What a Bam Bam- Toots at the Fillmore

[JRL]

We saw Toots and the Maytals and the Fillmore in SF last week.

Toots was in great voice and spirits, feeding off the thick vibe at the Fillmore, he did his thing, creating connection and just entertaining his ass off.

He has so many "hits" he had to do 2 minute versions to get them all in. great song after great song he just ripped it up, having as good a time as anyone in the hall. he is the king of getting the audience involved.

He had a good band though maybe not as good as the one I saw a few years back. Got a new bassie, younger dude with a Marcus Miller porkpie hat. Dude kinda tended to personality attacks. it was interesting to watch Toots interact with his band boys and the sound crew.  

If you get a chance to see him grab it, he's the last of the best for sure.

[senorsalvia]

Hey JRL, did Toots do his version of the Kinks "Ya Really Got Me"??  on his latest album, that is considered one of the best cuts, by the reviewers.......  Good Music-Sunshine Vibe.........  senorsal

[JRL]

Nah, he didn't do much from that one, his back catalog is so big. Of course he did his cover of John Denver's Country Road (West Jamiaca, Mountain Mama...)

[TooStonedToType]

Some of us saw him at the Fillmore in Denver.  I thought it was a great show.  The band Galactic played after.  They were ok.  Toots really had the people moving at times and it was rather trippy!  But that could have just been me.  I was wondering what some of the other people here might post.

[laughingwillow]

There was one point in the denver show where things got a little edgy, imo.  (About the time toots strapped on a gat, if'n I remember correctly.) But when the dank and heavy passed it felt as if a weight had been lifted and reggae still got soul.

jrl: I didn't realize that wasn't the same bassie dude who counted for so much last time around. I guess it makes sense, though, now.

k: how many dancing blisters can you fit on a drop-o-visine?

lw

[JRL]

In SF it was good vibes straight through. Toots has so much heart, and just the vibe of how long Toots has been doing it and how long all his fans been with him and the energy flowing back and forth............... A lot like those good old guys from San Francisco.

The bass thing may have mattered more to me than anyone else except maybe my wife, she's murder on rythmn sections. This guys vibe was a whole nuther thing then the very dignfied Jackie Jackson. The Fillmore is so boomy a less is more aproach might be called for. Jackie always stood behind the drummer, this guy needed attention.  Maybe I'm just old school, I thought it was Toot's band.

But that is my own curse, groove on, Toot's and the Maytals, keep spreading the true spirit!

[JRL]

Oh yeah, the opening act was the Animal Liberation Orchestra, a fairly medium hippie groove band. Any of you heard them? Maybe with a strong singer out front they could galvanize, but they just kinda meandered, IMHO. My teacher used to say "If your gonna sing you got to tear up your face". I think he meant you gotta put a lot of real emotion into it or you wont touch anyone and you sure can't do it and look pretty at the same time.

He used to take some of his students out to do gigs at these little all black social clubs in the ghetto out here. One time we were doing this old blues song and this woman started crying. after the set he says"that doesn't count. She was drunk"

[laughingwillow]

Burning Spear is another old-school rastafarian still making the rounds who we really respect.

lw

[Amomynous]

Burning Spear is another old-school rastafarian still making the rounds who we really respect.

I saw Burning Spear in the mid 80's (although didn't he call himself Winston Spear at the time?) and it was a horrible experience. The band was good, but they were opening for the Clash in Philly, and the crowd was embarassingly rude. Throwing stuff... booing them. I didn't enjoy being a part of that, even if I wasn't one of the rude ones....

[JRL]

Yeah, mon. Willow, you turned me on to Burning Spear. He's a lot more hard core than Toots. Toots is one of those guys that has appeal that goes beyond his subculture for sure, but at the same time keeps it real.

[laughingwillow]

anon: His name is winston rodney, but he's always gone by burning spear on stage, as far as I know.

jrl: I've always been attracted reggae's radical side. Toots' style is more to me wife's liking. But they are both rasta and worth a jaunt.

Isreal Vibration is another old-school group for whom we have much respect.

Culture prolly falls into the same category, although Joseph Hill takes his dislike of second hand smoke to the extreme. I've seen him threaten to cut more than one show short due ot people smoking da kine too close to the stage for his liking. Just about everyone know that cigarette smoke wasn't tolerated at his shows, the banning of ganja sort of surprised me. Luckily we were moving to the groove behind his area of rath. hehe

lw

[Indra]

let us not forget the skatalites.

it is difficult to not feel good when toots is within earshot.

[JRL]

I like what's left of the Wailers. Family Man Barrett is one of my true inspirations.

Oh, I like the radical reggae guys too. Dangerous music, really means something. Music informed by spirit and politics, heavy stuff.

[laughingwillow]

Yeah, mon. Just saw the wailers last week out here on the prairie.

I was afraid for a spell that the set would devolve into a bob marley's greatest hits parade. But they got a little more out there as the night progressed.

FamilyMan did the set in a chair, mon.

lw

[senorsalvia]

Toots is gonna be at Bonnaroo...  If I can make it work, I'll be going there this year.............  senorsal-----------