KYF BREWER Me and My Big Mouth (Risk) What a great title for an album that runs the gamut from soulful pop to sweaty, in-your-face rock. Me and My Big Mouth is the latest project from Baltimore's Kyf Brewer, whose previous recordings as a member of The Ravyns and Company of Wolves make him a veteran of the Baltimore rock scene. Frankly, I could do without the cover art that more concretely (and grossly) illustrates the "big mouth" concept, especially because the music does it so well. The raunchy opener "Tight Purple Gitup" heaves and throbs with raw energy, while the gentler "Beautiful Thing" reflects Brewer's keen pop sensibilities. A not-so-subtle homage to one of rock 'n' roll's biggest mouths, you can almost see a Jagger swagger in his step throughout the Stonesy blues rock of "Soul Jerky." Brewer wrote or co-wrote the thirteen tracks and at first it appears there's a penchant for using every instrument in every song. But Brewer and band pare things down for the balladic "Slow Motion" and a quirky narrative, "Tales from the Couch." There's a lot to like about Me and My Big Mouth, though it's kind of a bumpy ride. You're never sure where Brewer is going next. But if you're thirsting for a frothing concoction of blues, funk, rock and pop, Kyf Brewer and his big mouth are made to order.

This is a review I found on the net from *Baby Sue*.

KYF BREWER - Me and My Big Mouth (CD, Risk, Rock/pop) Good ol' basic rock and roll with no filler. Instead of going for gimmicks and studio tricks, Kyf Brewer instead simply delivers good music. Together with co-songwriter Jumpin' Dave Woodworth, Kyf comes up with some very hummable, catchy tunes. "Tight Purple Gitup," the opening track, is a really cool rave up rock number that doesn't sound unlike early Beatles. The rock stuff sounds great, but I think it's the mellower tracks that really show what this man can do with his voice ("The Curious Decline of Miss Iris Tgaux"). Combining good melodies with some very tasteful musical arrangements, this is a very listenable CD that has a great deal of commercial potential... (Rating: 3)

The Album Network Magazine--(A Radio Trade Publication) May 16, 1997 Reviewer: John Schoenberger (e-mail: totallyjs@3nets.com)

KYF (ryhmes with beef) BREWER has been a happening artist in the Baltimore area for several years. He was a key member in The Ravyns, and more recently Company of Wolves, which enjoyed considerable Rock Radio success in the early 90's. He's now back with a sound that's decidedly more rootsy and homespun. In fact, immediately after I put the CD in my player I found myself jumpin' and yellin' "Who is this guy?" Much of the albums sound is due to Brewer's musical cohort, Jumpin Dave Woodworth, who co-wrote most of the material and is responsible for all those guitar and mandolim riffs. This is the kind of album Adult Rock Radio can champion; the songs are killer, the sound is perfect; and there's an undeniable coolness to the entire package.

ESP Magazine-North Carolina
Reviewer: Grant Britt (e-mail: esp@hpe.com)

KYF BREWER *ME AND MY BIG MOUTH* Risk/Ichiban Records

What do you say to a man in a cowboy hat and boxers who looks like Billy Ray Cyrus, poses for his first CD cover with a frog in his mouth, and sounds like nearly everybody famous you ever heard of? Not much, if you're smart. Kyf Brewer's first effort is on Risk records, and that should give you an inkling about where this project is headed. Close your eyes and you can hear everybody who was anybody in rock. He's versatile, sounding like everybody from Tom Petty to Aerosmith, he's got a good group of backing musicians, and this is a slick production, but who the hell does he think his audience can be? He mixes up so many sounds and stylings that it's like going to an all-star rock revival show. He opens up with "Tight Purple Getup," sounding like Julian Lennon doing his daddy and his pals doing "Junior Behave Yourself." A little further along, "Soul Jerky" sounds like something from Exile On Main Street. The Jackson Brown/ Dylan-esque "Tales From The Couch" is Brewer's foray into electric folkdom. "My Big Mouth" is his Brewer-and-Shipley-meet-Aerosmith impression, and he gives us another dose of Steven Tyler with a little Stones thrown in on "Ain't Enough Booze." It's a scatter-gun approach to stardom -- throw enough skeet up in the air and bang away at it, and something might get hit. He goes for the big time with "Turning Into Elvis," his Steve Earle impersonation: "Mashed potatoes, black-eyed peas, kiss mah ass, what's wrong with me?" Don't ask. The best chance that anything on this CD will ever hear airplay is the Tom Petty soundalike, "Diesel." He's got Tom down, even to the laconic harp solo. If he can break this one out, people might be willing to give the rest of his stuff a listen. It ain't bad, but it's been done before, and better. On the plus side, this guy ought to be able to make a living in bars in New Jersey doing covers or opening for Melissa Manchester the rest of his life. But unless eighties rock comes back or the Tom Petty cover strikes a nerve, he's gonna have a chart problem -- he ain't gonna get there.

Music Reviews Quarterly
Reviewer: Marty Fullington (e-mail: musicrevs@ioa.com)

Kyf Brewer - Me and My Big Mouth Risk Records/ Ichiban Distribution
If has been a while since you latched on to a great rock and roll record, try getting this new Kyf Brewer release. It¹s everything you've ever liked about rock and roll jammed into thirteen songs which are all so solid and fun that they just grab tight and won't let go. To get the sounds-like¹s out of the way - there¹s Cavern-era Beatles touches, even a solid nod to Abbey Road-era Beatles, a good dose of Rolling Stones, and a wide nod to Tom Petty to cover all those areas where rock doesn¹t mind touching country. The names are there only to indicate that Kyf Brewer is working from one rock-solid rock base, fully aware of what rock hooks are all about. He doesn¹t copy any of those names, he just goes directly to the same energy and source that created the world¹s best rock and roll as practiced by those hallmarks of rock. Take *Soul Jerky* for an example. It¹s the best song the Rolling Stones haven't recorded in years. Take *Tight Purple Gitup* and figure out if it¹s Jerry Lee Lewis or the Beatles borrowing from Jerry Lee. Take *The Curious Decline of Miss Iris Tgaux* and realize that Tom Petty could just as easily be doing the lead vocal. And then just sit back and take Me and My Big Mouth for the joyride it is down every rock and roll blacktop highway out there. It¹s great stuff. Part of what makes it great is how smart Kyf and his band are about putting the pieces together. They play the basics perfectly first, and while most groups would be content to do that and let it ride, Brewer and his players add the engaging *ooh's* and *aah's* that, as simple as they are, were what always distinguished the Stones' and Beatles' work from all of the other groups' equally solid rock work. Kyf's band may add a handclap or a simple harmony to a melody line, and while in itself each of those little pieces don't count for much, add up to be the ear-catching elements which put this recording above the rest of the pack. They simply know how to handle a song from bottom to top. Each song gets just the right treatment. If it's meant to be a country-tinged number, the acoustic guitars are direct and forward, the singing is genuine, and a mandolin might come in to add the right texture. Keep in mind that this is not a country band, any more than the Heartbreakers are, or even Steve Earle's band for that matter. This is a rock and roll band, and they happen to be confident and smart enough to realize that a good melody can come from anywhere, and that it simply has to be presented with solid rock conviction to work. This band is as comfortable with acoustic guitars as electrics, just as sure about speed and power as moderate pacing and steady energy. A finer rock and roll disc hasn't come my way in a long time. I have no idea who Kyf Brewer is, what he has done before, or why he isn't a household name. What I do know is that one Friday night I put this on, expecting nothing because I had no idea what to expect, and found myself listening to each and every song with fascination. This guy knows more about rock than anyone I've heard in years, and I'm going to thoroughly enjoy committing each song to memory, just like I did with Abbey Road so many years ago. There's not a lick here I don't like, a lyric I'd replace, or a moment when I wished they'd have done something different. I can't even say that about Abbey Road; *Octopus¹s Garden* still gets the *skip* button pushed whenever I think to do it. As for Me & My Big Mouth, the skip button won't get touched.

TexasBeat-- August 1997 Reviewer: Keith Ayres
KYF BREWER *Me and My Big Mouth (Risk Records, 11908 Ventura Blvd. #201, Studio City, CA 91604) Pennsylvanian Kyf Brewer kicks out a dozen introsppective AAA pop-rock country-tainted ditties on his latest release and the end result is rock solid. "Soul Jerky" has a Stones/T.Rex feel to it. "Tales From the Couch" is Dylan-esque. John Cougar could've written "Diesel." My personal favorite song is "Turning Into Elvis." The core band consists of five players who between them play guitar (3), bass, mandolin, fiddle, and drums. Victor Rivkin is the band "mother." Kyf Brewer writes lyrics and the band plays music reminiscent of the 60's that's worth listening to. (3 1/2 stars).

Scream Magazine #27 Reviewer: Frode Oien (http://www.scream.no/cdreviews/rev27.html)

KYF BREWER *Me and My Big Mouth* (Ryf Records) 4 pts. Brewer used to front the band Company of Wolves, but he's far better on his own. This album is more basic rock'n'roll, and some of the songs actually reminds me a bit about Georgia Satelites.