Live at the Sand Trap

Description

Countless songs have been written about the adventures of America's warriors in the battles we have fought in our young history — all the way up to Desert Storm. Now, from Dos Gringos, comes warrior tales set to music about Operation Iraqi Freedom, also known as "Gulf War II." The credibility of "Live at the Sand Trap" is topline; it was written, produced, and recorded by Chris "Snooze" Kurek and Rob "Trip" Raymond, two U. S. Air Force F-16 Viper jet fighter pilots who braved Saddam Hussein's antiaircraft artillery and missile fire in the war torn Iraqi skies. Snooze and Trip pull no punches. The tales use the warrior's vernacular; preview it before playing it at the next family reunion. Not only is there the hard reality of dodging enemy fire on real air combat missions, the sacred right of every fighter pilot to stretch the imagination is also present. "World War III" is a case in point. The hazards of a career as a jet fighter pilot go well beyond the probability of being shot down or captured by the enemy. New in today's Air Force is the killing possibility of a hot rock jock being condemned to fly a remotely piloted vehicle (RPV) while sitting in a booth — no stick, no rudder, no throttles, no gun or bomb switches at the fingertips. Just a video game control panel. They all, everyone, hate RPVs — listen to "Predator Eulogy" and you'll understand. Dropping JDAMs from the ionosphere offers nowhere near the challenge faced by their dirt-grubbing predecessors of the Vietnam era — "JDAM Blues" draws the contrast. If you want to know what it was like in Iraq for the All-American fighter pilot, hang an ear on "Live at the Sand Trap."