Two good draws always make for one exciting event. Such was the case at yesterday’s Bah-Jam at the Black Sheep Tavern in Sterling, Massachusetts.
Local up and coming rockabilly guitarist-vocalist Andy Cummings peeled off plenty of fiery old time notes and chords as the feature artist at yesterday’s jam. The kid rocked hard on the oldies styled rock and roll with A Ton Of Blues backing him during his brief set that he opened with a searing rendition of Willie Dixon’s “Seventh Son.”
Cummings made the 1950s come to life with rippling notes on “Rock Around The Clock.” Rapid fire note picking made you think about what that song sounded like from a live band instead of the technologically limited record players of the time.
Cummings did justice to the sound of yesteryear with a down tempo take on “Sweet Little Angel.” Damn, he made that guitar cry out in pain. His melodic phrase was clean, sharp, precise, and always emotive, a lot of feeling there. At Cummings’ level of talent, he will definitely be a part of the area’s latest revival of rockabilly.
Cummings soon pulled some dancers back to the band area with his energetic delivery of “Johnny B. Goode,” giving life to those world famous licks. Again, it didn’t hurt to have A Ton Of Blues as his backing band. Keyboardist-multi-instrumentalist, sound engineer Jay Frigoletto was also there playing his Hammond XK-2, giving it all more of that smoky blues, earthy oldies sound. Frigoletto owns and operates Mastersuite Studio in Brookline, New Hampshire. He came out east from Los Angeles, and he’s good at helping people get their sound just right.
Cumming showed what he could do as a jammer. He mixed it up on his own terms by unleashing a fiery demon of a phrase. He sent his notes out in front of the mix before turning in some nifty chord work.
A medley of classics like “Hound Dog” and “A Whole Lot Of Shakin’ Going On” lead to Cummings final number “Folsom Prison Blues” by the late great Johnny Cash. Cummings captured the haunting solitude blues with his vocal and cadence without sinking into a Johnny Cash impersonation..
Aside from Cummings and his rockabilly set, the Sunday Bah-Jam featured several other highlights. Singer Melissa Gates from the band Soulstice came up to rock the outside deck with her startling good voice. Gates segues into an exciting belt from a masterful self-restraint, a raw, earthy, powerhouse vocal that she plays like an instrument. She started out slow and easy, like how you take things on a lazy hot summer day, then she was suddenly erupting like a vocal volcano. Gate’s phrasing indicates a lot of specialized training. You can be born with a voice like hers, but you can’t use it as precisely as she does without a lot of tutelage.
The hosts of the Bah-Jam, A Ton Of Blues, opened the day’s event with their usual aggressive take on the traditional blues idioms, a heavy blues sound marked by Scott LeBlanc’s frenetic notes and the throbbing low end from bassist Jeff Lorenzen. LeBlanc added a touch of swing to his wiry guitar leads at one point. Singer and harmonica player Spud Kelly sang about waking up in the morning and finding his baby gone, his voice as smooth flowing as usual, before he whipped out his harp for some additional fun, phrasing his way through it all like a cool breeze. A Ton Of Blues rounds out its cast with Al Clark, possibly the best dressed drummer in the northeast.. Not only did Clark smack those skins with persistent drive, his matching white cap and white tie made him look like he was ready for a drive in a bright yellow 1920s Chevrolet Touring car with Jay Gatsby and Nick Carraway.
Kelly sang their original tune “Salt And Sugarcane” with his ever subtle shifting dynamics, a smooth flowing tenor one moment, a hearty, soaring belt the next. Guest harmonica player Shakey Steve Prunier blew a forceful melody, bittersweet notes flying out of the speakers like something that was partly art and partly storm. LeBlanc nailed the notes and the notion with another fiery interpretation of his melody. Boy, that guitar man can make you feel what a song is all about.
There were a couple more good harmonica players on hand yesterday. Blind Jelly Stu was on hand to join the fun. If you ever get a copy of Stu’s four-song E.P. check out his song “Let’s Go To Boston.” Stu played a kind of jump blues melody over a shuffling beat from drummer Davy B and the low end rumble of Matt Sambito.
Special guest Richard Friedman came by with his unique acoustic-electric hybrid guitar. He said it is a twenty dollar 1960 Silvertone made by Sears And Roebuck company. Friedman added new features like an electric pickup that allowed him to do a lot of things while the young whippersnappers around him tried to keep up.
A young guitarist named Jeff Beck(yes, that is his real name) got up to do his own guitar style. He was actually playing very well for someone who is still fairly new to guitar. With a name like Jeff Beck, he was probably getting a calling to play guitar for a long time. He can likely never introduce himself without getting a comment.
Mission Of Blues’ new singer Scott Bronnes was on hand to vocalize “Messin’ With The Kid” and “Thrill Is Gone,” proving himself a worthy successor to that other guy who used to sing lead vocals for M.O.B.
A Ton Of Blues regained full control of the jam with their closing numbers, their original “Colleen” and Willie Dixon’s “You Shook Me.” Kelly did some of his most dynamic belting of the day on the Dixon tune, a rendition that combined old school blues technique with Led Zeppelin aggression. All of it was augmented by Frigoletto’s Hammond organ work and Bronnes who was blowing his harmonica directly into a harp mic, creating waves of sound around the driving thump.
A Ton Of Blues have a ton of talented friends who help them make the Bah-Jam an exciting event each week. If you haven’t been to the Bah-Jam on a Sunday afternoon, it might be time to plan a drive out there for the coming summer weeks.
