| From the
low Muddy Bottom to the top of Dog Hill, guitarist-vocalist Tab Benoit,
hailing from Houma, Louisiana, and
his amazing band cranked out two incredible sets of the hottest
Cajun-influenced rockin' blues imaginable. In fact, it's hard to
even believe all that sound comes out of just three
guys - Benoit, bassist Carl Dufrene and drummer Darryl White.
On tour 265 days a year (this was the second of two
Chicago-area dates), the young threesome have put together a tight,
seamless jam that goes on and on - full of energy that won't let up.
From the hot opening numbers, Muddy Bottom Blues and
Fast and Free (from the most recent disc Wetlands) ,
to a 12 minute, extended balls-out version of Jambalaya
(sorry Hank Williams Sr. - you weren't even in the room except in memory -
but I'm sure your ghost was hopping!), these guys never missed a beat,
never lost a phrase, and never short-sheeted a single note! And the
crowd was going wild - with those who lost their opportunity to make it
onto the crowded dance floor content to dance in place!
The second set opened (after a well deserved
break) with Benoit on stage solo, with guitar. His mastery of the
instrument is incredible, and as he throws his whole body into each and
every note, his voice - which at times is reminiscent of Gregg Allmann's
in pitch and timbre, sweetly wraps around every single word in a sinuous
cadence before dropping off to its gravel-tinted edges. He buzzed
through a brisk version of Stackalina before pulling out all
the stops for a searing rendition of When A Cajun Man Gets The Blues.
It was mesmerizing, and his guitar cried with each and every note as he
wringed every last bit of emotion from his voice: "It's so hard to
drive, with these tears in my eyes, and it takes a long time to get to
Baton Rouge. And all I want is to hear somebody play my song, when a
Cajun Man Gets the Blues ...From Lafayette to Thibodeaux to Lake Charles,
from |
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Nacogdoches to
Shreveport to Grand Isle - when I'm feeling the pain, the bayou's calling'
my name, and that's an offer I can't refuse."
As Dufrene and White came back up on stage, the
energy level cranked back up into warp drive with the unbelievable
Dog Hill in double cut time. White and Dufrene make keeping
pace with Benoit's machine gun power chops on the guitar seem effortless.
And on She's Too Sweet For Me, the extra slide in the guitar
seemed to bring even more people out of their chairs to dance. And at
no point ever did Benoit's voice wear down or waver.
Drownin' On Dry Land took off like
the intro to Mother Earth Blues but then took on a life of its own, and
the double cut time came back again for Her Mind Is Gone and
the sizzling encore, Hot Tamale Baby.
Tab Benoit is the real deal, and Chord On
Blues, with its ample seating, great bar food in addition to a full
dinner menu (try the Chicken Quesadillas) and drinks, and excellent sight
line was the ideal place to catch this rising star. There is
always room for another great guitar hero, and Tab Benoit and his amazing
band are proof. Don't miss him next time around!
Official Websites:
Tab Benoit
Chord On Blues
Posted 9/18/2002
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