{"id":10220,"date":"2013-07-28T08:50:58","date_gmt":"2013-07-28T15:50:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/?p=10220"},"modified":"2013-07-28T08:52:48","modified_gmt":"2013-07-28T15:52:48","slug":"nrbq","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/2013\/07\/nrbq\/","title":{"rendered":"NRBQ"},"content":{"rendered":"

NRBQ<\/b><\/h1>\n

\"NRBQThis is considered blasphemy, I know, but Terry Adams\u2019 current version of NRBQ, based on their show last week at B.B. King\u2019s, is at the very least as good as any\u2014and yes, that includes the best-loved, longest-running 1974-1994 lineup of Terry on keyboards and vocals, Joey Spampinato on bass and vocals, Al Anderson on guitar and vocals, and Tom Ardolino on drums.<\/p>\n

Now with the superb guitarist\/vocalist Scott Ligon, bassist\/vocalist Casey McDonough (who took over last year for The Figgs\u2019 Pete Donnelly due to too many other commitments), and Conrad Choucroun on drums (a new father, his spot was filled at B.B.\u2019s by veteran Chicago drummer Joe Camarillo of alt-country\u2019s Waco Brothers), the new \u201cQ\u201d has at least as much spirit and joy in playing its traditionally eclectic set of esoteric pop, rock, country, R&B, jazz and gospel covers and originals as any since the venerable band\u2019s inception in 1967.<\/p>\n

And aside from being equally brilliant musically, the new lineup is also as photogenically unphotogenic as any of the others.<\/p>\n

\"NRBQAn anti-star who nevertheless long ago trumped the competition in star power, Adams, of course, will always stand out for his long blond locks flailing about above a lanky body that moves about all over the place, that is, within the confines of his multi-keyboard cage. Ligon and especially McDonough exude the anti-look so prized by decades-long Q followers, who prefer music to makeover. Choucroun uncannily looks like Ardolino.<\/p>\n

In other words, it\u2019s no flash, all fun\u2014like always. Not to leave out extraordinary musicianship.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe band\u2019s hotter than a firecracker right now, and we\u2019re having a blast,\u201d Adams said before the B.B.\u2019s show, and so it is. Adams, whose 2004 diagnosis of throat cancer put the band on hiatus until he reformed it in 2007 as the Terry Adams Rock & Roll Quartet before renaming it NRBQ in 2011, has lost nothing in either voice or spontaneity\u2014and more important, playlist.<\/p>\n

From a reimagining of Herman\u2019s Hermits \u201cI\u2019m Into Something Good\u201d (itself a cover of Earl-Jean\u2019s original) into a Chuck Berry song, this NRBQ progressed from the Q classic \u201cBoozoo, That\u2019s Who\u201d\u2014a tribute to the late zydeco king Boozoo Chavis\u2014to the Tommy Dorsey big band hit \u201cThe Music Goes Round and Round\u201d (another Q concert staple); the Q\u2019s \u201cHobbies,\u201d featuring wordless vocals, and fellow Q faves \u201cI Want You Bad\u201d and \u201cRC Cola And A Moon Pie\u201d; Terry\u2019s beautiful \u201cI’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter,\u201d \u201cThe Stripper\u201d (Terry yelling \u201cTake it off! Take it all off!\u201d and noting that its composer David Rose also scored Little House On The Prairie<\/i>); and Al Hirt\u2019s \u201cJava,\u201d which somehow segued into the Everly Brothers \u201cLet It Be Me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NRBQYou really needed a live music version on Shazam!<\/i> to stay on top of it all.<\/p>\n

But what of the departed Q\u2019s? Anderson, who left in 1993 after 22 years with the group, continues to enjoy a stellar songwriting and solo career in Nashville. Ardolino, sadly, died last year after a long illness and is dearly missed.<\/p>\n

As for Spampinato, he has a fun band with brother Johnny\u2014who replaced Anderson on guitar in NRBQ\u2014as the Spampinato Brothers, and also plays bass in his wonderfully talented wife Kami Lyle\u2019s jazz-pop group the Kami Lyle Trio.<\/p>\n

True, the current Q has been both respectfully and derisively called the best NRBQ tribute band imaginable. But what was Adams supposed to do? Just let it die?<\/p>\n

No! Resoundingly, no! Not when he\u2019s in such good health, and can keep making fans happy with the singular performing experience that is and has always been NRBQ.<\/p>\n

Jim Bessman<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NRBQ This is considered blasphemy, I know, but Terry Adams\u2019 current version of NRBQ, based on their show last week at B.B. King\u2019s, is at the very least as good as any\u2014and yes, that includes the best-loved, longest-running 1974-1994 lineup of Terry on keyboards and vocals, Joey Spampinato on bass and vocals, Al Anderson on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4976],"tags":[5334,6870,6872,6873,6867,6871,6869,6868,6874],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10220"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10220"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10220\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10225,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10220\/revisions\/10225"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}