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My Old Friend – John Hiatt and Holly Williams- Arvada Center, Arvada, CO 7/25/13

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Concert Review: John Hiatt and the Combo, with Holly Williams, Arvada Center, CO 7/25/13

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The Combo at Arvada Center: Doug Lancio on mandolin, Kenneth Blevin on drums, Hiatt at the mike, Pat O’Hearn on bass

” I thought we were gonna make that bridge…what do I know? Me and my expectations was always high…” — John Hiatt, ” My Old Friend”

Surely Holly Williams’ granddaddy, country legend Hank Williams, knew something about high times, meeting expectations, and not quite “making that bridge” in life. Passing from this earth  in the back of a Cadillac on the way to a gig at age 29, Hank burned his candle down at the height of his creative powers. As his skinny blonde granddaughter poured her heart out in songs about her legacy and the tortured marriage of her mother to Hank Williams, Jr., you couldn’t help but wonder how precious our time is with the gifted among us, and with those we love. With Hiatt, they’re one and the same.

Last year’s show at Arvada was the first time the ” Same Old Man ” seemed to show his age. A natty hat covered his thinning pate, and his voice seemed diminished. This summer’s addition of Costello glasses and a Gebippe ‘stache made him appear almost professorial, the cool English Composition teacher urging us to write from the heart. But his skipping moves and guileless grins quickly allayed any fears that Hiatt was ready for a rocking chair, and once the sound guys heard the crowd’s calls to boost his mike, it could have been 1993 and that great Austin City Limits DVD show with Michael Ward and the Guilty Dogs. The Combo has recorded and toured intact for a couple years, and is so attuned to John that they easily adjust to changes onstage and offer seamless support. With longtime drummer Kenneth Blevin in ” the engine room “, and the smooth noodling Pat O’Hearn on bass, the Combo never seemed to interfere with the delivery of the song narratives. Hiatt has drawn some hotshot guitarists over the years, from Ward to Sonny Landreth to Luther Dickinson, and there’s no slacking when Doug Lancio is featured on guitar, or on mandolin behind Hiatt’s vocals on  ” Crossing Muddy Water”. Hiatt noted that song was played on tour ” back at the turn of the century”, and needled the Y2K                   ( remember that?) agonistes’ parade of horribles: “clocks stop working, time comes to an end, things on TV start to actually happen… oh wait, that did come true”!

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No that’s not Johnny Winter, just an overexposed Holly Williams!

When the tall, lanky Ms. Williams strode onstage in her Western hat and skinny jeans next to her hubby Chris Coleman, many in the crowd were still settling into their seats. She quickly launched into personal, emotive songs from her new CD, ” The Highway “, openly sharing vignettes about her parents and family that gave depth and perspective to the lyrics. The talented Mr. Coleman picked ably and added harmonies, but his wife is a force on her own, and her singing, songwriting, and clean guitar playing won over the audience. The Opening Act is a tough slot, and you rarely see genuine applause like that for anybody short of the headliner. Highlights included a poignant tribute to her maternal grandparents,   ” Waitin’ On June “, and ” The Highway”,  her ” love song to the road “.

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Chris Coleman and Holly Williams

Hiatt chose a set that began with ” Drive South”, ” My Old Friend”, ” Tennessee Plates”, and ” Cry Love”, and later moved to his recent CDs with ” We’re Alright Now” , ” Blues Can’t Even Find Me”, and a roaring guitar from Doug Lancio on ” Down Around My Place”. He slipped in one shouted request, ” Buffalo River Home”, after facetiously asking Lancio if he knew the longtime favorite with the universal lyrics: ” Just when you think you can let it rip, you’re pounding the pavement in your Daddy’s wingtips”. We can all relate! Hiatt stayed with that CD for the title track, ” Perfectly Good Guitar”, before a rousing version of  ” Slow Turning” . And no Hiatt show is complete without ” Thing Called Love “, and a thank-you from John to Ms. Raitt for winning a Grammy with his song. Hiatt told of seeing Bonnie recently, and with a just-between-us-guys aside reminded us that ” she’s still hot”, adding: ” I always tell her, if you weren’t married, and I weren’t married…. we’d both be single” !

The encores were Hiatt classics: a rolling take on his typical closer, ” Have a Little Faith In Me”, and a funky ” Riding With the King”, the story of a chance encounter with Elvis that is often mistaken as a tribute to Riley B. King, who covered the song with Eric Clapton. To see Hiatt reveling in the same moments that bring his fans so much joy reminds us how fragile, dear, and precious are the times with those we love. May they always make us sing and dance !

” You’ve got kids, I’ve got kids, and they all want to know: Just what it was like when we were young? I tell ’em I’m no different now, I’m just late for the show. So grab your Aqualung; the loading has begun…”  – John Hiatt, ” My Old Friend”

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Hiatt and the Combo wave good-night to the Arvada crowd!

——– Your old friend and Mountain correspondent, Nanker Phledge

“Can You Stand the Heat?” – Ana Popovich

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Concert reviews: Ana Popovich at Mojo’s Kitchen, Jax Beach, FL 5/15/2013

The comely Ms. P graced the First Coast with a short-notice stopover on her way North from wildly received shows at the Nawlins Jazzfest and Tampa. Despite no publicity, the Mojo’s Kitchen gig was packed with Blues cogniscenti and leering old men – with new contributor Teri Jo and addled correspondent Nanker Phledge leading the respective categories – Editors

Teri Jo’s take:

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Ana Popovich onstage at Mojo’s Kitchen, Jax Beach, FL 5/15/13

Refugees from the Legendary Blues Cruise and grizzled blues aficionados gathered at Mojo Kitchen in Jacksonville Beach to worship at the altar of hit blues rocker Ana Popovic.  Popovic, who hails from Serbia, but now lives in Memphis, channelled Duane Allman, Peggy Lee and Stevie Ray Vaughan in the tiny venue.  Taking the stage in a killer red mini-dress and stiletto heels, Popovic blew the crowd away.

Popovic, who learned to appreciate the blues from her record-collecting father, was just off the stages  at Tropical Heatwave in Tampa, and at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival when she dropped in to burn up the strings at Mojo Kitchen.  Popovic played tunes from her new album, Can You Stand the Heat, which was recorded in Memphis, as well as numbers from her previous album Unconditional (you should check out the album cover).

Teri Jo

Nanker’s take:

Ana Popovic

” Why do men go crazy when a woman wears her dress so tight? “–  Muddy Waters- ( Andrew/McKeag)- ” The Same Thing”
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” It’s a man’s world she’s in “, noted compared2what, as we sat with veteran observers Wild Billy, Earl B., and Teri Jo, ” there aren’t many women doing this”. The short list includes Bonnie Raitt, Susan Tedeschi, Joanne Shaw Taylor, and newcomers like Samantha Fish, Cassie Taylor ( okay, she’s a bassist, but she’s out front), and 16-year-old Colorado prodigy Micheala Rae, all taking on the heavy mantle of Blues Guitar God(dess) with no clear model for survival, much less success, save the Little Redheaded Girl who made John Hiatt a Grammy-winning songwriter and put his own girls through college, to hear him tell it. Yet as Ana strode confidently onstage, grabbed her axe, and approached the mike, nobody was really concerned about gender, ethnicity, or age, but the simple  query: Can she play?

Yousa, yousa, yousa!

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Now, that’s an Object of Obsession!

Most of Ana’s material from the new CD, including ” Can You Stand the Heat?” and            ” Object of Obsession” , leaned toward R and B , with some jazzy flavor, but she truly shined on blues classics, especially Albert King’s ” Can’t You See What You’re Doing To Me ?”.  Her time working with her ” slide guitar idol ” ( per her site ) Sonny Landreth has paid off handsomely, and no surprise; mere proximity to Landreth would improve slide playing through osmosis. Mutters of ” she looks like Duane Allman up there” and ” it’s like Stevie Ray came back pretty ” were overblown, and I swallowed a ” Child, please!”, but Ana is a serious talent on guitar, and a very competent vocalist. Springsteen once said that Southside Johnny was a guy he could listen to all night long.  Ana’s voice is similarly agreeable and compelling, without blowing you out of your seat or spanning octaves. While the tight combo lineup, including bassist John Williams and drummer Tony Coleman, gave Ana a chance to shine for the many who’d never seen her, she would be a treat with her 9-piece Mo’ Better Love band that backed her at Jazzfest and will be jumping in on the European leg of her current tour.

And the recent Memphian made many fans by obliging nearly the entire house’s autograph, CD signing, and photo op requests during the break between sets, which became more intervention than intermission. With the Sandman beating me to School Night death, no choice but to blow her a kiss ( damn, she missed it!) and head back to the Unit. Harry, keep your eyes peeled for Ana; she’s worth checking out!

That would be me – Nanker

Small Wonder: The Phenomenal Ruthie Foster, Hopkins Center for the Arts, Hopkins, MN, 1/29/13

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Ruthie Foster and band

Ruthie Foster and band

(Ed. note:  Struggling mightily agaiinst writer’s block, and well past deadline, Harry Gebippe offers these long overdue observations about the recent Twin Cities’ appearance of the diminutive but dynamic Ruthie Foster.)

The roots of Ruthie Foster’s musical genealogy lead back to Sister Rosetta Tharpe (“The Godmother of Rock ‘N Roll”), Mahalia Jackson (“The Queen of Gospel”), and Aretha Franklin (“Lady Soul”), with branches stretching out into country, blues, and even pop, Ruthie’s music pays homage to the past, celebrates the present, and never strays too far away from the church, for it is there that she first found her voice, as a teenage soloist in her local Texas choir.

Immediately upon taking the stage at the Hopkins Center for the Arts, Ruthie introduced her band (Samantha Banks on  drums, Tanya Richardson on the 5-string bass, and Twin Cities native Scottie Miller on the B-3, electric piano and mandolin) – a classy gesture that for many headliners is an end of the show afterthought.  Ruthie warmed up with the Patty Griffin-penned “When It Don’t Come Easy,” a power ballad that did not tax her considerable vocal prowess.  Despite having just returned from Europe the day before, she and the band showed no signs of jet lag; instead, all were in high spirits, engaging with each other and the audience immediately.

Next up was Lucinda Williams’ “Fruits Of My Labor,” an early set show-stopper, showcasing Ruthie’s superb phrasing; sustaining key passages of the song, then snapping off the end of the lyric.  While Ms. Williams deserves much credit for writing this smoldering ballad, Ruthie Foster OWNS this song, much as Mary Chapin Carpenter owns another Lucinda-penned tune, “Passionate Kisses.”

Noting that “I love to record where I like to eat!” Ruthie introduced two songs off her newest album, the Grammy-nominated “Let It Burn,” recorded in New Orleans.  “This Time” is another carefully chosen cover, written by David Hidalgo and Louie Perez (Los Lobos), while  “Aim For The Heart” is Ruthie’s own composition. Of the latter, she remarked, “I had written the song with Bonnie Raitt in mind, sent it to her people, and they promptly sent it back!”  Ms. Raitt might want to reconsider that decision, as “Aim” is a mid-tempo rocker, well-suited to Bonnie’s blues/rock style.

Ruthie is careful to pay her respects to the strong African-American women artists whose legacy she embraces, by celebrating their music.  Maybelle Smith’s “Ocean of Tears” was delivered with a slinky “double shuffle” blues beat, reminiscent of Howlin’ Wolf, while Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s joyous “Up Above My Head” took us right back to the church.  Get out your fans, sisters, and let’s have us a good givin’!

The centerpiece of Ruthie’s shows is her signature rendition of “Phenomenal Woman.”  Featuring the words of the writer Maya Angelou set to music, “Phenomenal Woman” is a proud feminist statement, proclaiming the joys of womanhood.  Ruthie set aside her guitar for this one, bending her knees like a weight lifter, throwing her head back and unleashing the full power of her formidable voice.  Microphone?  We don’t need no stinkin’ microphone!   The folks in downtown Minneapolis could probably hear her, let alone those of us in the concert hall.  It was an amazing performance, earning her a well-deserved mid-set standing ovation.

"Phenomenal Woman"

“Phenomenal Woman”

From the gospel to the blues for the next two songs: Son House’s “People Grinnin’ In Your Face,” with hand-clapping accompaniment from the audience, followed by “some front porch pickin'” on a Mississippi John Hurt country blues number, that featured Scottie Miller on mandolin and Samantha Banks doing yeoman work on the spoons.  Can’t recall the last time I witnessed a solo on the spoons, but Ms. Banks’ is truly a virtuoso on that primitive percussion instrument.

Ruthie ended her eclectic set with a wide range of songs, from the gentle country blues of “Hole In My Pocket,” with its singalong chorus, to a straightforward rocking version of David Crosby’s “Long Time Gone,” to her cover of Adele’s power pop ballad, “Set Fire To The Rain.”  But far and away the most interesting song in this last segment of her set was her take on “Ring Of Fire.” The song was totally deconstructed into a slow blues number, completely unrecognizable from the original, and with Ruthie’s most understated vocal of the night.  It was a bold, fascinating move by Ms. Foster, appropriating one of Johnny Cash’s signature songs and remaking it into her own, much as The Man In Black himself did near the end of his life, when he released his American Recordings series of sparely-arranged rock ‘n roll songs.   In that sense, it was the perfect homage to one of the most independent spirits in contemporary music history.

 

As The Year Goes Passing By: A Look Back at 2012

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The Ghost Writer heads North!

Our guys Harry G and Nanky P hook up by satellite to trade tales of 2012– Ed.

Harry: For me, the year was bookended by memorable shows from two of my favorite mid/late-70’s artists. In early January, Garland Jeffreys made a rare appearance up here in the Great White North. Backed by just a single guitarist and playing to an adoring, sold-out house in a small theater in NE Minneapolis, Garland was animated, engaged and gracious to a fault, staying after the show for hours signing anything people shoved in front of him and posing for photographs. The Parker and Rumour review has already been posted, so ’nuff said about that. Both men proved that rockers of a certain age can still be vital, passionate and relevant, without turning into anachronistic Indian-casino-touring oldies shows.

Nanker: For me, it’s the unexpected, off-the-cuff moments that are the live concertgoers’ reward for tolerating outrageous fees by brokers, no parking near venues, and pre-drink requests for I.D. from twenty-year-olds who can’t grow a beard. ” I.D.? I saw Blind Faith back when your Mom was a preschooler! Give me a damn beer! ”

Malcom, Luther, and John rock the soundcheck

Malcom, Luther, and John rock the soundcheck

How about these: Watching the North Mississippi Allstars’ soundcheck, as Luther Dickinson helped integrate new bassist Lightnin’ Malcom and tour keyboardist Missing Cat John Hermann by jamming on the Stones’ Latin-flavored rave-up finale to ” Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’? ” Listening to Mavis Staples telling the story of her father, Roebuck ” Pops ” Staples, writing ” Keep On Marchin’ ” in 1963 for the blood-stained Freedom Marches in Alabama. Hearing Joe Walsh, his little-kid voice choking with emotion, saying of his friend Levon Helm, ” I’m not okay with his passing, but it helps me to sing this “, as he lead his band into ” I Shall Be Released “. Meeting Marcia Ball at the merch tent at Blues Under the Bridge and asking how she liked the Soiled Dove Underground ( she did!). Seeing Bonnie Raitt raise her fists in triumph like Rocky Balboa to proclaim, ” I just had a visit from Dr. Feelgood “, and knowing that every guy at Red Rocks wished it was him.

Blues Under the Bridge 2012

Blues Under the Bridge 2012

Where else but at the Rock Show?

Harry: Ah, Levon! His passing figured prominently in a number of venues this year. In Nashville, at the Americana Music Festival Honors & Awards show in September, not only did a cast of Americana heavyweights gather onstage for a stirring rendition of “The Weight,” dedicated to Levon, but later that evening the song was reprised by a different group of musicians at The Mercy Lounge. Nick Lowe gave a “Good on ya, mate” shout out to the late drummer for The Band at his First Avenue show, shortly after Levon’s death. I feel a certain affinity for Levon, as we share the same birthday (albeit 13 years apart). Like the old Pete Seeger song says, there was a time to mourn and a time to celebrate this year. NRBQ regrouped and put out a strong new album this year, following band leader Terry Adam’s recovery from cancer. A number of local Twin CIties bands put on a Kill Kancer Benefit show, in memory of the late Soul Asylum bass player, Karl Mueller. Another cancer survivor, Danny Amis, played most of a set with his fellow Los Straitjackets band members in September. So, for every loss, there is a survivor, and promising newcomers are always waiting, ready to pick up the torch.

NRBQ at Famous Dave’s in Minny!

Nanker: We should also remember Donald ” Duck ” Dunn, the Memphis kid who teamed with guitarist Steve Cropper and organist Booker T. Jones to make some of the greatest music ever in the late 60s/early 70s at the tiny Stax Records studio in his hometown, backing up Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, and Wilson Pickett, in addition to his own MGs with Steve, Booker, and the drummer Al Jackson, Jr.

Stax Recording Studios, Memphis, TN

Stax Recording Studios, Memphis, TN

Gebippe at Stax front door, in Otis' footsteps

Gebippe at Stax front door, in Otis’ footsteps!

And here’s hoping for a blowout New Year’s Eve at the 9:30 Club in D.C. with the North Mississippi Allstars Duo and the Drive-By Truckers. ” She ain’t revved ’til the rods are thrown! ” See ya there!