Bonnie Raitt
Despite the less than optimal weather conditions, the closing Sunday sets at the Beale Street Music Festival provided ample reason to cheer.
Music fest perennial Jerry Lee Lewis was in rare form during an afternoon appearance on the Sam’s Town stage, Bonnie Raitt followed with an hour of roots-pop bliss and singer-songwriter James Taylor brought some warmth to the chilly evening.
Photo by Nikki Boertman
Jerry Lee Lewis performs at the Beale Street Music Festival on Sunday.
“The rain didn’t dampen any spirits,” said Memphis in May executive vice-president Diane Hampton. “We felt we made the best out of a tough situation and the music and performances were still great.”
Although Friday’s opening night festivities at Tom Lee Park offered ideally dry conditions, that soon gave way to a long night of hard rain. While the pace of the precipitation had let up somewhat by the start of Saturday’s first shows, a steady — sometimes strong — rain continued throughout the weekend.
Unlike the flash flooding that marred last year’s opening night, the good early weather allowed organizers ample time to prepare the grounds and backstage areas. And, unlike last year, there were no artist cancellations or major logistical problems.
As for the financial effects, Hampton noted that advance ticket sales ran about 20 percent higher this year than for past festivals. That, combined with the favorable conditions on Friday — which brought a bigger than expected walk-up crowd — helped offset the expected dips in attendance on Saturday and Sunday, she said.
On the Sam’s Town stage, Lewis wearing a cowboy shirt and looking slimmer and livelier than in past years, offered a rollicking reminder of why he is — as the title of his most recent album reminded — “the last man standing.”
Following a haunting blues rendition of Sun labelmate Charlie Rich’s “Don’t Put No Headstone on My Grave” Lewis quipped, “I don’t want no headstone, I want a monument!”
Moments later Lewis delivered a version of “She Even Woke Me Up To Say Goodbye” that was so good, the idea of rededicating Stonehenge, the Great Pyramids, and the Taj Mahal in the Killer’s honor didn’t seem all that farfetched.
To cap things, Lewis pounded out a pair of solos on “Sweet Little Sixteen” and offered boisterous versions of “Great Balls of Fire” and “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin On.” He then ritually kicked his stool over, offered a wave to the crowd and was quickly whisked off to a waiting limo.
Though not quite as riveting as Lewis, Raitt followed with a crowd-pleasing set, including hits like “Thing Called Love”, which she colored with her signature Mississippi blues-inspired slide guitar.
Taylor’s set was highlighted by an epic version of “Country Roads”— which he punctuated with funky scat-singing as well as a bouncy hillbilly fiddle coda — and a fitting cover of the Eric Von Schmidt folk standard, “Wasn’t That a Mighty Storm.”
Farther down the park, those gathered around the Cellular South Stage, which had a bill geared more towards a youth audience, didn’t seem to mind the mud and muck that much, responding favorably to daytime sets from Georgia roots-grunge combo Dead Confederate and Chilean funk-rock eccentrics Chancho En Piedre.
The music continued there into the evening with a spot from hard rockers Hinder, while Chicago pop-punk stars Fall Out Boy closed out the festival with a headlining turn.
On Saturday, several late-night performers were forced to battle an increasingly hard downpour. British songsmith Elvis Costello was up to the task, however, leading a special one-off festival band he’d dubbed The Popular Trend — featuring his longtime rhythm section of drummer Pete Thomas and bassist Davey Faragher, along with guitarist John McFee and Memphis pianist Jim Dickinson — for an 80-minute show that made bearing the elements worthwhile.
Despite a long delay setting up, Memphis soul great Al Green proved to be the perfect tonic after a long and arduous day for festival goers. Green, looking resplendent in a shimmering white suit, emerged from the wings and immediately grabbed a handful of roses, and began tossing them into the crowd.
Aided by a powerful big band, Green was in good voice as he cooed, crowed and shouted through a mix of gospel-drenched R&B songs, including his famed Hi Records hits.
— Bob Mehr, 529-2517
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