The blues make a body feel good when times get rough, and that must be why there are so many of us loving the blues here in Israel, because as bad as it get, you can always sing about it. And dance. Dance I did last Saturday night, when a Chicago wind blew into town with blues guitarist Lurrie Bell and blues harmonica player Matthew Skoller.
Lurrie Bell’s got his mojo working, and anyone who was not at the Barby Saturday night has good reason for singing the blues because that was some party they missed!
I expected Lurrie Bell to be several kinds of wonderful, and oh yes, he was – but the surprise of the evening for me was the excellent quality of the production. Now, I don’t usually get all excited about production, but this time I must say that the planning for this show made it a very special evening. First of all – they started early, at 21:15. I checked the time twice, because I couldn’t believe it. I had barely made any headway into my drink – and the bright, sexy HipBone were onstage making music. It is a fine thing to have a warm up band come on so early in the evening, sending that dancing groove through the room. The heat was on, and the flames just kept climbing higher and higher as more musicians came on to the stage.
HipBone (a new band to me, definitely want to keep track of them: Shai Berkovich – saxophone, Ben Mordechai – guitar, Tal Hershkovitz – trumpet, Or Eshed – trumpet, Bar Tal – trombone, Yuval Onhoz – keyboards, Mor Refaeli – bass, Shaked Klein – drums) were joined by Blues & Booz Band (Dor Nagar, Ofer Amichai, Nimrod Shemesh). Dor Nagar sang out a strong, raw Unchain My Heart, followed by the anthem-like Caravan (Van Morrison), then Ofer Amichai sang an original with roots feeling – Catch a Freight Train. I was really into the harmonica on this one – who is that guy?
Did someone mention harmonica? Next up were Ofir Ventura who really knows how to make the harmonica sing, and Gal de Paz who sings the blues with heat and ardor.
Now things get a little hazy for me here… so much music, and dancing – all I can say is suddenly Full Trunk (Gal Nisman – guitar, Ofer Vayner – bass, Ariel Keshet – keyboard, Yotam Elazari – drums) were there onstage, and that is where they belong, sounding so good! *
Matthew Skoller – blues harmonica player, singer-songwriter, bandleader & music producer (produced Lurrie Bell’s albums Let’s Talk About Love and The Devil Ain’t Got No Music & penned eponymous title track on the latter, have a listen) – came onstage looking dapper in a black hat and vest to let everyone know that a Chicago Wind is blowing… and yes – that’s an original too!
So good vibes, great music, and yet there’s this delicious sense of anticipation…
Lurrie Bell is the blues in every aspect of his being, his easy way onstage, that secret smile and the guitar just a part of his body, playing the guitar is just part of being alive.
Together, Skoller and Bell have a close rapport, the music just flows from one to another, with room to groove. I loved the listening that was happening there onstage, the way everyone was so fully alive, so fully attuned to one another.
The generosity of Lurrie Bell and Matthew Skoller to the young musicians flowed into the music, and I could feel the excitement in those solos – spiritual Gal Nisman and wild Ariel Keshet. So many highs, one of my favorites was a cover of Elmore James’ The Sky is Crying (1959) – beautiful song, and it felt so good to be there in that moment… all these people coming together onstage, making music that just sings through the body, music that “makes my poor heart skip a beat,” something that cannot be recorded or described, something that’s all about being there.
*Full Trunk will be performing at The Barby on Wednesday, February 10th – with the release of the first single from their 3rd album, & celebrating the 2nd anniversary of their 1st album! Here’s the link to the event.
