Specter's Live In Chicago, released on both CD and DVD, documents two August 2007 performances - one at Buddy Guy's Legends club, and the other at the legendary Rosa's Blues Lounge. The talented guitarist doesn't sing, so he enlisted the help of several friends to handle the microphone while Specter did what he does best ... play. Tad Robinson, Jimmy Johnson, and Sharon Lewis lend their voices to the event. To back him up, Specter put together an incredible collection of Chicago blues talent, including keyboardist Brother John Kattke (formerly of Buddy Guy's band), bassist Harlan Terson (Otis Rush's band), and drummer Marty Binder (a veteran of Albert Collins' band).Live In Chicago opens with the lively instrumental duo "Boss Funk/Riverside Ride." Specter brings a jazzy tone to his playing, a fluid ease similar to B.B. King. Whereas King often imbues his songs with a darker hue, Specter's fretwork is bright and playful. The opening song includes some tasty Southern-fried keyboard courtesy of Brother John. As Kattke double-taps the keys with a funky flair, Dave and the boys strut through the song with a smooth groove.
Onstage with Tad Robinson
Vocalist and harmonica player Tad Robinson joins Specter onstage for "What Love Did To Me, blowing the harp with a soulful self-assuredness. Robinson's vocals are where his strongest talents lie, however ... sweet, bluesy, gruff, and welded to the energetic harp passages. The song shuffles along to a fast-walking beat, Specter adding guitar flourishes throughout that add to the emotion that Robinson is pouring into the performance.
A cover of Tom T. Hall's urban country classic "How I Got To Memphis" is a fine example of Dixie soul that mixes a slight country twang with rough-hewn vocals and a deep rhythmic groove. Specter's playing here is transcendent, displaying a tougher edge, trembling tone, and plenty of heart. Robinson's potent vocals convey the song's heartbreak and anguish.
The instrumental "Texas Top" showcases the fine talents of the band that Specter assembled for the recording. Drummer Marty Binder keeps a steady, if subdued beat alongside Terson's muted bass lines. Specter picks out a nasty sort of Lone Star state funk, channeling both Stevie Ray and T-Bone Walker on a red-hot six-string workout. Brother John Kattke's fingers fly across the keys, lending a honky-tonk feel to the song.
Onstage with Jimmy Johnson
Guitarist Jimmy Johnson joins the band for the old-school Jimmy Rogers' tune "Out On The Road." Johnson's style compliments Specter's, the guitarist achieving a blunt, rich tone shorn of its edge, but stinging nonetheless. Johnson's higher-pitched vocals, although not as strong as, say, Robinson's, are just as expressive.
The rocking standard 12-bar blues structure of the Chick Willis classic "Feel So Bad" benefits from Johnson's opening six-string salvo, the bluesman playing off Terson's bass groove before launching into a sorrowful tale of love gone wrong. It's a classic blues tune, full of energy yet always just bubbling under the boiling point.
Onstage with Sharon Lewis
Singer Sharon Lewis hits the stage for the raucous, up-tempo "In Too Deep." Lewis is an entertaining vocalist, capable of really belting out a song with heart and soul. Specter adds his tasteful fretwork astride a slip-sliding rhythm while Lewis delivers a crowd-pleasing performance.
An original Lewis song, the soul ballad "Angel," closes out the too-brief Rosa's set. Specter's delicate guitar intro reminds of the Jimi Hendrix's classic "Little Wing" with beautiful tone and enchanting space between the notes. Lewis displays the other end of her great vocal range, delivering an emotional reading of the song in a Gospel vein.
The Reverend's Bottom Line
A gifted instrumentalist with a variety of styles at his disposal, Dave Specter is an unsung talent on the Chicago blues scene. Specter is no blues purist, but rather an enthusiast who incorporates elements of bluesmen like T-Bone Walker, Magic Sam, and Otis Rush in his work, along with jazzier influences like Kenny Burrell and, although it's understated, B.B. King.
Live In Chicago is an incredible display of Specter's talents as a guitarist, as a stylist, and as a bandleader. This is a good show, and well worth hearing for any dedicated blues fan. (Delmark Records) By Reverend Keith A. Gordon, About.com
Happy 55th Delmark!!! Please visit...http://www.delmark.com/
Tracks: 1. Boss Funk/Riverside Ride 2. What Love Did to Me 3. How I Got to Memphis 4. What's Your Angle? 5. Texas Top 6. Feel So Bad 7. Out on the Road 8. Is What It Is 9. In Too Deep 10. Angel
Details
.. Year: 2008
.. Label: Delmark Records DE-794 (USA)
.. Bitrate: VBR
.. Home-Page: www.davespecter.org
.. MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/davespecter
.. Last.fm: www.last.fm/music/Dave+Specter
.. Buy: Delmark http://www.delmark.com/delmark.794.htm
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3 comentários:
Dave Specter is one of the best on blues guitar nowadays. Could you hang on bluestown his CD with Lenny Lynn "BLUES SPOKEN HERE"?, I´ve heard it once and it was really wonderfull.
Thank you for your blogspot and the best for the new year 2009, from the Basque Country in Spain.
This album is fantastic! I had never heard of Specter, or Tad Robinson. Wow. Everybody needs to check this out. Thanks for sharing this.
Thank you for this CD. Specter is really original blues&more guitarists. I founded a lot of very nice groove here.
Sharrie Williams rocks! :-)
All the best from Poland
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