We went right back to our blues roots at the MWRBC on Saturday, with return visits from a bunch of well-loved old friends.
Kicking off the evening, it was a treat to welcome four absolute stalwarts of the local music scene, playing tonight in the guise of ‘KRDS‘: our very own compere Paul Keddle on vocals and guitar, Mike Richards on bass, Mark Duggan on percussion, and Steve ‘Shippy’ Shipman on harmonica.
Apparently their journey to the gig had been a bit eventful… but you would never have known it. Immediately you could tell that these four excellent musicians were long-standing friends, well accustomed to playing together. The four of them blended perfectly, and their sound was warm, relaxed, engaging and a real pleasure to listen to.
To start the set, Paul Keddle launched into a succession of self-penned songs – and what excellent songs they turned out to be… the punchy “Handful of Truths” was followed by the slower walking blues of “Still on the Road”. The smooth jazzy shuffle of “Miss You Woman” brought a smile to everyone’s face with its delightfully candid lyrics, and then the old-school gravelly blues of “Too Many Drivers” showcased some very fine harmonica work from Shippy.
Perhaps the most striking thing about them was that no instrument ever dominated – Mike’s bass filled out the sound perfectly, and Mark’s percussion on cajón was always tasteful, thoughtful, and rhythmically spot-on. This was particularly true in their version of “Last Will and Testament” in which they conjured up the slow, dusty percussive ‘Tulsa blues’ style of J.J. Cale very well indeed.
Shippy was, as ever, excellent in their version of Canned Heat’s “On the Road Again”, and Paul swapped guitars for some tasty resonator slide guitar work on their rocking final number, “Blues to the Bone”.
All in all they were the perfect start to the evening, leaving the audience enthusiastically warmed-up for the main act… The Travelling Riverside Blues Show.
Remi Harris must be one of the most versatile guitarists you could ever hope to see. It’s always such a pleasure to welcome him back to the Muse, where in previous gigs we have been thrilled by his gypsy jazz dexterity, moved by his wistful evocations of Peter Green, and dazzled by his powerful renditions of Jimmy Page. So on this occasion it was no great surprise to find him brilliant in yet another musical genre.
In partnership with Roger Keenan (another very welcome return visitor to Brecon) the theme of the evening was authentic Delta blues – and we could not have wished for two finer artists to take us on this trip back through that old-time repertoire.
Roger has an excellent singing voice – smooth, melodic, nuanced and soulful. Perhaps equally impressively, he brings with him a genuine and heartfelt knowledge and empathy for the history and tradition of the old Delta blues songs, and the hardships and discriminations endured by the people who sang them. His explanations between songs added another fascinating dimension to the evening.
So – we were expertly guided through the lives and work of the blues greats: Robert Johnson (“Walking Blues”, “Love in Vain”), Blind Willie Johnson (“Nobody’s Fault but Mine”), Memphis Minnie (“When the Levee Breaks”), Big Bill Broonzy (“Key to the Highway”), Rev. Gary Davis (“Samson and Delilah”) – they were all there, and all treated with the respect that is due to the originators of this amazing music.
Remi’s guitar work in these songs was flawless. He was delicate and tasteful on the slower numbers… but then on the up-tempo numbers he threw his whole body into the work. He propelled the rhythm with incredible precision, keeping perfect time with a tap of the foot on an old wooden chess-board, head swaying, a bit like a human metronome, as he delivered crisp and perfectly-executed guitar riffs.
Just when we thought we had the measure of this duo, Roger surprised us all by pulling out a harmonica for Hambone Willie Newbern’s “Roll and Tumble Blues” – and proved to be a fine exponent of that as well.
We were introduced to the distinctive old-time twang of Remi’s makeshift 9-string guitar for fine versions of Big Joe Williams’ “She Left Me a Mule to Ride” and “Baby, Please Don’t Go”.
Then, to conclude the evening, we stayed firmly in the realms of authentic pre-war blues, with a fine version of Blind Joe Reynolds’ “Outside Woman Blues” – a song that was new to this particular reviewer, but it was certainly a pleasure to be introduced to it.
Finally, a rocking version of “Sweet Home Chicago”… and then indeed it was time for us all to go home (rather closer than Chicago, thankfully).
We can only thank Remi and Roger for the passion and commitment they put into their music, and wish them every success in their future travels.
Many thanks also to KRDS, everyone on the team who made this gig possible, all at the Muse for their hospitality, and – most importantly – everyone who came along to support the music. See you for the next one!
https://www.facebook.com/roger.keenan.54
Photos by Barry Hill
Review by Jim Kerslake
