 |
Buddy Guy, who fellow bluesman Eric Clapton has called "the best guitar player alive" may have summed it up best when he said: "We're going to get so funky you can smell us."
Funky yes. Smelly no.
Guy, a charming, talented, infectiously happy 60-year-old Louisianan who looks, moves and plays like he's 20 years younger, stole the multi-bill House Of Blues' Barnburner Tour last night at the Molson Amphitheatre in front of 8,500 enthralled fans.
No small feat considering he was co-headlining the evening with spastic-moving, facial contorting, British soul singer Joe Cocker, who also had his moments with such crowd favorites as Feelin' Alright, You Are So Beautiful, Leave YourHat On, The Letter, Unchain My Heart and the truly hair-raising With A Little Help From My Friends.
But in the end Joe Cocker's soul was no match for Buddy Guy's blues.
Cocker, 52, should also do something about the placement of his two excellent female backkup singers, who were so far off the stage they appeared to be performing at the CNE.
Back to Guy. With the help of his seven piece band -- in particular fellow guitarist Scott Holt-- he thrilled, and practically wooed, the audience with his exhilarating, hour-long set that followed opening acts the Radiators from New Orleans and the Fabulous Thunderbirds of Texas.
He even wandered into the crowd at one point to play his eye-catching black and white polka dot guitar, which, believe it or not, matched his shirt.
Guy also had a secret weapon in the former of none other than one of the Blues Brothers himself when Canadian native Dan Aykroyd danced onto the stage to sing Sweet Home Chicago.
"This city is a son of a gun," said Guy. "Everytime I come here I have the greatest time of my life and I've got news for you, tonight is no exception."
With that Aykroyd appeared and the crowd was on their feet.
"Should we bring a House Of Blues to Toronto?" yelled out Aykroyd after his song.
The response? A loud roar in the affirmative.
I'll add my voice to that, particularly if Guy is on the bill.
SUN RATING: 4 out of 5
JAM! | Music | Movies | TV | Theatre | Books | Video | Country | En Francais