Solomon Burke Live At North Sea Jazz Festival
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Solomon Burke Live At North Sea Jazz Festival
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This may have been billed as a Jazz festival, but the dish served up by Solomon is one of pure Soul. The concert footage was taken in 2003 which has both its advantages and its drawbacks. On the positive side it means that we are treated to numbers from his excellent "Don't Give Up On Me" album which was released last year, on the negative side it means we are not seeing Solomon at his youthful best. Always a big man, Solomon looks portlier and less mobile than ever, and needed some help to reach his 'throne' on stage. The "King of Rock and Soul" delivers the bulk of the concert from this sitting position, so anybody expecting slick choreography would be sorely disappointed. The man can barely walk let alone dance. Despite a rather splendid red costume on his main trumpeter along with some energetic instrumental solos Solomon's immobility means the show is visually weak. Thankfully, as the rest of his body capitulates to the ravages of time Solomon's vocal chords sound still as fresh as they would have done twenty years ago and his delivery is nothing short of excellent. As I have already stated Solomon sings several tracks from his critically acclaimed "Fat Possum" CD, but they are well blended into a mix with traditional Soul numbers. Besides some of Solomon's own classics such as "Down In The Valley" and "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" he also gives awe inspiring renditions of Ike and Tina Turner's "Proud Mary", Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come" Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" and Otis Redding's "Dock Of The Bay". A nice touch is to allow his children who are singing in backing vocals to do a solo spot each. His daughter Candy performs a creditable version of "I Will Survive" as does his son Selassie on "Mona Lisa". The only condition he imposes on them is that they do not do Rap. In addition to the concert itself which lasted a total of 75 minutes the DVD comes with a bonus track shot in the studio of Solomon singing "None Of Us Are Free" ably supported by the Blind Boys of Alabama. It also includes a 40 minutes fly on the wall documentary of Solomon in his daily life. Not only is he an R&B singer, but he is a bishop and an undertaker as well. The insight into this unusual man's life is fascinating. In short this is a superb concert well supported by documentary footage. Anyone with a love of Southern Soul truly cannot afford to be without it. |
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Why Not visit the Authors other Website, 'The Alternative Blackpool Website' at http://www.localdial.com/users/jsyedu133/bpool This Site Last Updated 18/05/05
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