Kal David to get bluesy at The Kate

OLD SAYBROOK — To say that Kal David has had multiple musical lives is sort of an understatement — and you may well love and appreciate him for his bluesy guitar work with partner in crime Lauri Bono without knowing about all the other ones.

And that would be just fine.

If you’re going to see David, Bono and the Real Deal on Saturday at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, you probably know he was once a member of the

Fabulous Rhinestones.

You had better know about his work with the late, great Etta James.

You may or may not know about his work with John Mayall.

But do you know about his childhood band in Chicago, Kal David and the Exceptions — formed in 1962 — with future Chicago member Peter Cetera and Marty Grebb, later to become one of The Buckinghams (as in “Susan” and “Kind of a Drag”)?

Or his later work in The Rovin’ Kinds, later to become Illinois Speed Press, with Paul Cotton, who went on to become a member of Poco?

Or that he has performed with Bette Midler and Johnny Rivers and Tanya Tucker and another number of others, from BB King to Smokey Robinson to Bonnie Raitt to John Lennon to Brian Wilson to Stevie Wonder? No matter.

All you really need to know is that David is a talented blues guitarist and a great singer who can play the hell out of a song, and Bono is a soulful and dynamic foil who can sing with range and sensitivity.

Showtime is 8 p.m. Tickets are $38, available in advance at thekate.org. The Kate is located at 300 Main St.

Contributed photo Kal David, Lauri Bono and the Real Deal will perform at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center in Old Saybrook at 8 p.m. Saturday.