John Lee Hooker and the Coast to Coast Blues Band Live at Montreux 1983 & 1990

John Lee Hooker

By Mike O’Cull

The John Lee Hooker Estate does the world’s blues fans a solid by releasing the posthumous double-live set John Lee Hooker Live at Montreux 1983 & 1990. The album drops November 6th, 2020 thanks to Eagle Rock Entertainment and will be available as a 2-LP set, digital video, and digital audio. The record captures Hooker at his boogie-king best in two distinct performances at the legendary Montreux Jazz Festival in 1983 and 1990, rocking the joint with the help of The Coast To Coast Blues Band and guest appearances by the late guitarist Luther Allison and Grammy-winning harmonica star Sugar Blue. Located in Switzerland, the Montreux Jazz Festival is one of the world’s biggest and longest-running jazz festivals and hearing this lineup of blues royalty heating up its stage is a musical indulgence of the highest order.

Four-time Grammy Award winner and Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient John Lee Hooker will always be remembered as one of the most unique and compelling artists that blues music has ever produced. His debut single, “Boogie Chillen,” rose to #1 on the R&B charts in 1949, selling over a million copies. Hooker was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. In 2008, “Boogie Chillen” was added to the National Recording Registry by the Library Of Congress as a song that is “culturally, historically, or aesthetically important, and/or inform(s) or reflect(s) life in the United States.” Hooker instinctively recast the blues in his own image, doing away with the restrictive 12-bar structure and taking the music to a deeper, funkier, and more personal place. He has influenced every generation of musicians to follow him and his artistic DNA has become immortal.

The 1983 show kicks off with a simmering version of Hooker’s mid-60s single “Serves Me Right To Suffer.” The Coast To Coast Blues Band puts down John Lee’s signature style of hypnotic rhythm behind him and Hooker works his minimalist magic on the assembled fans. The Hook has always defined what cool is all about and that presence is in full force here from the moment he hits the stage. He’s vibrant and captivating and the Montreux crowd clearly can’t get enough.

From there, Hooker leads the band and audience through a high-spirited set of his hits and other classics. His funked-out take on Tommy Tucker’s eternal “Hi-Heel Sneakers” morphs the 12-bar standard into a trance-inducing pressure cooker drenched in Hooker’s personality and shows off the jamming ability of the group backing him. Of course, Hooker throws down all of his crowd-pleasers, including “Boom Boom,” “Crawlin’ King Snake,” and “Boogie Chillen,” the latter of which gets stretched into an epic 17-minute blaster that features Luther Allison, Sugar Blue, and an amazing horn section. The show is definitely one of those nights meant to be captured and saved for the ages and upholds every bit of Hooker’s practically mythical stature.

The 1990 show finds Hooker making a triumphant return to the Montreux stage with an expanded band that includes female vocalist Vala Cupp, an additional guitarist, and a sax player. After a raucous introduction boogie, Hooker delivers another hit-filled set with some new additions, including the title track from his 1989 album The Healer. His bone-shaking rendition of “I’m In The Mood For Love” is the ultimate in amorous blues and is positively percolating. A new slow blues simply called “Mabel” is noteworthy, too, and Hooker gives it his plaintive and soulful all.

“Crawlin’ King Snake” benefits from the presence of female vocalist Vala Cupp, who adds a whole new dimension to Hooker’s standard. The way she and Hooker work off of each other keeps the crowd under their spell and is pure lightning in a bottle. “Boom Boom” and “Boogie Chillen” are as gritty and glorious as ever, of course, and Hooker’s otherworldly voice and slashing guitar are everything you’d expect them to be. Taken as a single release, John Lee Hooker and the Coast to Coast Blues Band Live at Montreux 1983 & 1990 is the ultimate blues binge possible for Hooker fans and is 100% mesmerizing from end to end. Don’t miss it.

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