Rewind: The Detroit Cobras - Mink, Rat or Rabbit (1998)
Editor’s note: The Jan. 15 death of Detroit Cobras singer Rachel Nagy sent Sound Bites scrambling back to 1998’s Mink, Rat or Rabbit. It had been a long time and it’s a shame it took Nagy’s death to remind him of the band and its allure. But while Nagy is sadly gone, the music thankfully remains.
The Detroit Cobras screamed Motor City rock ‘n’ roll.
Founded and fronted by singer Rachel Nagy and guitarist Mary Ramirez, the band specialized in covering obscure soul, R&B and rock cuts. The Cobras - who included two Irma Thomas tracks on their debut LP - slathered the songs with punks-in-the-garage attitude that was equal parts MC5 and White Stripes with just a sprinkling of Hamburg-era Beatles tossed on for good measure.
And it all began with 1998’s Mink, Rat or Rabbit, a 30-minute sensorial assault of 13 songs including Thomas’ “Hittin’ on Nothing” and “Breakaway,” the Marvelettes’ “I’ll Keep Holding On,” the Shirelles’ “Putty (In Your Hands”) and the Shangri-Las’ “Easier to Cry.”
Throaty, overflowing with piss and passion and the undeniable personality of the band, Nagy wound up owning the songs the Cobras borrowed. And while the group made its opening statement with - and is perhaps best known for - a grinding remake of Brice Coefield’s “Cha-Cha Twist,” it’s Charlie Rich’s “Midnight Blues” that best characterizes the band and Nagy’s makeup:
I'm blaming you for all the bad things I've done/still I will admit that every once in a while, it was fun, she sings, very obviously meaning it.
It could be reasonably argued there was nothing original about the Detroit Cobras. Yet, it’s just as true that the band screamed originality right alongside Motor City rock ‘n’ roll.
Grade card: The Detroit Cobras - Mink, Rat or Rabbit - B
1/22/22
