Recorded Music Reviews of new releases from Mike Ness and Cool Breeze.     East Points Greatest Hit Cool Breeze (Organized Noize/A&M) Of related interest: OutKast, Goodie Mob, Witchdoctor Organized Noize gives the public one mo' 'gain with the debut of the coolest cutter in camp, Freddy Calhoun, better known as Cool Breeze. The Dungeon Family is the most diverse crew in hip-hop, offering headz the poetic pimpisms of OutKast, the spiritual musings of Witchdoctor and the Hotlanta funk of Goodie Mob to marinate and chew on while chillin' with a Phillie. Now Cool Breeze steps to the stage with profanity-free drug-game raps floating over and under neck-snapping beats, leaving banal minds wondering where the muthafuckas and fuck yous are hiding. In fact, the expletives used by guests Kurupt and Eightball are artfully edited out. But the content of East Points Greatest Hit is far from PG material; the tales delve deep into crack selling and sexual escapades with girls raised in the South. Cool Breeze and his Dungeon Family cohorts adhere to the science of the one-two as they "Watch for the Hook." The lusty rhythm of "We Get It Crunk" plays to the freaks on the dance floor grinding the night away. The space-age Southern funk of "We Eastpointin'" makes the hip dip a time or two. "The Calhouns" features Lucky on the needle and Pauly, Brian and Freddy on the mic ripping the break with ill, shit-talking rhymes. East Points Greatest Hit alters outsiders' misconceptions, showing how expansive hip-hop music truly is. Dem that don't know better watch for the hook. For real. H.V. Claytor Jr.   Cheating at Solitaire Mike Ness (Time Bomb) http://www.timebombrecordings.com/ Of related interest: Social Distortion, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams Mike Ness, Deke Dickerson Roseland Theater 8 NW 6th Ave., 224-2038 8 pm Monday, May 10 $20 At the center of every Social Distortion song--buried underneath the three-chord chainsaw-punk buzz--lies the lonesome cowpoke heart of Mike Ness. Cheating at Solitaire, his solo debut, allows his bronco-busting soul to truly roam free. In spite of touches like pedal-steel guitar, however, this 15-song collection is a slow stroll through familiar Social D territory; Ness is just wearing cowboy boots instead of creepers, that's all. His romanticized characters--outcasts, criminals and drunks--are everywhere on Solitaire, from the junkie of "Dope Fiend Blues" to the broken-hearted scoundrel of "Crime Don't Pay." Instead of assuming his usual fighting stance, though, Ness spends most of the album wiping tears from his bleary eyes: "Misery Loves Company" (with its Bruce Springsteen cameo), "Rest of Our Lives" and the title cut detail Ness' dissatisfaction with his chosen path; "Ballad of a Lonely Man" and "If You Leave Before Me" address end-of-life regrets; and covers such as Dylan's "Don't Think Twice" and Hank Williams' "You Win Again" give ex-lovers a forlorn wave goodbye. More than anything, Solitaire is a drinking record. With his heart worn on tattooed sleeves and his whiskey bottle close at hand, Ness has made an album sure to keep bar jukeboxes busy for years. Hank would be proud. John Graham - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Willamette Week | originally published May 5, 1999