HEY, COWGIRL, NEED A RIDE?

Well, gosh and shucks, what's not to like about Baxter Black's story about Lick, a beat-up, knocked-down ex-rodeo rider falling in love with a pretty girl in trouble? Black tells the story himself, and darned if he don't do a right fine job with all the voices, even the girl's. He goes all Walter Brennan as Cody, Lick's elderly sidekick, and is pleasantly British as a Brit with a love of the Old West. Black, an NPR regular, is something of a cowboy poet. This is a fine little tale about a woman who flees her loveless marriage to a Las Vegas millionaire. It's a joy. M.S. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB/ MAR 06]