All in all, we were treated to a 13-song set that included originals like the absolutely stunning Midnight In Harlem and the new single Bound For Glory mixed in with a wide variety of covers from different genres than you might expect. Space Captain, made famous by Joe Cocker on the Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour, was incredible (most of the band recently covered this on Herbie Hancock’s The Imagine Project). And their rousing version of Sly Stone’s Sing A Simple Song may only have been outdone by the rocking take on Delaney & Bonnie’s Comin’ Home. Yet the highlight of the evening came early in the set. Midnight In Harlem is not going to be any sort of radio single. But from Derek’s opening ethereal guitar work that had me thinking for a moment they were about to go into the Allmans’ Mountain Jam, through Susan’s most soulful singing this song stood out. Kofi’s organ playing bubbled below the surface and Oteil’s walking bass line locked in with the drummers moved it along. This is one you have to catch live.
More is not always better. Sometimes three men on a small stage can put out more sound and feeling than an entire orchestra. Touring these days is really the only way for bands to make any money. So the more band members, the smaller the pieces of the pie. I give all the credit in the world to Mr. Trucks & Ms. Tedeschi for realizing that these other nine men were exactly what they needed to tell this story. I believe Bowie referred to it as “sound + vision”.
Once again, Susan proves she can more than hold her own when surrounded by a whole lot of testosterone. And yet for true fans of this married couple and their intertwining careers, the real revelation was seeing their love and affection front and center. No matter who he plays with, Derek seems to be devoid of emotion even while sparks fly from his fingertips, but at this show he cracked a smile several times. And when Susan went up to him near the start of the show and tucked his hair back behind his right ear, the whole audience let out a collective, “Awwww…” in which we all acknowledged what these two mean to each other. In response, Susan told us all to be quiet with a finger to her lips while smiling as if to say, “Don’t embarrass him, he’s shy.”
To paraphrase the lyrics to a Dylan tune that Susan covers all the time, don’t think twice, it was more than all right!
Tedeschi Trucks Band 4/13/11 @ Highline Ballroom, NYC
Set: Five Minute Rule > Love Has Something Else To Say, Midnight In Harlem, Just Kissed My Baby, Comin’ Home, Till You Remember, Sing A Simple Song, Nobody’s Free, That Did It, Uptight > Bass > Drums > Manic Depression (Oteil vocal), Space Captain
Encore: Kebbi & JJ jam > Bound For Glory
4 Responses
Don’t know what the differences in the cameras are, but the images are geart all around, particularly the B/W’s. If the images you take are so consisitently good, they are reallyt complimented by the words that describe the musical experience. Band after band I always end up with the same feeling, “I wish I could have been there”.Dad’s should follow what their children do, but they probably should not reply publicly. But, in this instance everything I said was true.
Yeah, great show, killer band! The drum solo was like none I had ever seen, so tight. They all looked to be having such a good time. Can’t wait to see them again.
Not an expert in any of this either. However, the photos do look very good to me. I love that you are following your passion!
I really like the 1st color photo. and overall how you utilize the spot lighting to emphasize your subjects! 🙂 Would a different camera give a more crisp image?
Saw them together at the Doheny Blues Festival outside Los Angeles last weekend. Easily one of the best acts I have heard in a long time. Crisp voices, incredible talent on all strings, and she was right on. Derek is talented beyond his years. Really fun show at a great outdoor arena, a Saturday afternoon on a southern California beach.