Roadwork
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Album Summary
Roadwork, released in 1972 on Epic Records, is a live double album from Edgar Winter's White Trash — and baby, this one was born on the road, soaked in sweat and stage lights. Captured during the band's relentless touring circuit at the peak of their powers, the album was produced by the band themselves, a bold move that let their raw, unfiltered energy come through every groove. Edgar Winter — a multi-instrumental genius who could make a keyboard weep or a saxophone scream — led this tight, soulful ensemble through nights that audiences still talk about in hushed, reverent tones. Roadwork was the proof that White Trash wasn't just a studio act playing it safe; they were a living, breathing force of rock and soul that demanded to be heard in all its glorious, uncut truth.
Reception
- Roadwork found its audience on the Billboard 200, continuing the upward commercial momentum that White Trash had been building since their 1971 debut and cementing their place in the early seventies rock conversation.
- Critics of the era received the album warmly, praising its fearless blend of hard rock, blues, and deep soul — recognizing White Trash as a band that refused to be boxed in by genre boundaries.
Significance
- Roadwork stands as a landmark document of early seventies rock and soul fusion, capturing a moment when the walls between hard rock, blues, and rhythm and soul were coming down, and artists like Edgar Winter were kicking at the rubble.
- The album's live setting gave full voice to Edgar Winter's extraordinary multi-instrumental range, helping to legitimize the idea that a rock frontman could move between keyboards, saxophone, and vocals without losing an ounce of intensity or credibility.
- By covering tracks like 'Tobacco Road' and 'Rock And Roll, Hoochie Koo' alongside soul staples like 'Turn On Your Lovelight,' Roadwork made the case that the Southern rock and hard rock hybrid sound forming in the early seventies had deep, soulful roots worth honoring.
Tracklist
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A1 Save The Planet 115
7:35
-
A2 Jive, Jive, Jive —
3:14
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A3 I Can't Turn You Loose —
3:57
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B1 Sill Alive And Well —
3:52
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B2 Back In The U.S.A. —
6:00
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B3 Rock And Roll, Hoochie Koo —
5:42
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C Tobacco Road —
17:13
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D1 Cool Fool —
6:03
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D2 Do Yourself A Favor —
4:48
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D3 Turn On Your Lovelight —
7:49
Artist Details
Edgar Winter's White Trash was a smoking hot horn-driven rock and soul outfit put together by the albino Texas keyboard wizard Edgar Winter around 1970, rising up out of the same Beaumont, Texas blues roots that shaped his brother Johnny, and that group brought a raw, sweat-soaked fusion of rock, R&B, jazz, and gospel that hit the soul of anybody lucky enough to hear it. They carved out a wild and funky niche in the early '70s music scene at a time when rock was stretching its arms wide open, and their 1971 debut album along with the scorching live record *Roadwork* showed the world that Edgar wasn't just riding his famous brother's coattails — he was a force of nature all his own. White Trash never quite got the mainstream shine they deserved, but serious music lovers and those who caught them live knew they were witnessing something special, a bridge between the gritty soul of the South and the electrified energy of rock and roll that only a handful of acts ever pulled off with that kind of authenticity.
