As I write this it is a few weeks since I have attended this show. Life gets in the way. I have so many interests and I want to enjoy the warm months and all of those things that interest me in so many categories.
I remember getting the ticket for this show many months ago during the covid-19 disruption and waiting for a re-schedule of the concert. After the re-schedule the show went to what I would call a re-play of the “Waiting for Columbus” album or live show. I was actually ok with this on many levels.
I was a Little Feat fan from the very early days. I knew who they were when they first formed as a band and bought all of their albums from beginning to even now. I believe my first post on this blog 20 or so years ago was a really bad photo of a Little Feat show!
I have seen most all of the iterations of this band as players came and went. Some passed on but the band prevailed. I remember where I was the night guitarist Paul Barrere passed away only weeks after I saw him play a show with Fred Tackett. I remember the last moment I told him thank you for the show and I can remember his response as he started to put his guitar in the case. I remember the night I saw Lowell on stage with the band in his white overalls and that whole show. I remember Billy Payne when we were both young, the moments on the red tour bus recording radio breaks with the band, and the night in Key West after I was back stage with all of the band at that time. The moment I helped Sam Clayton with his iPhone on the beach in Key West. The night I was on the stage crew for them at Merlefest. Craig Lee Fuller was there with his son and the next morning we traveled to Chapel Hill to be at the fund raiser for Little Feat drummer Ritchie Haywood. Man there are so many stories. To this day I have the late drummer Ritchie Haywood’s drum sticks in my listening room. His signature on those sticks provide a connection to my love of this music. I could go on for a long time.
Billy Payne recently said “You know, Lowell’s not a person you can replace, nor is Richie Hayward, nor is Paul Barrere,” Payne said. “But you don’t replace them — you’re augmenting the conversation, musically.”
I agree with this and I respect the fact this band continues to try to carry the music forward using the best players they can add to the stage. They did that with guitarist Scott Sharrard, formerly of Gregg Allman’s band, on guitar and vocals; and drummer Tony Leone, formerly of Ollabelle and the Chris Robinson Brotherhood. They are not the same as the previous band members but they are great talents and have found a good place to keep the live sound alive with the remaining members of Little Feat. My photos from this show are very few in number and I wish I had some better ones of the other band members to share…there are some of all the band in many of my other posts.
So what can I tell you about the show from my experience? Well I made the three hour road trip to Asheville which is a nice drive and landed in the neighborhood of the venue in the afternoon. Asheville is a cool town that I call a place where money meets hippies. I like the vibe of the area and I could be comfortable living in this town. Except for that winter cold!! All that said I had a nice lunch at the Beer Garden a half block from the theater on Haywood Street and waited out the rain storm before the show.
I won’t try to explain the entire concert in this writing but I will give you my recollection of the show from my chair and experience with the music. I have owned the “Waiting for Columbus” album in some form since the year it was released. I have alternative pressings of the vinyl and I know the music from track one to the end. I love this album that some will say is the best live album ever or certainly as one of the best rock albums ever. I know a few others that would compete but they are all great.
I enjoyed the entire show from beginning to end. I knew the songs to be played as they were played without a set list. I enjoyed the show and the talent on the stage. Was it perfect? No it was not the same as the original because different people were playing it! Yes there were many on the stage playing the songs that were in the original band but we have lost some great musicians in all those years that have passed since the album was recorded. So the band did a great job presenting the material basically covering the album as it was recorded. I would put this band in an “evolution” category vs. a tribute band. They still have many of the key players and they use the best musicians to make up the difference.
Net, I enjoyed the show. I was glad I was there. I totally missed Paul Barrere and Ritchie on drums but I also love the players who replaced them. Scott on guitar has taken my breath many times from a live stage with the likes of Gregg Allman. The thing I appreciate about Scott is he learns the part of anything he is a part of and takes it to another level. Everyone on this stage did that. That is what Little Feat is. One of the best bands who always bring the “A” game.
That is why I continue to say I will not respect the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” until they recognize Little Feat. Add Warren Zevon to that list. I mean really…Jay Z in front of these guys? Get real. Little Feat is Rock and Roll. Blues. A little country. But best of all they just are damn good. They always will be. Go listen to the albums. What a damn band. “Nuff said.
Until next time I’ll see you , down the road.