Robert Lockwood Jr The Legend Live(blues)(flac)[rogercc][h33t]

Legendary is a word that is bandied about far too frequently when talking about blues artists, often being ascribed to artists purely and simply because of their age, and bearing no reflection on their talent. In Robert Lockwood Jr we have an artist who qualifies for the sobriquet ‘the legend’ on both counts, being an octogenarian, having been born in 1915, and possessing a rare talent, as both an instrumentalist and a singer, preserving it intact to the present day, as evidenced by this live set recorded at the Rhythm Room in Phoenix in July 2003.
Over the course of the 44 minutes that this CD lasts, Lockwood transports us back to an era when the blues was in it’s prime; telling intimate stories, that everyone could connect to, and doing so to a subtle guitar backing that mirrored the moods and emotions being expressed, the guitar an extension to, not a substitute for the vocals, as one listen to the plaintive ‘Meet Me In The Bottom’ will testify.
As Lockwood has grown older, his vocals have developed a natural poignancy that is mesmerizing in it’s quality, luring you into a world where sorrows and loneliness can be shared with others who have experienced and can understand it’s emotions and frustrations; the Leroy Carr numbers, ‘Mean Mistreater Mama’, ‘How Long’ and ‘In The Evening’ being prime examples of this as they effectively capture the plaintiveness and weariness inherent in Carr’s work. Lockwood is also an acknowledged doyen of the twelve string guitar, often using his mastery of it to add subtle tones, textures and shades to his blues, bringing a jazzy quality to the relaxed swing of numbers like ‘Exactly Like You’ and Roosevelt Sykes’ ‘Feel Like Blowin’ My Horn’.
Lockwood’s connections to Robert Johnson are well documented, so I won’t delve into those again, but inevitably several Johnson numbers are featured on this set, and one has to say that no one else is more ‘qualified’ to perform these than Lockwood; but, to his credit, he is no mere imitator, investing each of the four Johnson blues chosen with his own unique personality and style, the numbers just a launching pad allowing him to express his own vision of the blues. ‘Sweet Home Chicago’ conjures up a vision of an almost sophisticated Big Joe Williams; ‘Love In Vain’ is an almost palpable piece of melancholia; the pensive qualities in ‘From Four Until Late’ are mesmerizing in their intensity, whilst ‘Rambling On My Mind’ evokes none of the torment of the original, Lockwood’s phrasing and tone indicating a reluctant resignation to accepting the inevitable.
‘The Legend Live’ is a simple but apt title for this set, which receives an unqualified recommendation.
Rating 10
--- Mick Rainsford Blues in Britain magazine