WEEKEND AUSTRALIAN Feb 2005

COUNTRY
Thirteen Thongs
Toe Sucking
Cowgirls
Indie-cds.com
***
LISTEN to this and you can almost taste the dust and feel the corrugations in the roads travelled by the Cowgirls. This hard-working, hard-travelling Darwin-based country-roots team brings honesty and passion to songs of life, love and liquor. Frontwomen Tracey Bunn (vocals, guitar) and Glenyss Rae (vocals, fiddle, accordion) possess that priceless skill of seemingly effortless songwriting. Their tales range from the triumph and downfall of a teenage C&W groupie (Bonk Donga Bop), to a Polish virgin barmaid's deflowering in Lisdoonvarna, Ireland (Magda) and fond reminiscences of farm and family life - the beautiful evocative Grandmas' Chair. Thirteen Thongs - yes, lisping listeners, there are 13 tunes here (including a cover of Plastic Jesus) - takes you to wherever the band has been, or is going, in their minds and in their van. It's a mightily Australian take on the troubadour's existence - a life that's variously joyous, drunken, melancholic and precious.
BRIAN BOLTON

CAPITAL NEWS Feb 2005
THIRTEEN THONGS
TOE SUCKING COWGIRLS Independent

With their irrepressible sense of humour, catchy songs and entertaining shows, the Toe Sucking Cowgirls have been packing in the crowds for several years now. And finally they've found time to record their 2nd album, much to the delight of their many fans.
Thirteen Thongs (the title has to be said out loud, preferably in conjunction with the words Toe Sucking Cowgirls) captures the spirit and joy of the Toe Sucking Cowgirls perfectly. The albums packed with strong appealing songs and the vitality that is so much part of the girls' live act has somehow been captured too. There are funny songs like Two Pot Screamer and the raunchy Bonk Donga Bop, songs about places (the evocative Tennant Creek) and people (Magda), songs about life on the road and the pleasure of companionship (Hard to Make a Living and Special Friends) and perceptive ballads like Grandmas' Chair and the wonderful Run When I Want To.
Thirteen Thongs is a diverse, energizing musical journey into the world of the Toe Sucking Cowgirls - a world you'll enjoy so much, you may never want to leave.
One Stop/ Independent
SUSAN JARVIS


COUNTRY UPDATE May 2005
TOE SUCKING COWGIRLS
Thirteen Thongs
INDEPENDENT

Hailing from Darwin NT, the Toe Sucking Cowgirls, comprising of Tracey Bunn and Glenyss Rae, recorded their first CD in 2001, and since then this retro outfitted duo have become a sensation at country music festivals across Australia. Thirteen Thongs is their second album and as the title of this CD indicates, these girls are all about fun and good times. Even the instrumentation is fun: just take a listen to the cool accordion, drums and pedal steel on Waiting For You.
Then there are the lyrics of songs like Two Pot Screamer ("He was reekin' he was blazin', it was bloody well amazin' that the bugger was still standin' up at all").
Although the overall theme is fun, there are songs such as Run When I Want To and Special Friends that do have deeper implications. Their affection for their home state is evidenced in Tennant Creek but their nomadic sensibility is substantiated in Girl So Free. These girls have brought amusement, enthusiasm, and energy to this album, and it's bound to rub off on the listener.
ROSIE ADSETT


FORTE MAGAZINE May 2005
Toe Sucking Cowgirls
Thirteen Thongs (Independent)

Well known on the festival circuit, Darwin's Toe Sucking Cowgirls (Tracey Bunn and Glenyss Rae) are a hoot of a live act. Tracey (guitar and vocals) and Glenyss (fiddle, accordion and vocals) are authentic Territorian characters, right down to their Op shop frocks and cowdy hats. They're well known for getting people on their feet with infectious tunes, gorgeous vocals and earthy banter. But it's on their recordings their talent gets to shine in a different light.
Thirteen Thongs is a polished showcase of the Cowgirls' songwriting talents. They label various tracks as ranging from 'Jumping Bluegrass' and 'Country Swingbilly' to a 'Zydeco inspired upbeat romp'. There are shades of Celtic folk and country pop with a catchy polka thrown in to keep listeners guessing. The ballads are poignant and the dance tracks irresistible. Titles such as Bonk Donga Bop, Two Pot Screamer and Hippie Shampoo give a hint of some pretty amusing lyrics. But don't be fooled; the music is never overshadowed by the humour. These gals can play and they make Cajun, Country and Celtic sounds accessible to a wide audience. And somehow this 'melting-pot' sounds distinctly Australian.
This, their follow up to Flamin' Sheilas, is a wonderful mix and producer Richard Pleasance captures the essence of the band with class. Recorded at his Elevated Brains studio in Hepburn Springs, it features the honorary 'Cowboys' - Sam Martin (double bass) and Grant Bedford (drums). There's also some nice pedal steel from Ray Cullen, plus contributions from Paul Bignell (electric guitar), Lindsay Martin (mandolin) and Pleasance. The album winds up in a sing-a-long mode (Go on - try to resist!) with the only cover, Plastic Jesus. Yee-hah! CHRIS LAMBIE


DAILY NEWS June 2005
THIRTEEN THONGS, Toe Sucking Cowgirls
Independent

When it comes to singing cowgirls, it's hard to go past the original sound of the Toe Sucking Cowgirls from the Northern Territory. They have a real enthusiasm which comes through in their music and a distinctly Aussie flavour to their songs. There is a great authenticity to their music which captures so many different aspects of Australia that it is very easy to follow the lyrics, no matter how risqué they may be.
The sound which the Toe Suckers have delivered on this album brings together elements of Cajun and the Aussie bush ballad with the majority of the songs upbeat and very catchy. It's hard not to find your toes tappin' or singing along on the 13 tracks. They mix up the playlist well and many of the songs feature plenty of humour, even if they are brutally honest. The Toe Suckers harmonise well and their music would be ideal for any party or in the car on those road trips. They have a few slower songs such as Run When I Want To, the great imagery of Tennant Creek and the Reflective Grandmas Chair. But the Toe Suckers really shine in the upbeat numbers of which Bonk Donga Bop(with it's rock and roll feel), Waiting for You, Special Friends, the bush ballad upbeat feel to Two Pot Screamer (which the Bushwhackers would be proud of) and the equally rollicking Magda, the swing tempo of Hard to Make a Living and the quirky Hippy Shampoo and Plastic Jesus.
This is a great Aussie album which would appeal to a very broad audience who likes their country truly Aussie and with a healthy dose of humour. Thirteen Thongs is on of those albums you will find yourself coming back to because the songs tend to find their way into your mind and don't go away, especially after reading the lyrics. They're original, they're refreshing and their music is infectious, give the Toe Suckers a go, but one thing if you do, give em some volume as well. Check out their website and order their album through www.toesuckingcowgirls.com.au
BOB ANTHONY JNR

ROOTSTIME - BELGIUM Aug 2005 (in Dutch, English translation coming soon!)

Blijkbaar geen katjes om zonder handschoenen aan te pakken, het duo Tracey Bunn en Glenyss Rae,die naast muziek maken, eens lekker doorzakken met de nodige Guinness tot een van hun voornaamste hobby's rekenen. From "Down Under" en het was eventjes wachten op de opvolger van de Toe Sucking Cowgirls 6 track EP ( 2000), "Flamin Sheilas" (01) maar onder leiding van producer Richard Pleasance en met de bereidwillige hulp van Ray Cullen (steel) en Lindsay Martin (mandolin) ligt het album met "Thirteen Songs" bij de platen / cd boer. Inderdaad dertien songs met voor ieder wat wils, bluegrass met de opener "Winds of Change" waarbij de fiddle en mandoline de boventoon vieren, swing met "Bonk Donga Pop", en "Hard to Make A Living", je kan een Ierse polka met "Magda" overwegen, genieten van de swinging 12 bar blues "Hippie Shampoo", en natuurlijk de "ballads and bawdy tales of lust, liquor and life on the road". Maar het wordt pas echt interessant als Glenyss Rae met haar accordionneke een prachtig muzikaal duel aangaat met de pedalsteel van Ray Cullen in de song "Waiting for you". Zydeco uit Australie , moet kunnen, en zij doen het nog eens flink over met de "Two Pot Screamer". "A good ole Australian drinking tune" en het zou mij niet verwonderen dat de Guinness vloeit met beken. Maar the Toe Sucking Cowgirls kunnen het ook wat beschaafder houden met eenvoudige 'country' verhaaltjes lijk "Girl So Free" (met Glenyss Rae on fiddle), "Grandmas Chair", "Tennant Creek" en het zeemzoete "Run When I Want to". Veelzijdig album en dat maakt het misschien iets moeilijker voor de "hokjes" puristen want met "Thirteen Songs" bewijzen de dametjes Bunn / Rae dat zij niet alleen uitstekende singer / songwriters, bovendien prima muzikanten en erg creatief zijn. Hun aanstekelijk enthousiasme steken zij dan ook niet onder stoelen en banken (die je herhaaldelijk aan de kant moet schuiven bij het beluisteren van dit schijfje), de overige bandleden Sam "Bobcat" Martin (double bass), Grant " Hotrod" Bedford (drums) en "Special Friends" Ray "Papa Bear" Cullen, Lindsay Martin, Richard Pleasance (harmony vocals, tambourine ac. / elect. gt) maken van dit album een waar luister / dansfeest . Squeezebox, fiddle, pedal steel, double bass, twee "adventurous sheilas" met het hart op de tong, vrienden van the Detonators, the Re - Mains, Red Hot Poker Dots, als afsluiter de traditional "Plastic Jezus", in onze kontreien ook bekend in de versie van Brendan Croker / Ferre Grignard / Roland, wat kan je nog meer wensen? "Keep on Sucking! Dringend naar de lage landen halen!
* * * * (SWA)
FRANCIOS BRAECKEN