Salzburg, the city of Mozart and The Sound of Music, and of course Austria’s world-famous Rockhause, the Paradiso of Austria.
There was a long history before there was even such a thing as a “Rockhouse.” Dissatisfied with the lack of venues for “modern” bands, a protest festival took place in 1981, where 19 bands performed over three days, resulting in 25 reports of disturbing the peace. But, as is so often the case, once a movement is started, it can’t be stopped. After much political wrangling, this led in 1990 to the decision to convert the building of a large wine merchant into the “Rockhouse,” a pop venue that has since become an integral part of the Austrian music scene.
Performances are held almost daily, workshops are organized, and you can enjoy delicious food in the on-site restaurant. If you happen to be in Salzburg soon, why not? Todd Sharpville will be performing on January 26th and Scott H. Biram on February 23rd!
Besides the regular lineup, several guests were invited to participate in this three-hour performance, which was condensed into just over 70 minutes. A kind of best-of? We’re going to see!
For a change of pace, they’ve once again provided extensive information, including a complete booklet with plenty of photos from the performance. Kudos! I didn’t have to search for anything!
A substantial lineup that should guarantee a fantastic blues party with, according to the tracklist, 21 songs, but in reality, there are a few fewer because there’s sometimes an interlude between songs as a transition to the next one. Before the encore, the band members are introduced, rightly so.
The opening, “Opening And Coming In,” consists of ten seconds of applause, which Norbert Egger declines, but from this, it can be deduced that the welcome and the announcement that the performance is about to begin took place just beforehand…
Every reason to move on to “Slidin’ To Call For Action,” a slow slide blues with some “backing sounds,” after which Steve Baker’s harmonica joins in. A nice, relaxed start! Beautiful, with an appreciative audience!
After a spoken Interlude 1, “Fishing Blues” follows, in which Norbert makes it clear how “important” it is to catch more fish than your neighbor. Hubert Graßl joins in on his sousaphone. Always impressive yet incredibly enjoyable, especially when Steve Baker brings out his harmonica again. Norbert also has some preparation tips for all that fish he caught! A nice, cozy Fishing Blues.
Interlude 2 introduces the next song, Anna Liza. Lots of brass section to create a New Orleans vibe, singing the praises of Anna Liza, whom Norbert is certain “she’ll always be mine.” But a little later, that sweet Anna Liza nicely proves she doesn’t need Norbert…!
Without a break, we continue with “T’ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do,” featuring Lydia Stone on vocals. Sung with a delightfully indifferent, lazy touch! Lots of beautiful trumpet playing in a flowing melody.
Weepin’ ‘n’ Moanin’, with time for a prominent guitar part and harmonica again, while Norbert takes the lead vocals. A solid number, real, thick, blues with a beautiful slide and fun interludes, shaped by Norbert’s slide as well. Fun drums to keep the melody going during a superb harmonica solo! With all that variation: Top!
The atmosphere is great, a wildly enthusiastic audience, and a great opportunity to take a closer look at Mr. President. Not Randy Newman’s, but still, in terms of content, a critical approach to that important office… Beautiful, massive blowing, harmonica underneath, nice swinging, lots of slide, and a super fun crowd!
Continuing in the same vein, this time with Muddy Waters, a slightly different version than you might expect, with a nice roll at the beginning. The swing is as infectious as ever, and all the blues greats are mentioned with a wonderful harmonica, some modest drumming, and an almost country-esque slide. As usual, there’s enthusiastic clapping along…!
Interlude 3 introduces “Leave You In The Morning,” described by Norbert as their “title song”… With a title like that, it almost makes sense that the guys would be singing backing vocals, but it turns out they have every reason to do so, and so the train of cheerful and well-performed music roars on, knowing we’re far from finished. Great!
My feet are constantly moving, and my fingers are drumming incessantly on the desk! What does that say? Okay, we agree! While the audience is still enthusiastically enjoying “Leave You In The Morning,” the band has already launched into “What My Boss Wants,” with Norbert and Sylvia alternating vocals. It’s a song of almost 7.5 minutes, so that means plenty of room for solos, while Lydia and Anne Bischow both sing a verse first. But then, as you’ve already seen from the credits, the horn section gets all the space it needs to shine. And don’t forget Alois Stöckl’s almost aggressive keyboards, followed by Steve Baker’s harmonica, after which a symbolic lead-in to the next song is created. Even though the lyrics are still just a protest against an overly demanding boss, “What My Boss Wants.” Also great!
For a country like Austria, a daring song with “Wir Steh’n Gemeinsam Gegen Rechts” (We Steh’n Gemeinsam Gegen Rechts)! As a reviewer, I always have to be neutral, but this is quite a song! It leaves nothing to be desired in terms of clarity! A solid rocker nonetheless!
A well-considered choice to perform This Angel next…? Another nice, smooth boogie in which This Angel is frequently called upon to “talk to me, baby!” And whatever the topic (..), talking can’t hurt, understanding each other more certainly doesn’t mean you have to agree with each other! Edward Said’s motto, with Daniel Barenboim, founder of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, was always: Knowledge is the beginning of understanding! “Was” because he has since passed away.
But it’s not for nothing that the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra often concludes their performance with the final chorus from Beethoven’s famous 9th Symphony: Alle Menschen Werden Brüder! (And that strange word “divan” in the name refers to a collection by Goethe.) What’s special about this orchestra is that nationalities and religions play together like brothers and sisters. Palestinians and Israelis and more of those kinds of contrasts created by “grown-ups”! The orchestra members are all young or young adults, in other words: The youth have the future, to which we’ll immediately connect with the previous song…
After Interlude 4, which alludes to the upcoming elections, the Wahlkampf, comes More Shame, a lovely mid-tempo melody with a link to Shirley & Company’s Shame, Shame, Shame, a fairly big hit in our country in 1975. A beautiful muted trumpet solo references various politicians, one in particular, giving them a mission to “do better” than they’ve done so far, otherwise… Shame, Shame, Shame on you! A pleasant way to convey a serious message, More Shame! Beautiful!
Without shame, the song transitions to Playing Blues, with orchestral instrumentation, almost like a big band with prominent brass instruments, along with the harmonica keeping pace. And Norbert makes it clear that, whether it’s called rock, soul, or something else, it always comes down to a form of Playing Blues! And that’s exactly how it is!
Interlude 5 marks the introduction of the band members, met with enthusiastic reactions from the appreciative audience, after which it’s time for the final song, at least on this album: “She’s Great.” An intro reminiscent of “Shake Your Moneymaker” further energizes the atmosphere with an ode to “my girl,” whose every virtue is sung about, concluding with “She’s Great.” Everyone from the band briefly appears in a solo. A beautiful and “grand” conclusion to this top-notch performance. The unnamed but present dancers are also thanked, and that’s it.
Fantastic musicians, each one a master on their instrument, and the collaboration is flawless. The song transitions are flawless, maintaining and, if possible, enhancing the festive atmosphere. That’s only possible when you’re well-tuned! The audience claps their hands blue and asks for more, a request Norbert grants, but… not for us. For us, it’s over!
I thoroughly enjoyed City Blues Connection! What professionals! And that traditional German accent in English, you don’t even hear it anymore after a while. Fantastic!
My favorites: Weepin’ ‘n’ Moanin’, Muddy Waters, Leave You In The Morning, What My Boss Wants, More Shame, and She’s Great.
Having a birthday or a party at home? City Blues Connection with ‘Live At Rockhouse Salzburg’ is a guaranteed success!!!
Tracks:
01. Opening And Coming In
02. Slidin’ To Call For Action
03. Interlude 1
04. Fishing Blues
05. Interlude 2
06. Anna Liza
07. T’ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do
08. Weepin’ ‘n’ Moanin’
09. Mr. President
10. Muddy Waters
11. Interlude 3
12. Leave You In The Morning
13. What My Boss Wants
14. Wir Steh’n Gemeinsam Gegen Rechts
15. This Angel
16. Interlude 4
17. More Shame
18. Playin’ Blues
19. Interlude 5 Introduction Of The Musicians
20. She’s Great
21. Encore Calls And Feature Of The Dancers
