Review: Taj Mahal ‘Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa’
By Jim Hynes
The venerable octogenarian Taj Mahal continues to be prolific, having teamed with Ry Cooder for 2022’s Grammy winning Best Traditional Blues Album Get On Board and receiving acclaim for 2023’s jazz album Savoy. Now, just a year removed from the latter, the living legend roots maestro, owner of 14 Grammy nominations and three wins, returns with Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa, recorded in front of a live studio audience in Leon Russell’s famed studio, recently renovated in 2022.
Issued on the heels of Black History Month, Tulsa is noted as a favored stop on the legendary Chitlin’ Circuit, and for the historical significance of Black Wall Street and the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921. These, along with Taj’s long-lasting friendship with Russell, factored into the choice of this location. Taj learned about the renovation of the studio, which Russell purchased in 1972 by his friend Claudia Linnear who sang with Joe Cocker on the Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour where Russell was the bandleader. Linnear told him about the efforts of current owners Ivan Acosta and Teresa Knox and Taj was eager to play in this studio with its state-of-the-art acoustics.
Taj, who plays 20 different instruments, is heard here on guitars, banjo, ukelele, and piano (curiously no harmonica) as he holds court with his core quartet augmented by the sterling roots/bluegrass duo of Trey Hensley (vocals, acoustic guitar) and Rob Ickes (Dobro). The quartet members include bassist Bill Rich, drummer Kester Smith, and electric guitarist/Hawaiian lap steel player Bobby Ingano, rendering mostly a set of familiar Taj chestnuts. Don’t expect to hear any ‘new’ material per se, but animated versions of mostly live performance staples. Taj has often remarked live that his audiences insist on hearing the chestnuts so that’s what he usually obliges them with. What remains interesting is the number of genres Taj delivers under this big tent called “Blues and Roots” – Delta blues, soul, reggae, Latin, R&B, Cajun, Caribbean, gospel, West African, jazz, calypso, Hawaiian slack-key, and more. It’s impossible to deliver all of those in a set of just ten songs, but he hits on at least four or five of them here.
Taj revs up the intimate, appreciative audience as he opens with the Chuck Willis staple “Betty and Dupree,” the swaying tale of a bad man, covered by countless people, but notably the Grateful Dead in 1966. This version is punctuated with sparkling turns from electric guitarist Ingano and slashing Dobro from IBMA winner Ickes. Favorite Taj original “Mailbox Blues” appears here from his landmark 1968 The Natch’l Blues with Ickes supplying what were originally Jesse Ed Davis licks. Later in the set Taj delivers “Corrina,” his signature tune penned with Davis, and does some scatting on the soulful “Queen Bee,” both of similar early vintage.
Consistently uplifting, Taj performs three other originals. “Lovin’ In My Baby’s Eyes” features prominent vocals from Hensley as the two duet, urging audience participation along the way in this tune rife with acoustic picking. “Waiting for My Papa to Come Home” is a back porch instrumental featuring an arresting blend of Dobro and lap steel while electric guitar and lap steel serve to produce a most inventive, steady grooving reading of Howlin’ Wolf’s “Sitting On Top of the World,” another tune that’s a Taj favorite. Ingano gets the spotlight in the instrumental “Twilight in Hawaii,” a nod to Taj’s long association with the 50th state’s music traditions, as revealed most vividly through his Hula Blues Band. With this stellar group of musicians, Taj (on piano) and the band jam freely in an epic, nearly ten-minute rollicking jam on T-Bone Walker’s “Mean Old World” to close out this rousing set.
Throughout, the charming Taj Mahal exhibits endearing rapport with the audience and basks in the joy of playing with this select sextet. Taj is of the “what you see is what you get” type, yet his music never tires. He always finds some new strains to refresh his timeless tunes.
Pre-order the album here
“Lovin’ In My Baby’s Eyes” ft Trey Hensley
A really terrific newsletter this week. Keep it coming!
FYI Drummer Kester Smith passed away on 1/14/24, just 10 days before the album was released. A sad day for Taj and the rest of the quartet. A sad day for the world of music.