SARATOGA SPRINGS – A beautiful Friday night. Orion prominent in the cloudless sky.
And yet, I wasn’t feeling it. Experience had taught me that when covering the behemoth that has become Saratoga Beer Week, Friday – The day before the big Grand Summit – is the day of burnout. I needed to watch myself tonight. Though the spirit was willing, my energy was low. Know thy self, Arthur. I’m prone to be annoyed at the drop of a hat on nights like these, especially by nervous beer people and/or musician “handlers,” etc.
I needed a slam dunk – a guaranteed good time to inflate my energy.
So I went to one place. I went to see G.
Thank Garland It’s Friday!
Yes, Garland Nelson. So consistently excellent, so versatile that we are sometimes guilty of taking him for granted. Except when he does outrageous events like Lip Dub (everyone was in the film, but there was one show stopper), last summer’s “Saratoga Sings” group song (‘Imagine’) in Congress Park, countless White Party’s, and the like.
But this was a night where he was doing all the heavy lifting. Literally. Guitar, keyboard, tracks, PA, etc. Solo Soulist. Superb. At Bailey’s Cafe’ the inside room is warm and mellow, yet can be challenging from a tech/volume standpoint because of all the glass, tin ceiling and tile. But Garland had it just right. By the time I arrived, he had the audience right where he wanted them – in the palm of his hand.
A self-styled ‘soulist,’ in my experience he first coined the term, and while the dictionary definition may slightly differ, to me it had always meant a version of the communication of “call and response”: in that Garland’s soul communicates to yours and mine, and we back to his. Never is a Garland show a one-way street: A to B – Performer sends it out to audience. NO SIR! There will be interaction, ladies and gentlemen. Y’all are powerless to resist, so why fight it?
Yes, Garland Nelson at Bailey’s. One of the great bragging points of my entire long life is that the first time “Soul Session” was written in Bailey’s music book, indeed the first time it was written anywhere, was with my pen and with my left hand. To quote the Godfather of Soul: HUHHHH! I Feel Good!
I know, I know – this is obviously one of the biggest ‘no-brainers’ of our time. But yet, Garland has never failed to make me look like a smart guy. First at Bailey’s, then Siros, at Hats Off, Colleges, and other places.
The best news of all is that you can see what I saw – tonight. Same time (8pm), same place (Bailey’s) with special guest (and New York Player band mate) Bob Boyer. Be there. HUHHHH!
Arthur Gonick
March 3, 2017
