It was great to hear Bruce Hornsby at the Lakewood in Dallas last Tuesday night. I had not been to the Lakewood Theatre in a long time. The venue has a great old movie house vibe and the chairs are comfy.
I was expecting a warm-up band, so it was a pleasant surprise when Hornsby came walking out a few minutes after 8pm. He was accompanied by 4 other excellent muscians including sax, guitar, keyboards and drums. The second keyboardist played lots of organ and synth pads for the most part.
Hornsby wasted no time in taking a seat at the grand piano and immediately dropping hands onto some of his signature voicings. The first tune was solo piano and singing with lots of rich harmonic color and spontaneity.
The first set was good, but the second set was much better. My complaints about the first set were mostly around the overall live mix and the fact that the guitarist only took one solo. Most of the first set he played rhythm guitar while Hornsby and the saxophonist handled the solos.
In the second set, the guitarist had several solo opportunities, all of which hit the spot. At one point the second keyboardist was able to solo a bit on organ. Overall thought, the improvisation was restrained compared to a jazz group.
Hornsby's style, while incorporating improvisation, is much more eclectic and idiosyncratic than a jazz performance. His piano harmonizations are unique and his melodic style is very angular. Elements of jazz, folk, R&B and rock can be found in his music. His later music leans much more toward a hard rock folk sound than his earlier music that I remember. Of course, the only recording of his I know to some degree is Harbor Lights, which to me is the Bruce Hornsby music I really like.
No comments:
Post a Comment