Die Band wurde 1999 von Rob Waller, Praul und Anthony Lacques in der östlichen Mojave Wüste gegründet. Beeinflusst wurde die Bandmitglieder von Musikgrössen wie David Jackson, John Denver, Dillard & Clark und natürlich Emmylou Harris. Seitdem veröffentlichen sie regelmässig Alben, die von Kritikern hochgelobt werden.

Diskografie:
2001: I See Hawks in L.A.
2004: Grapevine
2006: California Country
2008: Hallowed Ground
2010: Shoulda Been Gold

“Shoulda Been Gold 2001-2009 - Daily News
American Beat Records 4 stars
Not merely the ironic best-of collection its title implies, this latest from our town’s most authentic, underappreciated country rock band features, along with selected non-hits, new songs, never-before-released cuts (including a beautiful lost love ballad called, well, “Shoulda Been Gold”) and a live version of the song named after the band. Or was the band named after the song? Whatever – there’s something wonderfully lost and confused about these cosmic cowboys that nicely matches their scruffy charm and balances their tight harmonies and forward-driving rhythm. Post-millennial Eagles with a nice strain of Byrds-like psychedelia and a good sense of humor (“I’d burn your pictures but you know you’re just too pretty,” Rob Waller gripes on “Sexy Vacation”), the Hawks commence a passel of area shows tonight at McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

- Bob Strauss Staff Writer
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HIgh Noon Saloon Reviews Shoulda Been Gold
A decade after their formation on a front porch in a neighbouring LA suburb, and country-rock outfit I See Hawks in L.A. take a moment to reflect on their achievements, and err…. the public’s failure to recognise a hit song when they hear one.
Wryly titled, Shoulda Been Gold is a retrospective of sorts, taking the ‘non-hits’ from each of their four albums and packaging them with a few rarities and new recordings.
Rooted in sixties/seventies country-rock (Flying Burrito Brothers, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Buffalo Springfield, etc…) with touches of psychedelia, ISHILA are a few decades late to the party. Such fashionable lateness may explain their inability to produce a hit, however it’s this refusal to modernize their sound that is likely to resonate with alt.twangers the world over, many of whom long for days gone by. Such critical success – though not paying the bills – ought to make up for any commercial failures.
Throughout their ten-year history, ISHILA have set themselves apart from the crowd with their penchant for observational humour (‘Raised by Hippies’, ‘Texarkanada’, ‘The Salesman’), drawing comparisons to Wagons, while the political and social commentary of ‘Byrd from West Virginia’ and ‘Highway Down’ highlights their serious side.
For the novice, it is barely possible to distinguish between the older tracks and the new, such is the consistency of ISHILA. For the entrenched fan however, new tunes such as the title track and opener ‘Sexy Vacation’ ought to keep you going until the next album-proper.

Raise a glass!
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...also, da ich die legendären Flying Burrito Brothers 1981 im ebenso legendären Lone Star Cafe, New York City, live gesehen habe.... ein must have