I told photographer Scott Buschman about the CD project, and about what it means to run bad. I said that I wanted to use a photograph as a background to the song lyrics. He got the picture. Then he went out and took this one.

That's me leaning on Max, my piano. Max is a seven-foot Baldwin grand I bought new when I was 20, for $13,000. This was in the late 70's and that was enough money to pay for all of my buddy's cars put together. I used up my entire 4K life-savings and I took out a seven-year loan for the rest.

It was dorm-style commune-living back then, with roommates and household traffic. All first-time visitors were surprised to see Max in that setting. The nosier ones would ask, "What did that thing cost?" I would say, "$10 per pound." Then of course they would ask, "How much does it weigh?" And I'd say, "None of your business."

I especially liked "Slowroller," and I think the creep -- well, I won't say what I think about the creep, in case people haven't heard the song yet. Let's just say that there's justice in the universe. But I gotta tell you, Tommy, that's not the hand I put YOU on. You always were an inscrutable mo-fo. -- John Vorhaus

Review by Matt Flynn

Whether you play for world championships or for quarters on the occasional Saturday night, if you play poker, you will love this CD.  For 12 years now, Tommy has lived by the flop.  His talented play and infectious sense of humor have made him a favorite poker author and much-sought-after advisor.  Before that, Tommy spent a decade as a full-time performing musician.  Now he brings it all to bear in the funniest record you have heard in years.  The melodies are catching, the rhythms expert, but most of all the lyrics speak to the poker heart like nothing ever recorded before.
 
"I'm Running Bad" comes straight from the happily ulcerated gut of a blue-collar poker pro.  The title song is an invitation to bleed along.  Ever catch a bad run of cards?  Well, there's stuck, and then there's the kind of stuck that happens when you've lost big for five sessions in a row, stayed up all night, again, gotten busted to the felt for the third time, and then you realize you only have two hours before work, and your girlfriend is already awake and she knows exactly where you are.  The song "I'm Running Bad" is the phone call on the drive home.  "Stay off of my back, there's a monkey already there."

The only cure for that misery is a three-rack win at the poker table.  If you've ever put three or four of those together, you know what "I'm Running Good" feels like.  "You missed Again?  I knew you would!"

If you've ever cut yourself on "The Raiser's Edge," or seen a friend grit his teeth when you tell him "I Need Money," or gone to battle against a "Slowroller," you will love these songs.  If you've ever played poker, you will love these songs.  If you don't play poker but you know someone who does, buy it anyway.  "I'm Running Bad" will be the best present they've gotten in a long time.

Review by Lee Jones

Integrity is the essence of music.  If you sing words that mean nothing to you, then the song is likely to mean nothing to the audience.  For proof of this, listen to Pat Boone sing "Georgia on my Mind" and then listen to Ray Charles sing it (better yet, skip the former version). 

Tommy Angelo's "I'm Running Bad" is sung from the heart, the soul, the gut. Tommy is a professional poker player, and lives the amazing highs and lows that accompany that occupation.  For those of us in an office job, the end of the workday produces a predictable income.  In fact, we don't even see it - it's just numbers on a paystub every other Friday.  The money is already in the bank.

But in Tommy's world, you can be eating at Chez Tres Nice on Tuesday and Burger King on Wednesday, and his songs reflect that.  Listen to the first cut, "I'm Running Good" where he tells his girlfriend, "No Taco Bell tonight babe. Anything you want."  And then on "I'm Running Bad," he tells her, "Just tell me that you want Taco Bell tonight."
This is the best kind of music there is - straight from the heart and life of its writer.  And, in this case, the singer, drummer, guitar player, and everything but the guy that designed the jewel box.  Tommy is a dynamite musician, and it shows.  The drums and bass are rock solid, the piano and guitar are stellar.

But, oh, the lyrics.  You might have to be a poker player to truly appreciate some of them, but others will resonate with anybody who's ever had a really down day (i.e. all of us).  "I Need Money" is arguably one of the universal themes of pop music. 

My particular favorite is "Slowroller," which requires a little
explanation.  In poker, at the end of all the betting, it's considered polite to turn up your cards if you feel you have the best hand.  But a "slowroller" lets everybody else turn up their cards, and allows the holder of the apparent best hand to believe for a few seconds that he holds the winner. 
Then, after a pregnant pause, the culprit rolls over his better hand, adding salt to the wound of the lost pot.  These people are justifiably disliked throughout the poker world.  They're tolerated only because they're often terrible players, too.  Tommy's story will ring true for every poker player who's ever been slowrolled (i.e. all of us), and indeed anybody who has ever been unnecessarily kicked when he was down (i.e. all of us).

Tommy Angelo has produced a CD that will have every poker player thinking that Tommy has been following him around chronicling his existence.  And if you've known highs and lows in your life, "I'm Running Bad" will ring true for you as well.

Review by John Feeney

If you think cool rhythmic riffs and catchy slices of melody should be enough for this collection of songs from Tommy Angelo, take it up with Tommy. You see, he goes one - no, two better with "I'm Running Bad." How about lyrics so bright and funny that you want to listen to them? Now let it all revolve around the turbulent world of poker, with the lingo peculiar to its devotees. That's the package Tommy delivers here.

Tommy plays all the instruments - piano, drums, guitar, and bass - and does so with authority and finesse. Given his stage experience on drums and piano, it comes as no surprise that this collection reflects excellence in those regards. That his bass playing is tastefully solid and that his guitar work conjures up images of a skilled Delta blues man is remarkable. Making a one man go of it meant no compromises.

These songs display nicely integrated chunks of rock, folk, blues and country, offering something of interest to those with the most eclectic musical tastes. The tight, toe tapping performances of sweet melodies are appealing, to be sure. And the official word from Tommy is "I was hoping for good grooves." Good grooves indeed. If you like well crafted songs with infectious arrangements, this collection does the trick.

And if you like poker, this CD will knock you back on your heels. Standout songs include the title track, "I'm Running Bad," and its emotionally opposite counterpart, "I'm Running Good." While the former uses the blues and a bit of humor to express the heaviness and vulnerability felt by a poker player who can hardly make a hand, the latter conveys the bright invigoration felt by the same player when the cards are falling his way. "Slowroller" is a clever talk piece that will have poker players nodding heads in recognition of a familiar kind of cardroom creep. Will he get what's coming to him? Take a listen and see. My favorite song on the CD is "The Raiser's Edge." The lyrics are sharp (razor sharp) and artful, describing the alternating power and pain offered by one of poker's most potent weapons, the raise. But it's an infectious little combination of phrasing and rhythm, recurring through the song, which delighted me from the first listen. Capping off the collection, "The Present" is the only song not directly about poker. But its series of philosophical musings, skipping lightly over questions of time and reality, and ending with a note of tenderness, seem just right in the context of a game often viewed as a metaphor for life.

Just two words of poker-speak provide the only appropriate response for those having heard about I'm Running Bad: "Send it!"