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ROBERT RANDOLPH & THE FAMILY BAND
Zydeco’s | Birmingham, AL | 05.01.02
I’d read the reviews, I’d listened to a few tunes, I saw him sit in with Panic at Oak Mountain, but I had yet to see Robert Randolph & the Family Band perform live. I saw their name on the billboard at Zydeco in Birmingham, and new he was coming soon. Too soon perhaps! Three Panic shows at Oak Mountain followed by three days of final exams. Would this be to soon? Would I have the energy left to go see if these guys are as good as everyone says they are?
Quarter 'til ten on Wednesday night: I turned in my last exam with nothing buy RR on my mind. I called some friends to see if they were up for another night out, but to no avail: they were all broke from Panic and cramming for exams. Oh well, I’ll just fly solo to RR.
RR came out a little after eleven to a crowd of a hundred or two. They started out a little slow, gingerly warming up the crowd for the fury to come. It was almost as if they started out working on the mellowest person in the room. The music took the mellowest person and injected energy via sound waves into his or her body. RR brought him up to speed with the less mellow folk. The music grew, rhythms accelerated, the crowd was all on the same page. We were all building together into something, some sort of energy that cannot be described, but once experienced can be remembered.
Next thing I know, we’re hearing “Papa Was a Rolling Stone”! I swig my beer to find that it’s all foam now. My feet are moving, my hips are shaking, and there’s nothing I can do about it. What we have here is a prime example of the power, the raw energy, that RR brings out of that 13-string pedal steel. The pedal steel has Robert Randolph written in cursive on the front, just in case you weren’t quite sure who was responsible for the spilt beer and sweat pouring off of your forehead.
High, high, high, how high can you go, ride me high this mornin’... what, why am I singing "Ride Me High"? RR’s seamlessly moved from “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” into a "Ride Me High" jam. Now the energy level is starting to pick up. Every single body is moving, there are no feet rooted to the floor anymore. Never before have a seen every single person in a club dancing their asses off like this!
A picture of an old beat-up pick-up truck pulling into the junkyard pops itself into my head. Why? What’s this? Oh, just a little "Sanford & Son" theme song jam! I pause for a moment and look around to see everyone enjoying this as much as I am. Permagrin reigns throughout the Zydeco tonight. I get goose bumps just thinking about how amazing that night was.
Back to my feet chasing beats, I’m drenched in sweat and I have no choice other than to dance. It’s as if RR has his fingers tickling nerves inside my body that make me move. I’m hearing music mixing in such a way that all I can say is go see Robert Randolph & the Family Band.
It’s nearly 1:15 am, and RR’s come back out onstage for an encore. RR’s pedal steel is up on the front edge of the stage, and I’m on front row. I could give him a hug I’m so close to him. RR swings us all back into motion with the theme song from the Pink Panther. Now, this is just too much. This is just insane, I cannot stop smiling; everyone should experience this.
I bought the Jimi Hendrix box set a few months ago. I’ve frequently found myself sitting on the couch or cruising down the highway, listening to Hendrix, trying to imagine what it would’ve been like to see Jimi play in a small venue before he hit the big time. I wondered if I’d realize what greatness was being performed in front of me. My conclusion was always a resounding "yes." I’d realize that what I was seeing was something incredibly rare and unique, something that should be appreciated for all that it is. The crowd that gathered at Zydeco saw such incredible greatness in Robert Randolph & the Family Band.
I drive home, chilly from a sweat soaked shirt, ears ringing, smile on my face, trying to fathom that which I have just seen. I try to explain to friends but words cannot, will not, explain this. The venue was so small and cozy it was like they were playing in my living room and all my best friends whom I’d never met before where there. That was the musical performance for which I’ve been searching for so long.
Now the question on my mind is, what is going to happen at Bonnaroo? What’s gonna happen when seventy thousand bodies get swept into motion by RR? The frenzy that develops during RR at Bonnaroo very well could develop into the climactic moment of the festival. The energy level that this band puts out is astonishing. They force you to dance. I don’t care who you are, by the end of a RR set, you will be shaking your hips til you can’t shake em no more. Robert Randolph & the Family Band plus seventy thousand bodies equals spontaneous combustion?
Go see Robert Randolph & the Family Band ASAP... catch ‘em at a small venue while you can!
Jimmy Greene
JamBase | South
Go see live music!
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