Saturdays are radio show days. The Hotrock Blues Beat is a sacred time, so whatever happens between 8-10 p.m. on Saturday nights doesn’t get covered. But I was looking forward to Papa King and Harpdog Brown, so raced across the coulee to the Owl Acoustic Lounge, July 24, just in time for King, Harpdog Brown and keyboardist Bruce MacKay take an hour long break.
I waited around for a while, but ended up going to Theoretically Brewing but Bailey Kate and Danica Sommer were long finished their show.
When I returned, Papa King, MacKay and Brown had just started their second set.
They had a few people dancing to up beat blues grooves and had good vibe about them.
King, bashing at an acoustic guitar and playing rhythm and rumbling the lyrics for a couple of blues classics “My Babe” and “ Key To The Highway,” before handing the reins over to Harpdog brown.
King, as always has an appealing gravelly baritone voice reminiscent of Dr. John, which complement’s Harpdog brown’s voice which is also a loud, resonant baritone, more similar to Howlin’ Wolf.
He and macKay had never met, but the three were locked in with each other. Harpdog Brown bellowed out and or gestured chord changes in between switching harps.
He began with one of my favourites his original “Facebook woman,” but most of their set was blues and rock and roll classics.
Chuck Berry’s “Nadine” was a highlight. And as Harpdog Brown rumbled “Everything’s Going to be All Right,” as Bruce MacKay tore things up on piano and Hammond B3 for assorted solos.
King took over after a few songs including “ Early Morning Blues” and they wrapped thing so up with Howlin Wolf‘s blues classic “Spoonful,” and the apt “ Baby Please Don’t Go,” featuring King playing slide guitar and spookily echoed by MacKay’s Hammond B
3 sound.
They will return to the Owl Acoustic Lounge, Sept. 17 with bassist Doug Freeman.
— by Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor
