by Scott Roos
photo by Scott Roos
It’s a rollicking, fresh take on a classic. Today, Hafford, Saskatchewan country rockers The Brothers G releas their superb cover of George Jones banger “White Lightning”. Played with the groovy, danceable swagger that the trio is known for, the track, according to drummer Jordan Gall, is a staple of the band’s set.
“(It’s) become a bit of a crowd favourite,” Jordan tells NSMZ, “When we started covering songs, we made it a point to try and put our own spin on them. White Lightning was already a fairly high energy tune, so turning up the volume and giving it a rock n' roll backbeat seemed like an exciting way to go about it.”
For those that have followed The Brothers G since their inception, they’ve also been known for having a country twang sonically ingrained into almost everything that they do. Brothers Jason and Jordan, in particular, grew up with country music all around them. So the band leaning, at least to a degree, in a decidedly southern fried direction is not surprising.
“Growing up there was always a radio on, whether it was the house, shop, or barn…. While we were not big fans of country music early on, we developed an appreciation for the classics, which stuck with us once we came around to that style,” Jordan Says. “(George Jones) is probably the greatest male vocal talent country music ever had, and one of the greatest regardless of genre. While (“White Lightning”) might not be a great example, the way he could convey the emotion of a song through his voice was phenomenal.”
Accompanying the single release is a music video produced by Little Jack Films. The concept in general came from the band with Little Jack Films Johnson providing feedback to help the guys perfect it. Little Jack Films have developed a solid reputation over the yeas for their videograhpy work. So the video’s live shots have the Little Jack shine all over them.
“We chose Little Jack Films because we knew he could capture what we were after. We all love the work that he's done for other artists like The Local Group and Colter Wall. It also helps that he's a country music fan and wears the coolest trucker hats,” guitarist/vocalist Jason Gall explains.
Playing a prominent starring role in the video, apart from the band themselves, is the pride of Eyebrow, Saskatchewan himself - satirical, man of the people, singer-songwriter Jolie Blue. Blue has used The Brothers G as a back up band in the past so his contact deets was in the Bros G rolodex. Whilst Blue does not sing or play an instrument on the track, he does provide some much needed comic relief to the proceedings via his acting skills (who knew?).
“It was our idea to get Jolie Blue for the role. He was the perfect person in our opinion. His rough but charming character embodied the ideal mountain moonshiner better than anyone else we know. Our time spent rehearsing and playing shows together made it easy to get him on board,” adds bassist Elias Brevik.
Overall it’s a fun song with a fun music video. You can watch it by clicking the link below. In the meantime, “White Lightning” will be the first single off The Brothers G’s upcoming self-titled album, which will be available on all streaming services, January 12th, 2024.