Last night Levon Helm finally brought his Ramble to Philly, playing the
Electric Factory. It was Helm's second Philly appearance in the 21st
Century, the first being a show by his blues group The Barn Burners at a
River Jam, where following his surgery for throat Cancer, Helm did not
sing.
It was his second appearance at the Electric Factory, the last being what
turned out to be the (reformed) Band's final appearance in Philadelphia
about 12 or 13 years ago. That show was so lackluster with blown intros
and
other musical disasters I decided I would not see The Band in that
incarnation again, a major decision since The Band was, has been and
always
will be my favorite group.
Helm has played Philly many times over the three decades since the
original
Band broke up and it hasn't always been illustrious, especially
considering
the heights The Band achieved onstage. His first group, Levon Helm & the
RCO All-Stars debuted here at the Tower Theater. This was a super group
if
ever there was one and the members included Paul Butterfield, Dr. John,
and
the three surviving members of Booker T. & the MGS. However only bassist
Duck Dunn showed up. Booker T. and legendary guitarist Steve Cropper were
nowhere to be found. The show was short, ill-rehearsed, and it seemed
more
attention was paid to the flags and hockey banners that decorated the
stage
to the music. The audience, hardcore fans of all the musicians with
several
local musicians in attendance was more than disappointed, they felt ripped
off.
Other appearances whether on his own, with Rick Danko or with the
(reformed)
Band while sometimes quite good, and often, especially the shows with
Danko,
a lot of fun relied too much on cover songs or blues they didn't have to
think about playing or put too much effort into. All this was on my mind
as
I went to the show last night.
I arrived in time to see opening act, Ollabelle who are a regular part of
Helm's Rambles and usually feature his daughter Amy. However Amy gave
birth
last weekend, so for obvious reasons wasn't at the show. I'd never seen
Ollabelle before, and they were quite good, playing roots based rock and
roll with a wide range of influences from country to gospel. However
their
45 minute set was hampered by bad sound with the acoustic guitars getting
lost in the sound bouncing around the cavernous warehouse of a club. They
sound problems made them sound less cohesive than they actually were. The
standout was a song about brotherhood by bassist Byron Issacs.
There was about a 20 minute break before the Levon Helm Band took the
stage.
Amazingly enough they were introduced lovingly by Larry Magid, the head
and
founder of Electric Factory Concerts. In nearly 40 years of going to
Electric Factory shows, I've never seen Magid introduce anyone, and his
into
signaled this was potentially going to be a special show.
Levon and his large group featuring a four-piece horn section took the
stage
and launched into Chuck Berry's "Going Back To Memphis," which the Band
covered a few times on their final tours. With his drums on the right
side
of the stage so you could see him play (where they were with The Band) it
was obvious from the first beat what an incredible drummer he is and he
was
driving the song like a madman. The drums were mixed loud, louder than
any
other instrument threatening to overpower his voice. Dylan's "It Takes A
Lot To Laugh (It Takes A Train To Cry)" followed and then they jumped
right
into "Ophelia."
Then Little Sammy Davis was introduced. He's a blues singer and harp
player
and a regular part of the Rambles. He's a better harp player than he is a
singer. He did three blues staples which was enough.
It quickly became apparent that the show was really a revue with various
singers taking the stage including guitarist Larry Campbell's wife, Teresa
Williams, as well as the two women singers from Olabelle, with Ollabelles'
drummer Tony Leone filling in on drums when Levon left the kit to play
mandolin.
The band fronted by guitarists Larry Campbell and Jimmy Vivino, with Mike
Merritt on bass and Brian Mitchell on keyboards. The horn section
included
the great Howard Johnson playing several instruments including tuba.
Johnson was part of every horn section the Band used from Rock of Ages
through the Last Waltz.
There were many highlights and many tributes. Teresa Williams was
excellent
on "Long Black Veil," and a beautiful country song with Larry singing
great
harmony possibly titled "If You Would Love Me Again." In another time or
place, they could easily be an act on their own.
Jimmy Vivino did a great version of Woody Guthrie's "I Ain't Got No Home"
with some additional verses, but using the arrangement Bob Dylan and the
Band did at the Woody Guthrie Memorial Concert. It was simply fantastic
and
at the end, he said, "Thanks Woody."
Somewhere in the middle of the show Levon finally left the drums and took
a
stool in the middle of the stage to do a song from his new Grammy winning
album, "Dirt Farmer," "Got Me A Woman." He followed that with "Ashes of
Love" and possibly because it was Philly, Bruce Springsteen's "Atlantic
City."
He returned to the kit for more blues and R&B with a superb version of
"Rain
Down Tears" with Teresa Williams singing great backup. It easily
surpassed
the version on the RCO All-Stars album.
Alternating songs with other singers gave Helm a chance to rest his voice
and his vocals did get stronger, sometimes amazingly, as the night went
on.
Larry Campbell did a terrific "Goin' Go Get My Baby Out of Jail," and Helm
returned to center stage one more time to do one of the highlights of
"Dirt
Farmer," "Anna Lee," backed only by Campbell on fiddle and Teresa Williams
on harmony. It was stunning. Campell stayed on fiddle for "Rag Mama Rag"
with Helm on mandolin and Brian Mitchell coming damn close to Garth Hudson
on piano.
Little Sammy returned for "Baby, Scratch My Back," and then Mitchell did,
"I
Thought I'd Heard Buddy Bolden Say," which featured lengthy solos from
each
member of the horn section.
The show after a fine "I Don't Wanna Hang Up My Rock 'n' Roll Shoes"
concluded with several Band songs. Vivino led off doing a soulful "Tears
of
Rage," Mitchell did, "The Shape I'm In," and then Larry Campbell did
"Chest
Fever" starting off solo on guitar playing his own version of the Garth
Hudson intro, it was beyond incredible.
Never leaving the stage they encored with "The Weight" with everyone
singing, often tossing lines between the singers in a verse.
Throughout the night it was impossible to keep my eyes of Helm's drums
which
were directly in front of me and notice how he'd handle different songs.
What was truly interesting was he played the most complicated patterns on
the songs he sang on and while he was singing and would lay back a bit
when
others were singing so as not to take away from their performance.
Much of the credit for this band's sound has to go to Larry Campbell.
Always the consummate team player, he knows exactly what to do, but just
as
im****tant what not to do. It was obvious he was a large part of keeping
the
band together and keeping the show moving. For those who thought Campbell
and Charlie ***ton were a great combination when they were in Dylan's band
together, Campbell and Jimmy Vivino are perhaps an even better
combination.
Both are in total command of their instruments, obviously capable of
playing
just about anything, but they always put the music and the songs first.
It's
never about one-upman****p, it's never about showboating. The times when
they alternated leads, it was always to propel each other to greater
heights.
Vivino is particularly impressive as a performer. It is obvious that he
just loves the music, and his having a great time playing it and that
great
time is conveyed at every turn.
Of course Levon Helm displayed the same enthusiasm. You could see him
smiling and getting off on every solo, every vocal and he was generous in
making sure every member of the band, every guest performer got their turn
in the spotlight.
While I would have liked to have seen more songs from "Dirt Farmer,"
(which
may or may not happen when Amy Helm returns), which I thought was THE
album
of last year, what the show was, was a grand celebration of American roots
music. All the bases were covered from traditional country to folk,
honky-tonk, Woody Guthrie, blues, R&B, New Orleans, jazz, Dylan,
Springsteen
and of course rock and roll. It is probably everything he's been trying
to
do all along throughout his career and he's finally achieved it. This was
the first show of this tour and it will probably get even better and
tighter
as it continues.
--
Don't go mistaking Paradise
For that home across the road.
--Bob Dylan
http://www.peterstonebrown.com
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