Imagine yourself stopping outside a juke joint somewhere in Texas. As you step out of your car, you are pulled toward the door of the club by the sounds you hear emanating from within. From the wailing Texas guitar to the tinkling of ivories, from gruff, powerful vocals that send chills down your spine to the sounds of a harp being magically distorted by a beer-soaked microphone, you feel the sudden urge to escape the real world and lose yourself in a moment of the blues.

This is the sort of sound that "Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets" have been bringing fans for 20-plus years, and on "Change In My Pocket," their Bullseye debut, they have lost none of their trademark juke joint style. On this effort, they blend original tunes with some interesting choices for cover material.

The first track, "Change In My Pocket," showcases immediately the tight ensemble sound that the band has achieved over the years. Funderburgh's guitar stylings are featured heavily on this track, but they are never over-the-top. Instead they blend seamlessly with the rest of the backing music to create an enjoyable accompaniment to Sam Myers' heavy vocals.

The band then rides on Myers' Chicago-influenced harp playing on the second track, an energetic rendition of Willie Dixon's "Young Fashioned Ways." The band plays over 200 live dates a year, and they record albums during this time on the road. This allows them to keep the fresh, almost-live, roadhouse feel that the album's tracks evoke.

Funderburgh is able to really show off his guitar playing ability on two tracks on the album. The first is in a killer cover the band does of the Willie Dixon-penned "$100 Bill." His vibrant string bending seems to push the rest of the band to another level, and Myers absolutely wails during parts of the song. The other guitar heavy track on the album is the instrumental "Hula Hoop." Funderburgh's fingers fly up and down the strings on the track, but he maintains complete control the entire time. He gives the listener just enough to appreciate his talent without ramming it down their throats with unnecessary pyrotechnics.

All in all, this is an album by a juke joint band. The music is about the blues, but more importantly it's about having fun with the music and loving what you're doing. Tracks like the peppy "Willie Jo," and the band's cover of the Jimmie Rodgers song "What Have I Done," dare the listener to remain in their seat, knowing full well that the songs are too infectious to do that.

Then, for those who think that an evening trip to the juke joint wouldn't be complete without at least one gut wrenching "cry into your beer" blues number, there are a couple of stand-outs included on this album. "Highway Man" opens with a mournful guitar/piano intro and laments life on the road. Myers manages to capture the sense of isloation and lonliness that a road life brings about with his soulful vocals.

The other somber number is a "hidden" gem called "Keys To The Highway." This melancholy ballad features some amazing backing work by pianist John Street, and is centered by Myers' smooth harp playing and his "heart on his sleeve" vocals. The track sends the message "We're done for now, but here's one more for you. We hope you enjoy it."

All in all this is a truly delightful collection of roadhouse classics. The band's music is raw yet polished and they have about as cohesive a sound as I've heard in a long time. A quote from the liner notes (by Roger Naber) sums it up about as well as I could hope to: "It doesn't get more real than when Sam Myers and Anson Funderburgh plug in their amps and play that first note of the evening."