This past Friday night I had the distinct and rare pleasure to see the return of Rock-a-billy's High Priest, Mr. Robert Gordon, to the great state of New Jersey.
In my opinionThe last time I saw RG perform was at The Lone Star Roadhouse in NYC on New Year's Eve 1992. Almost 20 yrs. have passed and as confirmed by his first note of "The Way I Walk", he hasn't lost a step.
Gordon took the stage like a freight train to the delight of a packed house who, like me, were starving for a live performance from this most elusive entertainer. Accompanying him was a bare bones 3 piece band consisting of drums, stand up bass, and hollow body electric guitar. Sound in the joint was good. The walls shook with every thump and hand slap of the old school stand-up. The lush tones and rich, fervent ringing of the hollow body gave the music the theme and authenticity of the night. Both accomplished and talented musicians. However the drummer, obviously a last minute fill-in, failed to give the music the back-bone and punch, that it would normally have. It was evident that he wasn't familiar with the songs and that he should've been playing for his high school marching band that night, instead of playing for such an established artist. I found this an odd choice for Gordon, giving his reputation for insisting on perfection in his sound.
ONE-DIMENSIONAL SHOW
The set list consisted of many treats. Songs like "Bertha Lou", and "Suspicion" were great to hear over modern day audio technology. However the set list consisted entirely of either mid, or slow tempo songs. The crowd was left craving some of the faster, harder songs that Gordon is famous for: "Red Hot", "20 Flight Rock", and "Flyin Saucer Rock and Roll" all shouted requests were unfulfilled, making the show very one dimensional. He also avoided performing his originals. Those which I consider his best work. The set list in general seemed to have been slapped together without much of a flow to it.
Within the first 20 min. of his set R.G. all of a sudden, walked off the stage and left his audience to a 3 song "intermission" by his guitar player who obviously did not expect it himself. And, although a capable vocalist in his own right, when you're dropping a twenty dollar cover at the door to see Robert Gordon sing, you wanna see Robert Gordon sing!
DISORGANIZED AND RUSHED
If you're getting mixed impressions by reading this review then I've accurately conveyed the experience of the actual show. It was great to see him live again.
Robert Gordon has pipes, persona, and stage presence of mythic proportions. Truly unparalleled by anyone on the charts today. Jerry Lee Lewis said it best when he said, "This guy (Gordon) should be one of the biggest stars in the world!" Now don't get me wrong, the show was good. However it just seemed disorganized, and rushed. Just under one hour of total performance time. Hey, when you're a R.G. fan, you're resigned to the fact that he doesn't play out much, but when he does, you want him up there for awhile.
In my opinion the shame of it is, the first timers left the Wonderbar that night seeing only just the tip of this guy's enormous talent.
No one knows what's under that hood until you "Let those Lake pipes roar!' |