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©2001 Dino Perrucci
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Robert Randolph has steadily been increasing his band of
loyalists over the past six month playing his standard 60-70 minute
set of high energy soulful pedal steel. Backed by his cousins
Danyell Morgan on bass and Marcus Randolph on drums as well
as honorary "cousin" John Ginty on Hammond B-3 organ, Robert
has left no audience unimpressed. Friday night at Tribeca Blues he took it to the next level.
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©2001 Dino Perrucci
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In a "coming-out-party" organized by Chicka Wah Productions to
coincide with the Allman Brothers run in NYC, Robert Randolph
and Friends electrified Tribeca Blues for well over 3 hours. An hour
long first set featured a standard setlist that most of his fans
recognized. But through familiar songs like "The Prayer," "Ted's
Jam" and "The March" the band seemed to kick it up a notch.
"The Prayer" featured, for the first time, a touching story and short
prayer masterfully overlayed on top of the hauntingly gorgeous
melody. "Ted's Jam," usually a mind blistering rocker, brought the
band tighter and higher than ever before, extending itself in a long,
cohesive jam. In addition, Robert introduced a new song to his
repertoire, "Shake Your Hips" a Slim Harpo song known for it's
appearance on the Rolling Stones' "Exile On Main Street" excited
the fans longing for some new morsels to bite on as well as for the
featuring of Robert on vocals. "Voodoo Chile," a song that Robert
has been rendering quite ably as an instrumental also, for the first
time, featured vocals by the lovable Mr Randolph. The first set on
it's own could have been considered the best work the band has
ever done. The fun was only beginning.
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©2001 Dino Perrucci
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The band retook the stage at 1:45 and didn't leave until almost
4am. During the course of the set the audience was treated to
more original material, including the newer tune "Pressing My
Way." Halfway through the set Derek Trucks (Derek Trucks Band, Allman Brothers Band) joined the band on stage during Sly Stone's "Thank You" and the audience was taken on an adventure of long, funky jams for the rest of the night. Derek and Robert worked amazingly together, listening and playing masterfully. They each took stunning solos as well as traded licks as peers. The rest of the band rose up to meet the challenge and showed free-form
jamming abilities their fans had not yet seen. They romped through jams on Bill Withers' "Just The Two of Us" and the O'Jays' "For The Love of Money" to near perfection, oftentimes crossing into uncharted territories, passing solos and riffs back and forth for 15-20 minutes at a time before tying the jams back up nicely.
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©2001 Dino Perrucci
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Jazz guitarist Stanley Jordan also hopped on stage for much of the set and added countless solos of his unique brand of playing to the jams with mixed results. The high octane drummer, Jeff Sipe (aka Apt Q258, Aquarium Rescue Unit, Leftover Salmon, presently
touring with Susan Tedeschi) hopped on stage for one "jam" which was one of the highlights of the night. It was a neat test for the band as Jeff just hopped on stage and started laying down the beat. After a few seconds a jam evolved perfectly as the band survived the trial by fire with a little help from Mr. Trucks and the brilliant pedal steel playing of Robert Randolph. Susan Tedeschi and another female singer named Shannon also added some vocals to augment Danyell's shrieking lyrical work. Tedeschi was brilliant as she soulfully "jammed" with her bluesy voice - just one more instrument packed onto Tribeca Blues' tiny stage.
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©2001 Dino Perrucci
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Robert showed his true abilities as a showman at the end of the night. Through hours of jamming he had proven his talents but may have lost a little bit of control of the show overall. For the last song he seized the reins and reigned supreme over the audience
commanding them to clap, stomp and scream in his show stopping "I Don't Know What You've Come To Do." The wearying audience was revitalized with the gospel rocking of the band with Danyell, Robert, Susan and Shannon all lifting spirits with their inspired singing. Derek and Susan's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when Danyell's falsetto hit the highest notes!
As the band left the stage and shook off their trance Robert was shocked to find out it was almost 4 in the morning. Time had slowed down for him as he entered a new world. Yes, new worlds are opening up for Robert Randolph these days. He is starting a several week residency at Mercury Lounge on Wednesdays. If you are anywhere in the tri-state area you should check him out NOW! If not, he should be getting on the road in the near future to spread the gospel. Seek out the tapes and CD's of this and other Randolph gigs - the music will make you remember that no matter what's going on in you life - "You've Got To Move." Robert Randolph will make you move and smile and throw your hands up in the air and scream with delight.
The NYC Freaks
Very special thanks to
Dino Perrucci for the great photos.
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