"Theatre director, actor, singer, lyricist and community activist John Turner formed Rubber Johnny as part of the Rock Against Racism movement in the mid-70s.

Sadly he passed away last year, but this terrific album, recorded during the lockdown period, will stand as a fitting example of his artistic creativity. Having re-formed after a thirty-year break, Turner’s vocals are combined here with original member Joe Read on bass and keyboard plus new musicians in the shape of guitarists Steve Silverton and Ralph Winkler.

Joe Read also did the mixing and production on Blue Remote and Closer, which is an album full of humour that will evoke memories of Ian Dury, Dr. Feelgood and Warren Zevon – an intoxicating cocktail. ‘Action Movie’ has a driving Feelgood rhythm as it relates a fantasy encounter with Tom Cruise and Bruce Willis, before ‘Almost Indestructible’, a fun rant of a love song that leads on the Zevon-like vocals and storyboard of ‘The Quick And The Sacred’.

The merits of broadening one’s musical tastes are illustrated with African vibes on ‘World Music’ while Turner tackles politics, tongue firmly in cheek, on the self-explanatory ‘Brexit Blues’ and ‘Lady Democracy’. As the title suggests, ‘The Ballad Of Rubber Johnny’ tells the band’s own story, with impressive restraint. A joy from start to finish, the record is pure entertainment. As they say, old punks never die."

Review by Morgan Hogarth,

RnR Magazine, April 2022

For fans of The Textones, the arrival of a new album after a more than thirty-year wait may seem like nothing short of a miracle. There’s always been the feeling that after the release of their critically-acclaimed albums Midnight Mission (1984) and Cedar Creek (1987), The Textones, having helped define a new path forward for what became known as Americana music, had plenty of great songs still in them. Their new Blue Élan release, Old Stone Gang, confirms that suspicion in spades. The record features Carla Olson, George Callins, Rick Hemmert, Tom Jr. Morgan, and Joe Read with appearances by all original Textones members: Markus Cuff, David Provost, Phil Seymour, Kathy Valentine, Barry Goldberg, and a special appearance by Rusty Young adding mandolin and his world famous pedal steel guitar!