James Nottage
From:
Indiana, USA
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Posted 27 Feb 2011 6:18 am |
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An earlier post announced this special concert to be held at the Wexner Center for the Arts on the campus of Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. I have to say that driving three hours each way from Indianapolis yesterday was worth every minute and every gallon of over-priced gasoline!
Bill Frisell asked from the stage how many in the audience had heard of Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant. It was satisfying to hear so many respond, but for the many who were becoming acquainted with this music for the first time it was nice to realize that the performance might be connecting a new generation of listeners with an important part of our musical heritage.
It is noteable that the performers modestly and appropriately defered to the masterful skills of West and Bryant. Indeed, the concert would have been a huge mistake if they were trying to copy the originals who were great stylists. However, in that modesty, most listeners would realize that Frisell and Leisz are strong stylists themselves. Their approach to the familiar songs was slowed down, and it resulted in a cooler, smoother, jazz infused performance that helps us to appreciate the timeless nature of the songs themselves.
Dennis Crouch laid down a strong bass line while Don Heffington added the beat of the drums. The group was tight and smooth throughout. In trying to reconstruct the play list this morning, I have missed a couple of titles but they started out with "Reflections from the Moon" and proceeded through:
"Bryant's Boogie"
"Hillcrest Opus 3"
"Serenade to a Frog"
"Sunset"
"Speedin West"
"Liberty Bell Polka"
"Whistle Stop"
"West of Samoa"
"Bryant's Bounce",
"Jammin with Jimmy"
An appreciative audience brought them out for an encore. The first performance was mostly full and the second sold out. Amplifyers were Fender Deluxe Reverb amps. Frisell played a Fender Telecaster. Leisz played a Williams 600 series 12 string with 6 pedals, I couldn't tell anything more from my seat about his instrument.
It strikes me in particular that this type of performance on a college campus, presented by skillful artists, is a very positive way in which to share the depth of steel guitar with the rest of the music world. Lets hope there is more. I would hope that stronger program notes can be added to the mix. A CD would be a great idea.
James Nottage
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Clinesmith S-8; Pettingill P6; Rick-Style Vintage 47 Amp |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 27 Feb 2011 6:25 pm
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Glad you could make it, James, and thanks for the review. When I first heard Speedy and Jimmy in the 80s, they rocked my world. I transferred the LPs onto cassettes and they went everywhere with me. They were everything instrumental music (besides Jazz) should be and so many others tried to capture that same magic, but just didn't have the compositional skills and personality of those 2 greats.
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Links to streaming music, websites, YouTube: Links |
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