Taj Mahal takes the listener to famed Tulsa studio
The age requirement for this week’s Ear Bliss is artists 80 years of age and over and we’ve got a couple of good ones. What can be said about the legendary Taj Mahal that hasn’t been said before? Born Henry St. Claire Fredericks Jr. in Harlem in 1942 and raised in Springfield, MA, Taj Mahal has been making records with a focus on the various offshoots of American roots music and more since his self-titled debut in 1968. His latest effort takes the listener to Tulsa and the famed studio of the late Leon Russell and his Shelter Records label. Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa is a rousing affair that captures Mahal is his element. Label the Memphis-based gospel singer Elizabeth King somewhat of a late bloomer as a recording artist. Having just hit the 80-year mark, the queen of sacred soul King has just released her third album in the last five years with the recording Soul Provider. Put simply, it is a powerhouse of a record and it also receives the Ear Bliss look-see this week.
We also provide another
Ear Bliss festival alert and this one for our own homegrown Rhythm & Roots Festival held annually on Labor Day Weekend in Charlestown, Rhode Island. The festival recently just announced its initial lineup and it is quite impressive. Sadly, just a few days after the announcement festival co-founder and figurehead Chuck Wentworth passed away. Wentworth had few rivals in these parts when it came to how influential he was on the music scene. From his many years hosting the Monday night folk show at WRIU-FM to his integral role with the Cajun & Bluegrass Festival and its predecessor, Rhythm & Roots, to the many various dance and music events his Lagniappe Productions spearheaded, he was both a true tastemaker and visionary and will be sorely missed. His spirit will no doubt loom large over this year’s Rhythm & Roots event. Let’s get to it.
Taj Mahal Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa Lightning Rod Records
The music of the late Leon Russell was one of Tulsa, Oklahoma’s finest exports. It was where Russell grew up, where he would return to live and build a recording studio, and where he’d base his Shelter Records operations. He was a personal friend of Taj Mahal, not to mention a huge influence on Mahal’s music. On the new Swingin’ Live at
the Church in Tulsa, Mahal pays homage to Leon Russell who was both a huge influence and personal friend, while giving the listener an album that is pure Mahal. The “Church” referred to in the album’s title is The Church in Tulsa, Russell’s former studio and office for his Shelter Records label. Purchased by Russell in 1972, he would convert it into a recording studio and office for his label. Artists ranging from Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Eric Clapton, and fellow Tulsa homeboy JJ Cale to Jimmy Buffett, Willie Nelson,
and Stevie Wonder all laid down tracks in the room. You can now add Taj Mahal to the list. Featuring “The Taj Mahal Sextet” which includes his long-time accompanist’s bassist Bill Rich, drummer Kester Smith, and guitarist/hawaiian lap steel player Bobby Ingano, along with dobro player Rob Ickes and guitarist and vocalist Trey Hensley, the 10-song live set finds Mahal swinging his way through a variety of roots styles in his own inimitable way. Recorded before a live audience, Mahal applies his ever-soulful rasp to a mix of classic blues tunes (the oft-covered “Betty & Dupree” and T-bone Walker’s “Mean Old World,” the latter of which turns into an extended jam to close the album) to countrified blues (“Sittin’ On Top of the World” is a high point featuring some tasty dobro work courtesy of Ickes with Hensley sharing vocals with Taj) to Mahal classics (“Lovin’ In My Baby’s Eyes,” “Queen Bee,” and “Corinna”) to even a touch of Hawaiian with the instrumental “Twilight in Hawaii.” Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa gives us an artist in Taj Mahal who now just into his early 80s remains at the top of his game as an artist and performer. Visit www.lightningrodrecords.com of give a listen to the album at www.tajblues.bandcamp.com/album/swingin-live-at-the-church-in-tulsa.
Elizabeth King
Soul Provider
Bible & Tire Records
The gospel singer Elizabeth King first made her mark as a recording artist in 1973 with a song called “I Heard The Voice” for tedthe Designer record label, a small Memessphis imprint that released spiritual recordre-ings. Success for the Memphis-based King forwas only regional in and around the Bluff urecity area. The song garnered her the covngeted Gospel Gold Cup, a prestigious award ofpresented by the city’s gospel disc jockeys. nt,in 2019, “I Heard The Voice” had a rebirth edcourtesy of a reissue compilation called The byd-vine Spiritual Recordings which includaned the track. It helped spark reinterest in meking and lead to her, nearly 50 years later, ngback to the recording studio to lay down caltracks for what would be her 2021 comen’tback album, Living in the Last Days. It began a string of albums for the Bible & Tire Records imprint each year since with her latest offering the newly released Soul Provider.
Dubbed the “Queen of Sacred Soul” and now 80 years of age, King’s voice these days has a fine patina to it. Her soulful rasp is that of a singer who, with those many years under her belt, knows how to deliver her message in song and give it gusto that grabs you. Soul Provider hits with a mighty thump. Credit a solid backing group, The Sacred Soul Sound Section, that rides with the ebb and flow of the songs providing spot-on accompaniment and a mélange of sounds from the heavy funk swells of “Table in the Tent” to the reggae tinge of “Pure Heavenly Joy” to a spiritual reworking of Lou Reed’s “Look at Your Life” featuring accompanying vocals by the Memphis gospel group The Sensational Barnes Brothers. Still, it is King’s show and she shines brightly on Soul Provider. (Listen to Elizabeth King’s Soul Provider at www.elizabethkinggospel.bandcamp.com/album/ soul-provider.)
FESTIVAL ALERTS:
The Rhythm & Roots Festival held annually on Labor Day Weekend at Ninigret Park in Charlestown has just recently announced its initial list of performers and it quite impressive! Headlining the event which takes place August 30 to September 1 is the legendary Emmylou Harris. Joining her in the headline position is Americana favorites Old Crow Medicine Show who like Harris, will be making its Rhythm & Roots debut. Joining them will be the likes of Larkin Poe, Drive-by Truckers, Ruthie Foster, Shemekia Copeland, Will Evans, Julia Pratt, and Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country. Rhythm & Roots has always had strong Louisiana flavor to it
aLive music abounds over the next few weeks and the following are some happenings in the Ocean State and beyond worth checking out. Starting in South County, Courthouse Center for the Arts in West Kingston features Van Morrison tribute Moondance is at the Courthouse on Saturday night. Joni Mitchell tribute The Joni Project is there on May 17 and Beach Boys tribute The Driftwoods on May 18. Pump House Music Works (164 Kingstown Road) in Peace Dale presents Grateful Dead tribute Violin River on Friday evening. Joe Parillo & The New Ensemble play jazz and more at the Pump House on Saturday evening and Jess Powers & Tyler-james Kelley are there on Sunday evening for a 7 pm performance. Monday nights at the Pump House are the Uke jam and Tuesday evening is the weekly Old-time jam at 6 pm followed by an Acoustic jam at 9 pm. Wednesdays are the acoustic lounge and open mic hosted by Matt Fraza. The funk rock and fusion should be intensely good at The Ocean Mist in Matunuck on Saturday night with twin bill featuring Red NOT Chili Peppers and The Z-boys. Coming May 17 is the Dave Matthews Tribute Band. The Teledynes play rockabilly at The Narragansett Café in Jamestown on Friday night. 21 Guns deliver rock classics at The Ganny on Saturday night before The Incredible Amplifiers close the weekend with a Sunday afternoon dose of Chicago blues starting at 4 pm. The Wood River Inn in Wyoming presents The Whitaker Brothers on May 17. In Westerly, Knickerbocker Music Center (35 Railroad Ave) celebrates Greg Piccolo’s 60th anniversary of playing music on Friday with a performance by he and his Heavy Juice band. Green Tea with Wooly Mammoth opening is at The Knick on Saturday night.
aLIVE SHOTS:
Kyle Rathburn plays a free show in the Tap Room on Sunday evening. The United Theatre in downtown Westerly hosts The Wood Brothers on Friday night. In the Northern reaches of the state, Chan’s Restaurant in Woonsocket features Amy Winehouse tribute The Winehouse Project on Friday night. Chicago blues man Lil Ed & The Blues Imperials return to Chan’s next Thursday night. The Stadium Theatre in Woonsocket presents Electric Light Orchestra tribute Evil Woman on Friday evening and The Doo Wop Project is there on Saturday night. The Blackstone River Theatre in Cumberland presents the Hanneke Cassel Band on Saturday evening at 8 pm. Multi-instrumentalists Cathy Clasper-torch and Shelley Katsh celebrate the release of their new CD, “With Woven Hands,” with a matinee performance at the Blackstone on May 19 at 3 pm. The Met Café in Pawtucket features The Z3 with its funky takes on the music of Frank Zappa on Friday night. Bound Less, a songwriter-in-the-round event featuring Elizabeth and The Catapult, Monica Giraldo, and Autumn Nicholas, happens at the Met on Wednesday night. In Providence, Brazilian singer Paulinha makes her American debut at The Strand in Providence on Saturday night. The 16-time Grammy award winning writer/producer David Foster performs songs with Katharine Mcphee at PPAC on Sunday evening. Kansas brings its 50th anniversary tour to PPAC on May 17, Legendary children’s performer Raffi comes to The Vets auditorium for a matinee performance on May 19. The Stone Soup at Music Mansion in Providence presents The Honey Badgers and Cardboard Ox on Saturday night. Askew on Chesnutt Street in Providence presents an afternoon event on Saturday called All Female Front showcasing some of the best new female talent the area has to offer. Saturday night at Askew is Kimaya Diggs with Miss Julia Violet and Rowan & Beautifully Human opening. On Sunday evening, it’s Undercover Cameo, Gabriela Rassi and Low Radio. Finally, the Narrows Center for the Arts in Fall River presents the Shemekia Copeland next Thursday night.
Dan Ferguson is a free-lance music writer and host of The Boudin Barndance, broadcasting Thursday evenings from 6 – 9 pm on WRIU-FM 90.3 and streaming at WRIU on all major platforms.