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Review: Seth Walker
Most acts are lucky if they can do one thing very well; Seth Walker is a double threat, as he proved Thursday night at a Shady Grove show that was anything but “Unplugged.” Walker is a master of the stinging, T-Bone Walker-like blues guitar and he’s also a cabaret singer with a lot of character in his voice. We’ve all heard “You Don’t Know Me,” the Cindy Walker ballad made famous (again) by Ray Charles plenty of times, but not quite like Walker did it Thursday night, with the phrasing of a bluesman’s regret.
The North Carolina native, who’s been in Austin for a dozen years, played a few songs from an album he’s been making in Nashville with Delbert McClinton cohort Gary Nicholson. Especially wonderful wer e the solo acoustic putdown “At Least I Got a Song” and the Sam Cooke flavored “Love In Rewind,” which show Walker’s moving in the right direction. If there’s room on the record, Walker needs to record “You Don’t Know Me,” the most stunning highlight in a night of many.
But in a 90-minute set you’re gonna have a few clunkers and, for me, Walker and his supertight band played about three too many standard blues numbers. I usually don’t advocate side projects - the Rolling Stones didn’t need to start a reggae offshoot to do stuff like “Cherry Oh Cherry”- but I think Walker should find a dynamite female blues singer and do an Ike and Tina thing with a differently-named project and keep the “Seth Walker” stuff to the well-crafted , mood-inducing tunes like “Lay Down” (dedicated to recently departed young blues lion Sean Costello) and Tom Waits’ “Picture In a Frame.”
Sure, the audience was up dancing to the Chicago blues tunes, but it gave the set an unfocused feel. Musicially, there are two Seth Walkers and, I guess, it’s a matter of opinion on whether or not they should take turns.
By the way, KGSR’s “Unplugged at the Grove” series has a lot more energy- not to mention volume - this year. And the crowds are into it more than ever before. Remember the guy who called the cops every Thursday to complain about the noise? Doesn’t live there anymore.
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