OK, confession time. I was not the one who should have been covering this concert, I was a last-minute replacement reviewer, and I have to admit to not knowing who Etta James was. [not my area of music expertise!] The name was simply not familiar to me. I therefore needed to do some research - and fast! I hate the internet and computers for many reasons, but, when faced with a task such as this, then it is a magnificent tool, and within seconds I was reading her biography and watching Youtube videos of her performing live. I was informed! - and contrite; I really ought to have heard of her!
The Bridegwater Hall this evening was set for an R+B concert with the addition of a large screen behind the band. At the beginning this was showing what I assumed to be a genuine photograph of Chess Recording Studios [the label which gave Etta her recording break]. However as the concert progressed the image was constantly zooming slowly out and where computer graphics took over from real photo it was hard to say, but Chess studios finished up being nothing more than a small dot in the centre of roads, buildings and billboards of a 1950s America. It was interesting, but am uncertain as to the relevance or need for this.
However, back to the performers. Vika Bull, the lady who was impersonating Etta James in this concert, was, I would imagine, just about as close an incarnation of the real thing as you'd ever get. The voice was right, the gait was right, the mannerisms were right, and she even managed to look very similar too. Quite uncanny.
James' life story was preceed and narrated to us both by Bull and trumpeter Tibor Gyapjas. What we learnt from this story is that James' life was far from easy and carefree. Having been born during a time of much unrest in the US from a 14-year old mother, she very soon became accustomed to alcohol, drugs and a life of always trying be one step ahead of the law. It was her love of music which saved her; but she still died tragically young, just short of her 74th birthday in 2012. None of these hardships however seemed to stop her singing career and she amassed a long list of awards during her career including Grammy awards for Best Jazz Vocalist (1995), Best Contemporary Blues Album (2004), Best Traditional Blues Album (2005), a lifetime achievement award and included in the Grammy Hall Of Fame!
The evening was a very well selected mix of Etta James' songs in differing genres and tempos from all the stages of her career, and The Essential R+B Band were superb under the leadership of John McAll. And so, after having done research enough it is my opinion that Vika Bull's tribute performance was utterly splendid. I wish I had known more about James and her input to music long ago, but this evening was indeed a new and exciting discovery for me.
I have only one thing to write which spoilt my enjoyment. The whole gig was over-amplified. I am unsure why Bull needed to be double-mic'd [both head-set and stick] or indeed why the sound levels needed to be so ear-piercingly high for every song. If the band had been toned down several notches and Bull had used just her head-set, it would have made for a much more pleasant sound all round, and i would have been able to hear the lyrics rather than just the noise! It would also have showcased Bull's voice more too and made it a more authentic sound. You probably weren't to know but there was some irony in going to a concert so over- and heavily mic'd in a concert hall that was built to be as acoustically perfect as it is possible to build!
The lovely onstage chemistry between singer and band was evident at all times and their vocal duets and filling in the harmony parts of other songs was superb. The band were even caught dancing from time to time, obviously thoroughly enjoying themselves which is as it should be. The audience loved the concert too. A standing ovation followed her "swansong" 'At Last' which resonated on many levels with the audience this evening. After saying a few 'thank yous' Bull encored and finished the evening with a song that probably more than any other summed up James' life; 'Take It To The Limit (One More Time)'.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 14/10/18
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