Robert Randolph Family Band – coming to Bush Hall, London, Aug. 4

This review of their Tarrytown Music Hall (Tarrytown, NY) May 28, 2009 show has been hanging around so long it’s embarrassing, but it must be told: DO NOT MISS Robert Randolph’s band if it ever comes your way. You’ll be on your feet screaming most of the time. He’s a stone crazy original.

Opening acts at this venue are usually lame, as was the Jordan Hammond Band from Roanoke, Virginia—EXCEPT for its mighty keyboard player, James Pace. He deserves his own review. On a Nord Replica Electro 2 keyboard –kind of a mini-B3 Hammond Leslie (did I get that right, James?) he made every possible use of every inch. The man knows the keyboard is a percussion instrument, and he played it like it was a conga drum. He is so New Orleans.

Pace isn’t just a spectacular musician that anybody in their right mind should steal for a big-name band—he’s also got down-home funky moves. Had the audience in an ecstatic dialog without saying a word—a scene stealer.

At the time of this show, Pace was also touring with guitarist Anna Popovic (purportedly the Serbian Hendrix), an Eclecto Groove Records artist. He seems to spend most of his time playing in Virginia, but SOMEBODY BIG HAS GOT TO GRAB HIM, QUICK. He won’t be a secret for long.

Robert Randolph Family Band – This band really is a family: Robert Randolph on pedal steel guitars and vocals, cousin Marcus Randolph on drums, vocalist Lenesha Randolph, Danyel Morgan on bass, with Jason Crosby (no longer with the band) on keyboards. The band came out of a small fundamentalist church in New Jersey, where gospel was the currency, but Randolph took a left turn when he heard Stevie Ray Vaughan in concert

To say their music and stage show is infectious is pathetically inadequate. The band is tighter than…tighter than…forget it, there is nothing tighter than this band. The rhythm section is in lockstep. And backup singer Lenesha’s big, unique voice revs it into overdrive.

They hit a groove straight off with the first song, “Deliver Me,” then splintered it with abrupt changes. Their second number was a funk mélange rocked sky-high. The audience laughed when they realized they were hearing barely recognizable snippets of Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson’s “Wanna Be Starting Something,” and “Makossa” woven through.

To keep us on our toes, bassist Danyel took over the vocals for one song, which were laced with distortion that made them fantastic—in the original sense of that word.

As a performer, Randolph is shameless. In his red U.S. Keds, he climbed all over his setup, sliding upside to play in every possible position. When he gets really intense, leaning over his instrument, he’s almost playing it with his nose. He makes the pedal steel wah-wah, and turns it more of a lead guitar than anyone I’ve ever heard play it; sometimes you’d swear Duane Allman and Dicky Betts were in there. At one point he broke out a square red guitar to evoke Bo Diddley famous rhythm—but lighter.

Randolph loves having fun, physically and musically. “Who Do You Love” was fraught with Trickster change-ups, and unexpected funky Dixieland harmonizing. One of the best song titles of all time, “Gilligan, Get Off The Island,” featured a quirky keyboard lead/solo, but this band never loses track of its absolutely sinful grooves.

“Hip Shake Thing” has been covered by umpteen artists, but not like this. Randolph invited the women in the audience to dance onstage, and they took him up on his invite. He stoked the mood, climbing up on his keyboard and chair, shaking his booty like Little Richard, to an intro that sounded like Jimmy Page. The music built to fever-funk pitch, Randolph’s foot up on his instrument, just too pleased with himself.

The interplay among the musicians is so telepathic, you can’t tell whether Robert drives Marcus or vice versa. And there are some bizarre shifts into minor keys, as the music climbs higher and speeds up. Randolph, as we used to say about Hendrix, is from another planet entirely.

The pièce de resistance was the equipment change in the middle of an extended guitar trip; I thought I was seeing things. While Robert plays, everyone else leaves the stage. Then he and the drummer exchange places—and they’re equally outrageous on each other’s instrument. Next, Robert trades the drums for Danyel’s bass, Danyel takes over the drums, then Marcus switches to bass. (Danyel, BTW, can seriously bash!)

Their take on Kravitz’s “Ain’t Nothing Wrong With That” was a crashing success. I actually liked it better than Lenny’s! Randolph takes it out somewhere else entirely. He’s certainly a better guitarist than Kravitz, too. Lying against his keyboard while facing backwards on his chair, turning sideways to play, and doing gym exercises on the stool makes it pretty clear this is almost child’s play for him.

And there’s always a goofy little surprise to make sure you don’t get stuck in one groove. He extends the funk, then shrinks the band as one by one they leave the stage; Randolph remains in the spotlight playing the “Whole Lotta Love” riff in the middle of Kravitz’s famous solo and in the middle of Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child” riff.

Their encore began ponderously, with a long, drawn-out re-entry. Randolph sent his slide guitar sound into outer space, then the bass came along slapping and the drums kicked in. The band is adept at burying the original song in so much rocking funk that you have to think hard to remember it, as Robert rockets off into thundering ecstasy. The music is as close to fire as you can get. Randolph is on his knees, knocking over equipment, he’s so possessed.

Taking Michael Jackson’s “I Wanna Rock With You” in a jazz direction was not my favorite, but there were guys in the audience playing air bass, that’s how inspirational Danyel is. It just wasn’t the encore I was looking for; it took down the energy. Though when Randolph performed a “mouth music” solo with Danyel and Crosby working the groove behind him, it picked up.

When the band finished, the audience was in shreds. I turned to my musician friend and said, “I AM STUNNED.”
You will be, too.