Music

Huzzah! 1. Marvelous You 2. Leaving Cincinnati 3. Tear It Down Rag 4. First Street Fell 5. Fare Thee Well 6. Old Man Joe 7. Ohio River Waltz 8. Hard Times At My Door 9. Poor Johnny 10. Sitting On Top Of The World 11. Volvo Girl 12. Streetvibes Rag 13. Hard Times Come No More 14. Song For Libba 15. Talkin' F-Word Blues 16. Ohio River Blues

Reviews for Huzzah!: "Besides the warm, accomplished performances, Speed's lyrics are plenty enough to keep fans coming back. On Huzzah!, he crafts some of his finest lyrics yet. Speed might be an 'old soul,' but his playful words are steeped in current events. As much as Cincinnati seems to inherently inform every nuance of the group's music, his love for the city is tempered with the kind of social consciousness that would make his idol, Woody Guthrie, proud." - CityBeat Review "Speed's new CD is full of such songs that have made him a social protest favorite around town the last few years writing clever satirical pieces often about the local scene. Speed, a fervent disciple in the Woody Guthrie troubadour tradition, couches his social satire in happy-go-lucky, old-timey music. His band, the Freddies, flashes some fine bluegrass, hard country and traditional folk strains. Like Guthrie, Speed's feel-good delivery is in contrast to the often-tough images and satire he presents." - Cincy Post Review "If you haven't heard the band before, you'll certainly be amused by Speed's lighthearted songs that incorporate lots of old-timey instruments: banjo, harmonica, mandolin, dobro guitar, fiddle and even a washboard and library help-desk bell." - CiN Weekly

Losantaville 1. Going To Rabbit Hash 2. A Soldier's Lament 3. Santa Loves Bluegrass 4. Here Comes Santa Claus 5. Queen City Christmas 6. Up On The Housetop 7. Let It Snow 8. I Can't Wait For Christmas 9. Rudolph 10. Christmas Star

Reviews for Losantaville: "With no disrespect to the folksy renditions of Here Comes Santa Claus and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, the four originals on the album are the best part. In signature Jake Speed and the Freddies style, they're funny and quirky with a nod to Cincinnati's idiosyncrasies." - CiN Weekly Review "Speed's excursion into holiday music is a wonderful, logical next step in the singer/songwriter's growing, progressively accomplished discography, which is drenched in Folk and Roots music tradition, yet still somehow manages to be relevant today, thanks to Speed and his band's timeless delivery and the sincere, playful and socially aware lyrics." - CityBeat Review

The Cincinnati Legends of Jeremiah Schmidt 1. Captain Mary 2. Huzzah for the Red Stockings 3. Peanut Jim 4. Flood of '37 5. The Ghost of Henry Thomas Hunt 6. Cruel, Cruel World 7. Maggie, Don't You Weep 8. Runnin' & Roamin' 9. Christian Moerlein Saved the Day 10. Run Jacob Run 11. Railroad Penny 12. Anderson Ferry 13. Witch in the Mill Creek 14. The Great Moselle 15. Uncle Tom's Blues 16. Jeremiah's Farewell

Queen City Rag 1. Queen City Rag 2. Railroad Penny 3. Railroad Bill 4. New Orleans Rag 5. Hard Times in Cincinnati 6. Freight Train 7. Lonesome Day 8. Twizzler Song 9. Jack Slade 10. Coffee Bourgeois Blues 11. WAM 609 12. Pretty Lil' Gal Walkin' Down the Street 13. Pretty Polly 14. Ludlow Rag 15. Runnin' & Roamin' 16. Talkin' Falling Dead Blues

Reviews for Queen City Rag: "...a wonderfully clever neo-hillbilly album full of great writing, some fine guitar picking and jamming kazoo. Speed's rich, nasal, folksy delivery has the storytelling power of Woody Guthrie and the slyness of son Arlo." - Cincinnati Post Review "...his endearing personality puts a huge stamp on the record as well. Topically, like Guthrie, Speed mixes together social issues, love songs and a winking sense of humor in his arsenal of tunes." - CityBeat Review