Older Gentlemen Who Can Still Make Their Instruments Wail
I’m sure this holds true for a lot of aging boomers, but I’m not getting out to as many shows and concerts as I once did. For a while I did pretty well, especially in my ’40’s when I still had a fair amount of energy, going to shows on weekdays, sometimes even driving up to Baltimore and back if there was a band I particularly wanted to see like the Riverboat Gamblers or Pentagram. Nowadays though, the prospect of shlepping someplace at night by myself to see an act just seems like too much hassle, especially on weekdays since my current schedule generally requires me to get up at 5:30 a.m.
So, color me surprised when I decided pretty much spur of the moment to go on a Wednesday to see Jeff Beck and Buddy Guy at Wolf Trap. I’ve been a big fan of Jeff Beck for a long time. In fact, of the three powerhouse guitarists who played for the Yardbirds, Beck, Page, and Clapton, I’ve always thought he was a lot more interesting musician than the other two. I like his willingness to experiment, also the fact that he’s never seemed to take himself nearly as seriously as some British rock stars (Page, Clapton). Beck’s fans tend to be extremely dedicated. As a result, it took me years and years to get to see him. Every time I heard he was going to play in town, it was always a sold out show and too late to buy a ticket. Wolf Trap is a good venue to see Beck since it’s sufficiently large that tardy types like myself can still get a ticket from a scalper.
Buddy Guy opened with a one hour set. I’d seen him previously at a Hendrix tribute at the Lincoln Theater in 2014 and wasn’t all that impressed, but I was tired and possibly not in the right mind frame to appreciate him. Frankly, blues music has never done all that much for me even though I know rock’n’roll wouldn’t exist without it. Guy likes to talk a lot too, which can also be distracting. This night though, everything clicked. Maybe it was him, maybe me, but Guy seemed relaxed and freewheeling, rapping and riffing as he sauntered through his set. His guitar playing this time really blew me away, wild, frenzied, spiky notes flying in every direction like multiple guitar solos were being played simultaneously by four or five master musicians. It was apparent to me how big an influence Guy was on guitarists like James Blood Ulmer and, most famously of all, Jimi Hendrix. At age 79, he still plays amazingly fast. His musicology was plain as well; a varied set featured his cover of a Marvin Gaye song, Ain’t That Peculiar.
Beck was in excellent form as well. One of things I admire most about Beck is his willingness to mix things up. After decades of pretty much sticking to jazz rock, Beck has returned to blues rock with his new album Loud Hailer. His set featured both types of music. His tight, accomplished back up band featured two singers, one a young woman with a powerhouse voice and the rather odd habit of periodically getting on her knees while singing (perhaps to show her gratitude to Jeff Beck for this career making opportunity?). The second was the real topper, however, some tall, gangly, young guy in a hipster straw hat with a histrionic approach to singing that would have made Steve Marriott blush. He wailed, wiggled, and thrashed around the stage with a vengeance while emoting Take Me Out In The Early Morning Dew and It’s Been A Long Time Coming with the trauma turned all the way up to eleven. As someone noted long before me, rock’n’roll is not a genre that lends itself to restrained performances. Mr. Beck was in excellent form as always, the same lean, long haired guitar demon that’s he’s been since the mid ’60’s. At 72, he still can shred with the best and made it plain to all listeners that there has been absolutely no diminution whatsoever of his musical chops.
I can say that I had the compleat Wolf Trap experience since, among other, previously discussed diversions, I got to watch two guys get busted for smoking pot during the intermission. The silly nitwits didn’t even bother to go into the trees to do it, just stood at the edge where the police could plainly see them. Ordinarily I’d have more sympathy for them, but they were both well into their twenties and really should have known better. I was also able to get to my car and leave fairly quickly. All in all, I had a wonderful time. Who knows, maybe this will encourage me to go out more in the near future.