Before the music started last Friday at the Calvin Theatre, as we sat in the balcony brushing snow off our jackets looking down at the four musicians on stage taking up their instruments, one thing was very clear: Keller Williams was barefoot. This surely was to be a night full of surprises. The first surprise was that the Keller & the WMD’S show went on as planned. Not only did they surprise us (and the hundreds who braved the weather to join us) by playing, but they were wonderful. Keller Williams usually plays solo using looping effects to play many different instruments himself. He has currently abandoned the “one man band” and instead is joined this tour by a “supergroup” of sorts. Williams has Keith Moseley from String Cheese Incident on bass, Gibb Droll (who has been playing with Marc Broussard) on guitar, and Jeff Sipe (who has played with Aquarium Rescue Unit and Trey Anastasio Band) on drums. Besides the quality of music being enhanced by each instrument being played with purpose throughout the show, this was a normal Keller Williams show. He told stories, laughed, danced and played not only his original songs (with lyrics ranging from absurd to downright hilarious) but also ran through several covers (by the Grateful Dead, Tom Petty, The Beatles, and Yonder Mountain String Band). Moseley, Droll, and Sipe complemented Williams perfectly and were clearly having a great time playing. It was interesting to hear Williams’ originals done with the band, as opposed to his usual solo playing. They transitioned several into legitimate rock ‘n’ roll pieces with Sipe’s full drum set and Droll’s slashing guitar solos. Highlights came from a back to back “Song for Bela” and “Kidney in a Cooler”. The first is a new Droll instrumental which Williams introduced as “very hard to play” as it was written for banjo virtuoso Bela Fleck to pick on the banjo. If Williams messed up any of it, the crowd didn’t notice as they erupted in applause when “Song for Bela” finished. That applause was immediately surpassed however as Williams kicked off the familiar intro to “Kidney in a Cooler”. This song has long been a fan favorite and it had everyone in the Calvin on their feet and dancing, including bassist Keith Moseley, who was overcome by the music and seen dancing on stage several times during the show. Keller and friends warmed up everyone in the theatre and we were ready to brave the cold smiling after two sets and three and a half hours of music. Next time Keller Williams comes around, with or without a band, be sure to go see him, you may be surprised but you won’t be disappointed. Dan Carey
Dan wins tickets to an IHEG show of his choice for submitting this review and having us select it for use on the blog. You can too! Send your review or preview to jneill@iheg.com
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