Jimbo Darville & the Truckadours

On the surface, Jimbo Darville and the Truckadours are a good match with the Josh Abbott Band: each band features a charismatic frontman backed by a very competent country band. But there were a number of key differences beyond the musical contrast of the Truckadours’ traditional country and Josh Abbott’s modern rock and pop influenced country.

Despite the differences, though, the crowd enjoyed both acts. It was a high energy night of great entertainment.

The set started with the rumble of a mighty diesel starting. It was loud enough to pass for a sound system failure, but it fit perfectly with the huge Kenworth grill at center stage. It also set the mood for a set full of truckin’ country songs, although other country themes got their time, too.

Band leader Jimbo Darville was the centerpiece. With his aviator shades and cowboy hat pulled down low, he had an iconic appearance. His matte black acoustic guitar and sharply creased pants added to the effect. His baritone voice wasn’t quite a Johnny Cash growl, but he was in the neighborhood. Darville had a good stage presence, holding the crowd’s attention. To some extent, his band accentuated this by not expressing a lot of personality to grab the limelight.

This is not to suggest they played poorly: they were very well practiced and each contributed their part with precision from the tasteful pedal steel to the tight electric guitar riffs. The touch of female backup vocals and serviceable bass and drum work rounded out the sound. But even during the short leads, players were careful not to upstage Darville and they didn’t interact much with each other. The effect was like a talented pick up band assembled to support the frontman.

The Truckadours’ setlist favored truck driving country themes, hitting a number of classic covers in the genre, starting with Red Simpson’s “Diesel Smoke and Dangerous Curves”, then passing through Dudley Dave’s “Six Days on the Road” and Del Reeves’ “The Girl on the Billboard”. The songs all had a familiar sound but most people have forgotten the originals. To be fair, it was just a familiar sounding lyric that set me down the path of tracking some of these down.

The sound was textbook traditional country: lots of shuffle beats and cut-time. The leads were all on target. This crowd was primed for real country, so it went over well. The Truckadours have a clear niche and it’s clear they have an audience for this classic sound. A looser sense of improvisation would have taken this to the next level, though. - Jester_Jay

"The band’s stage setup came complete with an honest-to-God chrome semi grill, behind which Jimbo and the boys (and girl) poured out a slew of perfect truck-driving country... Darville’s deep baritone often recalled the likes of C.W. McCall or Merle Haggard as he led the band, and the audience, on imaginary highways, alone with nothing but a rig and a radio for company." - Denver Post

Jimbo Darville returns to Music City for another "Roots" appearance and is always a crowd pleaser! In fact, their first show is still, to this day, our highest beer sales since the show's inception. We always welcome Jimbo and the Truckadours to the show as they always deliver in the "Live TV/Radio setting", and have a unique look and sound.
Todd Mayo - Producer - Music City Roots/Bluegrass Underground - Music City Roots - Nashville, TN