Last nights concert, featuring Johnny Lang and Buddy Guy, was a lesson of the contrasts in American’s own original music.
Johnny Lang opened with his soul full of New Age blues. Melodic chord changes and flakey facial expressions was enough to earn a standing ovation from the nearly sold out Burton Cummings Theatre. A very packaged poppy sound, his band was phenomenal and had bailed him out a couple times. During his last acoustic song, he fell out of the pocket numerous times but managed to hold on to the crowed with his stunning vocals and sincere showmanship. His playing was decent, and his arrangement of “Living for the City” by Stevie Wonder was the highlight for me.
His solos, moving and inventive at times, all ended anti-climactically when he tried moving in triplets through different scales that might have been better suited for a classical piece. I had also noticed that his guitar player did not take a solo the whole night, though the rest of his band had. Those who where there for Johnny, surley weren't disappointed, and neither was I. It was good, it’s what I expected. I just wasn’t blown away.
Then Buddy Guy took the stage. From the first chord you knew you were in for a treat. Straight ahead twelve-bar blues that pretty much had the same feel and key the whole set. He sang and played with a voice unrivaled by any man I’ve heard of that age. He played his solos, and let his guitar player show us what he really would have wanted to do had still been a younger man.
“ Im old, I sometimes have to hold back, but you Winnipeg, just make me want to give it my All. Forty years ago, before I first came to play in Canada, I didn’t think I was going to make it. Then you guys showed me how much you loved me. And thats why I love you guys. Let me show you.” I’m paraphrasing of course, but that was his point and he played it like he meant it. Walking into the crowd, getting personal the way he always does, really gave the impression of what the blues was all about so many years ago. Playing dirty songs about old men sleeping with nineteen-year old girls and various other subjective themes, he even took the time to tell stories from his child hood. “ Im so handsome... ‘ yes you are son, but thats only skin deep” (also the name of his latest album). He showed us different styles of blues, imitating the late John Lee Hooker, and Eric Clapton.
Both artists played for an acceptable amount of time. The only blemish on the show was the theatre itself which didn’t open its doors early enough to get everyone seated before the start. The ensuing gong show trying to find seats in the dark, made me wonder if I was in a high school instead of a landmark theatre. All in all, a satisfied Monday evening in Winnipeg.
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