Mahaiwe, Great Barrington, MA
October 19, 2012
by Eric Sutter
Singer-songwriter, guitarist and three time Grammy winner
Keb' Mo' flashed a Mississippi "Big Grin" in the "Muddy
Water" at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center. Here's the lowdown. Even
though the performance spotlighted this gifted musician's guitar playing, much
praise should be given to his tight rhythm section's playing and keyboardist
Michael Hick's loose soulful groove. Keb' Mo's ease of style guitar playing
made for a warm and comfortable downhome experience with stories of love and
heartache. Although rooted in the Delta, his music transcends those boundaries
to update that sound to modern times with R&B influences. His depth of
emotion and living grace typified his persona of the link to the Delta blues.
Beginning solo on "Love Blues" and "The
Action" he showcased acoustic rhythm guitar playing and slide. Love songs
to females "Loola Loo" and "Rita" were up against electric
numbers with full band on "Let Your Light Shine" and
"France." He performed one of his best known works from 2009's CD
"Live & Mo" in "More Than One Way Home" with a terrific
bass solo by Vail Johnson. Drummer Lester Falconer kept a steady beat through "Everything
I Need" on the keyboards with Keb' Mo' bringing it home with his mellow
resonator slide guitar solo. Slower blues numbers like "Don't Try To
Explain" captured the wounded heart of pain and misery. The show featured
guitar changes galore, including banjo. His melodic slide glissaded true in
"Perpetual Blues Machine." He performed acoustic with harmonica on
"City Boy" which showed his neo-traditionalist blues style.
"America The Beautiful" moved the audience to singing.
"Whole Nutha Thing" expanded on the theme of the
importance of woman in his blues with a laid back groove and strong rhythm
section. Good use of lighting made for an authentic duplication of the
traditional blues "Come On Into My Kitchen" with Keb' Mo' solo center
stage on sweet slide guitar. Incidentally, Keb' Mo' broadened his fan base with
the docudrama "Can't You Hear The Wind Howl" in which he played
Robert Johnson. He brought the house down with the encore of an early funky
blues "She Just Wants To Dance."
Keb' Mo' performs at Symphony Hall, Springfield on October 27th.
