Hot Tuna at the Carolina Theatre!

http://www.carolinatheatre.org/

It was a very cold night in Durham right after a very nice warm day. As I walked up the steps to the Carolina Theatre the wind was blowing and all i could think about was warming up. As I approached the door the sign behind the glass said "Doors open 7:00."
It was 6:50. Brrr.

When my pal Tony Turner showed up it was well after 7:00. He had the tickets and I was inside waiting. We checked out the beer selection and made some choices. We then headed for our seats. I wasn't really sure what to expect from this show. I knew it would be good. I had no idea how great it really would be.

The English accented dude came over the PA system "No video, no photography." I thought to myself you gotta' be kidding. All I wanted was a couple of thousand pictures so I could throw a few on my blog!

So things you will not see from my camera lens...Jack Casady's gold signature Epiphone bass which was plugged into a custom amp. http://www.jackcasady.com/ GE Smith's road Telecaster which was extremely well-worn from years of playing. I mean here is a guy with his own signature Telecaster and he plays a beat-up road model. He can made it talk too. http://www.fender.com/products/search.php?partno=0118202806 Nor will you see Jorma Kaukonen's beautiful Gibson guitar. It was a gold top with a fabulous Bigsby on the tail. http://jormakaukonen.com/gear.html Or even Charlie Musselwhite's harmonica case with all those stickers from everywhere. There were even some from Austrailia where he recently toured. To me it is the small things at a show I enjoy looking at even years from now. Without pictures you only have slight memories. I really wish people would loosen-up and let people take pictures. It is not like there is a market for snapshots from fans. Actually I believe it creates even more excitement about going to see a live performance and frankly that is where the money is now for an artist.
So anyway, you are looking at the lone picture from this concert. I took some of the performers after the show but I am going to leave those off the blog too.

My short review of this show? Well I had no expectations which usually means I expect to see a good show. This one made me smile the next morning. I had no idea I was going to see Charlie Musselwhite, Jim Lauderdale, and GE Smith walk out with the band. I had heard some bits and pieces but honestly I had not had time to research the show in advance. When GE Smith walked out I freaked. I thought yeah here I am operating on 6 hours sleep after getting up at 4:45 AM, working all day, driving two hours, all to see this. By the time I get home it will be 1:00 AM. To me just seeing GE made my night. Sleep is over-rated, GE Smith is not! I really love seeing this guy play. He is such a virtuoso and a great guitar showman. All those years on Saturday Night Live as the bandleader. I can remember moments seeing him play very cool guitars and just making them sing. Yeah. It was a great show.

It started acoustic until the intermission. Lots of instrument changes and cool licks. Then after the intermission the electric frenzy broke out. I have to say I liked it all but I LOVED the electric part. The solos, the harmony, the intensity of the players, it was awesome. These guys are not young but you can see the youth of their souls coming out. It was a great night.

I will share a few video links for you. I can't describe how a good night of friends and good music really rocks me but it is a good feeling. Last night I had a really good feeling. I am ready to watch this show again. Right now. ' Nuff said.

http://hottuna.com/

http://gesmithmusic.wordpress.com/

http://www.charliemusselwhite.com/

http://jimlauderdale.com/

This is a great video featuring Charlie Musselwhite. A very cool story.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ww-QoKSqObU

Hot Tuna Live:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pm-vNXnkFGk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y36jjfsiS-0&feature=related

If you want to see a cool video of Daryl Hall with GE Smith playing check out this link. 'Caravan of Love" is a great song! I love these videos. They are very cool.

http://www.livefromdarylshouse.com/currentep.html?ep_id=15