Early on, Chris Beard learned one essential
detail about the music he plays: play it live. Since he
first stepped on stage, Chris creates musical art unique
to that moment in time. True to all artistic creations,
Beard's art is powerful enough to share his intense emotion
release with audiences or listeners who takes the time to
hear what Chris plays. This is the core of pure blues. Because
this kind of spontaneity begs to be captured, this latest
Chris Beard CD, Live Wire, is equal parts live and studio
songs. The opening six tunes capture all the excitement
and fury from Beard's shows in Chicago's legendary Kingston
Mines and Grand Rapids Blues At The Mall. The remaining
six songs, recorded in the studio, focus on Beard's soulful
interpretations of songs by Dennis Walker, Chris Cain, and
Luther Allison.
Within the opening bars of the first live cut, Born To Play
The Blues, obvious Chris Beard is doing what he was meant
to do with his life. Born in 1957, Beard is the son of Joe
Beard, a fine blues guitarist who grew up on Beale Street
in the 1950's before moving to Rochester, NY. When family
friends like Matt Guitar' Murphy and Buddy Guy stopped by,
young Chris became their willing pupil.
Blues is my roots,' says Chris. I grew up as Joe Beard'sson
in the house of the blues. I grew up around Buddy Guy and
Matt Murphy. The influence of Buddy has been major. All
he has to say to me is 'Keep on doing what you're doing.'
Matt always told me that the guitar has to become an extension
of you. That will always stick with me.
That earned him his first guitar and the first of many lessons
from his father, If you can do it with your mouth, you can
do it with your guitar.' By 15, Chris was playing regularly
with his father's band and local R&B outfits. After
years playing the clubs in and around Rochester, Chris was
offered the opportunity to record. In 1998, he released
his debut recording, Barwalkin', on JSP Records. That record
earned Beard a W.C. Handy nomination as Best New Blues Artist.
Chris produced his follow-up disc, Born To Play The Blues
in 2001 to the critical acclaim of the blues press and earned
Beard the title, Prince of the Blues. Now, in 2004, Beard
is looking to take his blues beyond the blues he was given
by his father in his living room. This stirring combination
of live and studio performances is just what Beard needs
to take his career to the next phase. It's one thing to
do a studio record where you can do it over and over until
you get it perfect, says Chris. These live songs are just
like being there. People who see me always like what they've
just seen. There is so much more feeling and spontaneity
in a high energy, live CD. In fact, when I first recorded
that show, we were riding home in the van listening to it
and I was amazing myself.
Beard has captured the cream of his performances. If
the mark of the best live recordings is that they make
the listener wish to have been present, then every time
you listen to this disc, you'll be wishing to be in the
house during this red hot set. From the opening, raucous
Born To Play The Blues, Beard'high flyin', horn driven
music features a lot to savor. Though Beard is a world
class guitarist, this is not another guitar only effort.
Musically, Beard uses the full range of talent in his
band. Especially the tenor work of Quinn Lawrence, Beard's
24 year old musical twin. Because Quinn and Beard have
played together since 2000 and know each other so well,
they can riff without even thinking.
Through it all, Chris Beard has only one goal, to follow
the will of the music in expressing himself and his feelings.
It all stems from the music, the beat, the groove. Being
of the younger generation, I listened to Motown, Stax,
rock, funk, Jimi Hendrix. So my blues has the modern feel
of soul, funk,
and rock. Being a guitar player, the blues is my way of
expressing and voicing what I feel. I never stray away
from the blues too much, blues is always at the foundation.
It's not a coincidence that much of his live six songs,
with their guitar tenor blast, is reminiscent of Luther
Allison's European shows. There's a lot of Luther in me
period. He's one of my super idols. I remember he came
to Rochester to play and he put me on-stage and he put
his blue Lucille in my hand and said, Play. That was in
the early 1990's. That's something I can remember. That's
how inspirational he was to me. This was a defining moment
in the musical life of Chris Beard.
During the fiery, four minute guitar solo that opens
Lucky Peterson's Tribute To Luther Allison,' Beard expresses
all Luther meant to him. During that solo, I got him on
my mind, thinking about what he means to me. I try and
capture those last moments I saw him playing, but with
me doing it. I'm feeling him at such a deep level when
I sing that song that I just lose it.' Because Beard knows
to give his band room to flex musical their muscles, the
last live song, It's Over,' features Marvin Parker's modernistic
bass solo hammerin' the point home.
When Beard goes in the studio for the final songs, he's
chosen three songs by Dennis Walker, the story teller
of soul blues. Each Walker song allows Beard emotional
space to rethink the relationship. Lock My Dreams' is
Beard'stour de force moment. A Song of the Year nominee
for sure.
It was something about these songs that spoke to me.
I believe that because though I may be a musician, I'm
also human. We musicians wear our feelings on our sleeve.
As a blues artist and writer, my feelings are always really
connected to my music. When I heard that song, I connected
and I thought this is a song I can do to reach other people.'
Chris Beard is a modern blues guitarist and singer like
few others. His personal connections to the blues were
forged with the living blues men he's sat with since childhood.
Coupled that with his clear focus to deliver and he, like
other genetic blues kids, is a primed to make his own
compelling statement.
(Art Tipaldi, senior writer for Blues Revue and BluesWax.com.) |
