Musical Monday at Mojo

It's the last day of Bluesfest.  How did that happen?  It seems only yesterday we were hopping aboard our first bus ride to Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm for opening night with Kendrick Lamar and the hip-hop crew.  It was suddenly Easter Monday and the end was only eight hours away.  But what an eight hours.

First up ~ a solo Taj Mahal!  Any festival that includes Taj is way ahead immediately.  Bluesfest labels itself Australia's Premier Blues & Roots Music Festival and if anyone is both Blues and Roots, it is Taj Mahal.  To quote the Byron Shire Echo he was "famous for nearly singlehandedly reshaping the definition and scope of the blues, via the infusion of exotic sounds from the Caribbean, Africa and South Pacific" and had been performing for over 50 years!  As to his performance, you couldn't help but be mesmerised by his presence as he sang and growled his way through "Fishing Blues" and Sonny Boy Williamson's "Checking Up On My Baby".  A quick tuning and a tip of his cowboy hat and off into another great story.  As James remarked, his current fave Mac DeMarco has obviously been heavily influenced by Taj.  Imitation is the greatest form of flattery and it appears his influence resonates to this day.

OMG!  The infatuation is now full-blown.  Alabama sextet St Paul and The Broken Bones are on their first visit to Australia capturing the soul of Otis Redding, and have captured us.  Presenting a set of blue-eyed soul, their live shows during Bluesfest have been incredible.  Friday, Saturday and now Monday, the buzz has been "Have You seen St Paul and The Broken Bones?."  Great songs from their debut album Half The City interspersed by some incredible covers including Sam Cooke's "Shake" and Otis' "I've Been Lovin' You (Too Long)".

What a band ~ a fantastic horn section supporting the rhythm section led by the unlikely but charismatic Paul Janeway, who has been described as everything from an IT geek with Otis voice to a plump accountant with a shoe fetish.  Today's performance went beyond the earlier shows where Paul gyrated, throwing his suit jacket and shoes over, at and into his drummer.  Half way through the evening show, he gingerly eased himself down off the stage all the while yelling for more and more microphone lead.  Surely he's not going to get down into that!  Without missing a beat or any reduction in power and passion, his progress through the adoring crowd was lit by a posse of phones, his bejewelled shoes sinking into the stinking black morass of Jambalaya.  Fantastic!  Upon completion, he re-emerged onto the stage his cheeks and fingers smeared with gunk.  This is a man of the people, unafraid of getting down and dirty!

"We need another beer", said James.  "I'll be back soon".  Bad move.  St Paul's cover of the Beatles "She's so Heavy" had finished by the time James returned.  I hadn't seen James so downcast since Saturday night when we heard The Raiders had blown the home game against The Titans.  "I love their version of that song."  Please come back St Paul.

Clutching my beer and catching my breath, I left James and headed down the midway to the Juke Joint where Scotland's Shooglenifty were making their final appearance.  What the...?  Have I fallen down a Hobbit hole and emerged at Canberra's National Folk Festival?; for a rag-tag bunch of performers were playing a heady stew of music that had the good size crowd reeling.  Described in the free Official Program as originators of "Acid Croft", a fiery and infectious blend of celtic traditional music and dance grooves, their potent brand of fun was hitting the spot.  It would appear my solitary immobile stance (not counting toe tapping) was just not on, for a rather attractive 30 something slid her arm about me and implored me to dance.  Yes, Mam!  Who doesn't love Bluesfest .