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WALTER TROUT AND THE FREE RADICALS
Live Trout (Ruf)
Reviewed by Steve Marshall
If you live here in the US, Walter Trout may be the best blues guitarist you've never heard of. The New Jersey native has been garnering accolades overseas for years, playing with the likes of Big Mama Thornton, John Lee Hooker, and John Mayall. He's released a number of solo albums during his career, but where the man really shines is onstage. Those of you who have seen him perform live will know what I mean. Now he's finally released his first live album here in the states, Live Trout. Recorded live at this year's Tampa Bay Blues Fest, this double CD will give you a good idea of what a Walter Trout show is like.
Disc one starts off with some solo guitar licks from Trout, then launches into the rocking "I Can Tell," a track from his 1994 Tellin' Stories album. "Say What You Mean" finds the maestro in a funky groove, before he slows things down with the burning blues number, "The Reason I'm Gone." This 11-minute tour-de-force is always one of the highlights of Walter's concert repertoire, and rightly so. It gives him the opportunity to stretch out on the solos, plus gives him the chance to show off his talents with the volume control as he slips the melodic strains of Beethoven's "Fur Elise" into the song.
Speaking of volume control talents, be sure to check out "Finally Gotten Over You" as he makes his beat-up Stratocaster "beg, plead, moan, yell, laugh, cry, coo and whisper"--all within the course of this 10-minute tune. Up next is the song that got him noticed in the US, "Got a Broken Heart." As good as the original version is, this one's even better. Walter mentions the fact that they're under a time limit, and so he cuts the mid-song groove a bit short. Still, it's a great performance of a great song.
One song you're guaranteed to hear at a Trout show is his cover of Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released." He credits Dylan with inspiring him to play the guitar, and the song features a heartfelt solo as a tribute to the man who gave him that initial spark. From there, things segue into an incendiary 10-minute rendition of the John Lee Hooker classic, "Serves Me Right to Suffer," another of Trout's concert staples, featuring some killer drumming from Bernard Pershey. As easy as it may be to give full credit to Walter for the musical greatness on this CD, this is clearly a group effort. All four of the musicians--Trout, Pershey, James Trapp on bass, and the wild man, Paul Kallestad on the B3--are top-notch players.
Live Trout is a great introduction to the music of this blues master. The only problem is it's too short. If you're a fan of the blues, or especially if you're already a Walter Trout fan, this is required listening.
© 2000 - Steve Marshall