Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys

Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys make music in glorious splashes of color. Boppin' rockabilly. Swingin' C&W. Rockin' hillbilly boogie. Their throwback sound may be '50s-inspired, but these guys aren't James Dean wannabes. Robert "Big Sandy" Williams -- a large man with a graceful voice -- and his crackerjack crew don't need kitschy tricks to express their love for American roots music. It's Time, their latest disc, is chock-full of vibrant trad-based rock and roll (like the wondrously retro "Chalk It Up to Blues" and "I Hate Loving You"), but the band isn't afraid to toss in some Cajun rhythms ("Bayou Blue") or romantic crooning ("The Night Is for Dreamers"). And live, Big Sandy and his boys know how to get the pompadour and poodle skirt set to tear it up on the dance floor.