte, roll on. Your heart’s too good for this town.” It’s a perfect start to a very solid album. Bonus points for coming up with cover art that reminds me of Pale Rider.

While “Roll on Arte” could have been penned by Dylan, I don’t think Bob would have put the words of the follow-up track to paper: “Powder your nose/Pull off your panty hose/Let me love you from behind/My darling.” Despite the seemingly trite lyrics, “Ballad of Lou the Welterweight” is a great song that ambles along at it’s own pace with the encouragement of weathered vocals and acoustic guitar.

There isn’t an absolute standout track, but you won’t find a song to skip on Tonight at the Arizona. The Dylan influence isn’t subtle and on tracks like “Your Belly in My Arms” and “Christmas Song” you may think you’re listening to Cat Stevens, but who really cares?

While some may criticize a band for sounding too much like their predecessors, I think it takes a really good band to write well enough and sing with enough passion to draw comparisons to Bob Dylan and Cat Stevens. Like Lou the Welterweight, The Felice Brothers can hold their own.
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The Felice Brothers - Ballad of Lou the Welterweight

The Felice Brothers - “Roll on Arte” Video

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