What a night it was, seeing two of the hottest touring bands on the road at one of the most iconic venues in the world. I'll start by acknowledging my friend and mentor Luther Dickinson and Mark for providing the opportunity of a lifetime to hang backstage and watch North Mississippi Allstars and Tedeschi Trucks at the Beacon Theatre in NYC.
Let's go back in time for a moment… Whenever NMA comes to town I'm always grateful to get to hang with the band and crew and sometimes you see some familiar faces. One of those faces is Mark who is responsible for a lot of behind the scene happenings with the music scene in the tri-state area. A few years back at the Brooklyn Bowl Mark and I were chatting and the subject came up of TTB at the Beacon. I explained to him how that was one of my favorite annual events to attend in the city, but I had been priced out of the shows recently. He then mentioned that if I had that issue again to reach out and he would see what he could do.
After a couple Beacon runs came and went it wasn't until a few weeks ago when TTB announced before this March run some of the shows were going to have opening acts and one date in particular was gonna feature the North Mississippi Allstars. (If you're reading this you most likely know that the whole reason I ever picked up a guitar was because of NMA and I've gotten to cross paths with them on more than a few occasions). So I finally pulled the proverbial trigger and reached out to Mark and sure enough within a day he was able to get me in, all he said was via text “Hopefully watching from the stage doesn't bother you.”. I assured him that would not be an issue!
The day comes and I make my way to The Beacon Theatre a venue cloaked in history. Some of the most iconic events that were held there include the annual Allman Brothers Band runs. Over 200 shows that featured special guests galore. With the epicenter of TTB being Derek Trucks, an ABB alum, it's a treat to witness some of that magic he brings to the Beacon knowing how many times he's played in that room.
I meet up with Mark at the side door as he was chatting with Bobby Tis longtime guitar tech and engineer with the Swamp Raga Studios crew. Bobby was so cool this entire night. As Bobby walked back in the door Joey Williams walks out the door. Joey plays with NMA as well as a longtime member of The Blind Boy's Of Alabama, one of the finest singers and guitarists I've ever witnessed. We catch up outside and he goes for a little preshow walk around the big apple. I follow Mark into this side door and Mark knows EVERYBODY. From Beacon staff to TTB crew I felt like I might as well have been walking with Mr Beacon himself!
We walk backstage and I'm taken a back at all the pictures of past performers, Rolling Stones, Radiohead, Steely Dan, Grateful Dead, Michael Jackson, too many to name. We then walk through a door labeled “Stage” and I follow Mark right to the side of the stage next to a guitar vault holding Derek Trucks' guitars set just behind a makeshift road case desk with the name Frank (Derek's guitar tech Frank Robbins). Mark introduces me to Frank and shortly after comes Xavier a very well mannered young man from Indiana who works with the Swamp Raga Studios crew. He was kind enough to show me most of the guitars in the vault including the iconic ‘61 Gibson SG and the ’58 Gibson Korina Flying V (holy grail guitars). This was the same vault that housed the freshly auctioned off “Tiger” guitar from Jim Irsay's collection that belonged to Jerry Garcia that sold for over 11 million dollars and that Derek played earlier in the run.
The crowd begins to file in as NMA is slated to open at 730 and as I finish checking out the guitars in the vault the homie Luther Dickinson comes out. We hug and chat for a sec and he hands me his rented SG to “keep warm” while he sets the stage up for his performance. After noodling on that SG for a little he returns and takes back the guitar and the lights in the theatre come down as the show is about to start. Mark grabs me and we walk through catering and this is where I first saw a piece of cake that looked absolutely delicious but being I was Mark's guest I didn't want to overstep my boundaries (more on that cake later). We get to the other side of the stage and post up right behind Bobby who's mixing on stage, he even offered us a seat right next to him!
LISTEN TO NMA's SET FROM THIS NIGHT HERE
NMA kicks off their set with a new arrangement of the Hill Country staple “Po Boy” off their new ‘Still Shakin’' record. A hip, groovin tune that opens up a show of this magnitude in grand fashion featuring a Joey Williams / Cody Dickinson bass & drums breakdown that gives way to masterful solo by Luther Dickinson. Luther playing his stunningly beautiful looking and sounding Vibratone guitar made out of Pecan wood which was glimmering underneath the Beacon lights. My favorite part about this tune is how they end the song with the uptempo hill country arrangement they used to play years ago. A proper homage to where they came from. The next tune had a familiar intro section that I realized had hints of “Goin Home ML” one of my favorites. That launched into the lyrics “Grew up a Mississippi hippie trippin LSD…” which brought them into the title track of their ‘Up & Rolling’ album from a few years back. This tune culminates with a spaced out psychedelic Luther solo and hits a double time peak into "The March“ a traditional gospel tune that just oozes positivity and smiles. This gave way for a Cody Dickinson led number “Let Me In” another Hill Country staple by way of T Model Ford. A foot stomping tune that features Cody on vocals and a short but powerful drum solo. The mic is then passed to Joey Williams who swaps his bass for a guitar and leads the trio through another traditional gospel tune “Lord Don't Move That Mountain”. Hearing Joey Williams sing anything is enough to give the biggest cynic religion. This number did that and more for the full crowd at the Beacon on this night. “Shake Em On Down” hits next a mainstay for NMA sets over the years. A masterfully powerful take on the Mississippi Fred McDowell tune. Next up is “Prayer For Peace” which segue's into “Need To Be Free” providing a powerful message of love and togetherness, and in today's climate a message worth understanding. NMA brought out NYC killer guitarist Marcus Machado at this point. Luther's solo during the “Prayer For Peace” section was some of his finest work of the night in my opinion. For the final tune of NMA's set the mic goes back to Joey Williams for “Don't Let The Devil Ride”. Another gospel standard that put the exclamation point on a stellar opening set and gave the people the perfect appetizer for a magical night. I think the coolest part about watching this set from the stage was to hear the beautiful acoustics of this theatre the natural reverb in the room is stunning to witness in person, and it made it clear as day why so many acts keep coming back to this legendary room.
As the crew began to strike the stage and set up for TTB's set Mark escorted back down to catering but before goin down stairs he pointed out the one sticker that resides on the electric panel that everyone has to pass. This sticker was a picture Brian Farmer, longtime ABB and Warren Haynes guitar tech and Johnny Cash before that. An absolute icon in the ABB family who passed way too soon. There's was a really thick familial vibe backstage with the ghosts of Beacon past lurking past every turn.
We make our way down to catering and Mark introduces me to some of his friends down there one of which was a sweet lady who I can't recall her name at this point but she was in charge of Jack Monkey Catering. She then offered to Mark and I to try the last piece of cake sitting on the table. We split it down the middle and let me tell you this chocolate, hazelnut, cake was like CRACK! One of the finest slices of cake I've ever had in my life. We then link up with Luther who confirmed my suspicions that they did in fact teased “Goin Home” before “Up & Rolling”. We continued to catch up for a bit then Mark and snuck out back for a quick smoke and returned just before TTB was set to take the stage. This was a cool moment when I locked eyes with Derek just before he made his way to the stage. For the beginning of this set we went out the side stairs by the orchestra seats to really hear this state of the art sound system cook.
LISTEN TTB's SET FROM THIS NIGHT HERE
The set kicked off with just Susan on guitar and Mike Mattison on vocals cutting into “State Trooper” a tune originally done by Bruce Springsteen. The song crescendos and then the whole band comes in cooking and by the end of the tune Derek and the rest of the band walk out to take the stage. They kick into “All That I Need” off of ‘Made Up Mind’ to get things cookin which ended with a good Derek slide solo. Next up is one of my favorites “Comin Home” a Clapton w/ Delaney & Bonnie vehicle that just hits like a ton of bricks with the riff Derek hits paired with Susan and the backup vocalists is a powerful combo. Susan takes a lead on this and I've always admired her playing, there's a real gritty rawness to it and she lets it all hang out! The vocal break in this makes the hair on my neck stand straight up. Another cut from ‘Made Up Mind’ , “Sweet And Low”, is up next. This one shows off the dynamics of this unit at it's finest. “Gravity” the tune off of ‘I Am The Moon’ is a groovin number led by keys player Gabe Dixon. My favorite part of this is piano break that leads right into a slide solo for the ages by Derek. At this point the set turns to a few of their newer tunes off of ‘Future Soul’. “I Got You” is quickly becoming a favorite of mine with the half time do-do-do's mimicked by Derek's slide. “Under The Knife”, another cut from the latest album, led by Mike Mattison is just a great song.
It was at this point I had actually lost track of Mark and I made my way back towards Bobby Tis' side of the stage where I was greeted with a mind blowing Kebbi Williams (sax) and Isaac Eady (drums) duo solo. I've always admired Kebbi's ability to stretch out in these situations. This combo getting wild and jazzy in NYC where bepop and jazz came to be always feels just right. The rest of the band makes its way back out to the stage and they slowly launch into “Shame” am emotive track off of ‘Signs’. Standing on the side of this stage as this song began to launch into the stratosphere was like nothing I've ever witnessed before. This band is a tightly knit unit, and as powerful as a steam locomotive pushing down the rail line. Every member at the top of their game feeding off of each other. Of course as a guitar player I had locked in on the power of Derek Trucks. I've never seen such raw power and command on the guitar in person like that. His choices are wild and spontaneous. The goal as a player such as him is to not think and just play what's inside of you. He does exactly that, not once could I have predicted the next note. What I witnessed was a savant level performance. Listen to this “Shame” from this show and tell me I'm wrong, this dude is not of this world. While he does the Derek thing the band backs him up perfectly. The Tyler Greenwell | Isaac Eady drum duo is like thunder and lightning providing a tsunami sized wave in which the rest of the band can ride on top of. With Brandon Boone on bass bringing the low end to match the drums this rhythm section is actually absurd. This tune closed out with a masterful solo from trumpet player Emmanuel Echem. It was as this song closed out I realized the power of a 12 piece band filling a theatre with pure joyful noise.
Next up came the old Wet Willie tune “Keep On Smilin'”. A feel good tune with a good message. Then Kebbi switches his sax for a flute, and that could only mean one thing. IDLEWIND. One of my favorite songs of all time, it always hits hard nowadays cause I used to cry my eyes out when Kofi Burbridge would rip his flute solo in this one. So seeing Kebbi take on that part still feels special and a fitting tribute to the late great Kofi. The way this tune builds and the horn line is just magnificent. When the tune breaks down Derek begins teasing the old DTB tune “Sahib Teri Bandi - Maki Madni” and the band follows suit with Kebbi hitting the flute notes just as Kofi did. The band then pushed the song back into the “Idlewind” horn line to close it out. Just a beautiful number. I referred to the powerful rhythm section. It was at this moment the two drummers played off each other creating a primal energy of a time before electricity when primitive man would make rhythms with rocks. Most people see a drum solo as an optimal bathroom break, but not when it's these two cats. They were PLAYING the drums as they should with dynamics, unique rhythms all while keeping a steady pulse.
After the drum solo ended I had to make my way to the bathroom where I run into Cody Dickinson. My band leader with Cody Dickinson & The Homemade Band. We catch up we talk about his beautiful fam and how just the night before he was seeing Robert Plant in Memphis and actually got to catch up with him and then barely made it to the Beacon on time due to the craziness currently goin on at the airports. After a brief conversation Cody, in typical Cody fashion, lays down on a couch to catch some rest. I make my way back up and link up with Mark on the side of the stage right behind Bobby. The band had launched into “Forty-Four” a Howlin Wolf tune who's rhythm is deceivingly tricky. sidenote: anyone who says playing the blues is “easy” tell em to play this song live and see how it goes. Watching Derek scan Brandon's bass playing making sure he stayed on track was intimidating to me standing behind Brandon I can still feel the look he was giving. Vintage blues in a modern form, spectacular.
Up next came a roarin' 16 minute version of the Derek & The Dominoes tune “Anyday” which featured Luther Dickinson and then fresh off a cat nap Cody Dickinson on Isaac Eady's kit who took a well deserved break but still busted out the maracas to join in on the rhythm escapades. It kicks off with a spacey intro filled with volume swells being traded between Luther & Derek. The energy slowly rises until Derek queues the band to hit the intro riff to take em right into a Mike Mattison lead vocal. Luther takes the lead and you can see the look in his face as the band follows him wherever he goes as the energy rises in his solo the band follows suit perfectly. Cody paired with Greenwell on the kits was a such a sight to see. After another verse and chorus the band simmers down which gives way to a beautiful Trombone solo from Elizabeth Lea. I love the way her Trombone and Derek's slide melded into each other such a cool dynamic they use to their advantage. At this point you can see Derek, a notorious finger picker, beginning to use his ring and pinky fingers to pick. If you've ever finger picked you know those are the last two fingers you'd want to be left with, but in typical Derek Trucks fashion you couldn't tell the difference by just listening. He takes his time and builds the solo back up and it culminates back into the intro riff to close out this heater.
After that barn burner they bring it way down with Bob Dylan's “Don't Think Twice It's Alright”. A sing-a-long where there was not a dry eye left in this place after hearing Susan sing this gem of a song. The energy is brought right back up as the band launches into “Pity The Fool” originally by Bobby “Blue” Bland. If you seen them do this live you know this is a Susan song through and through. From belting out the lyrics to a rippin guitar solo. The dynamics on this one are off the charts as well. The hi and lo throughout is commanding and when the horns tart pushing the verses you can't help yaself but bop with the rhythm. As the set closes out they launch into the Sly Stone Medley starting with “Sing A Simple Song” and with this band they do it justice singers, horns and all. This segue's seamlessly into “I Want To Take You Higher” BOOM CHAKALAKA BOOM CHAKALAKA! Alecia Chakour was absolutely belting this one out and standing right net the vocalist riser was such a unique perspective. After a brief encore break where I was able to dap up most of the band and just gush over the performance I just witnessed they take the stage for the encore. Mark Rivers' has entered the chat. One of the most versatile singers his vocal runs when he takes the lead is similar to Derek's guitar playing in terms of I could not predict the cadence of which he would sing which I think is such a unique thing to be able to bring fresh takes to classics. To close this incredible show comes the DTB hit “Get What You Deserve” kicked off with a Susan and drums intro that went right into the tune sung by Mike Mattison. At this point most of the crowd is up and moving around as the band leaves it all out on stage to close it out. As the final notes hit the crowd goes crazy and Susan thanks the crowd and thanks the guests of the night.
Watching the final notes with Luther and Mark was so special as the band walked off the stage and the vibe was off the charts. Such a friendly family vibe, everyone was hugging and chatting and was so friggin nice. It was then I noticed the famed elevator in which just about every performer who's played the Beacon has a picture in. An elevator that just might not be up to today's code. The walls of this elevator covered in signatures of performers passed. Mark turns to Luther to say his goodbyes and tell him “Will's your problem now” and I give Mark the biggest hug of gratitude for making this happen. With Luther we then squeeze into this elevator with Tyler Greenwell and Elizabeth Lea with her Trombone as we ride up to the green rooms. We link up with the rest of NMA and I sing their praises to the moon for what was incredible night of music. We chat and shoot the shit as we've done in the past when just out the door I'm made aware is Cyndi Lauper. She had sat in a few nights before and apparently has been hanging around most of the run. I say hello quick but it was Joey Williams who Cyndi Lauper actually recognized from his work with Blind Boy's Of Alabama so that was a really cool interaction to witness in person. Susan then stops in the room and she was the sweetest lady, super gracious and funny as hell! She was cracking jokes with us for awhile till she realized she had to go work the room. It was during this conversation she mentioned how Derek's fingers were torn to shreds during this run which is why he ended up using his pinky to strum earlier that night. Shortly after we made our way back down to catering to a room filled with VIP's and friends and family of the band. Luther tells me to just hang by him and we'll be chillin. I do just that as we hang in this crowded room and Luther pulls two ice cold seltzers out of his jacket pocket for him and myself.
You can tell someone special had walked in the room when everyone was facing and crowding towards one corner. Sure enough I spot the luscious Allman blonde hair of Derek Trucks walk in the room. I stick with Luther and maybe five minutes after that Derek walks up to Luther and they have a big hug. Luther introduces me and like to think I wasn't too weird during this interaction! We talked briefly about the show and some other mutual friends I found we had and then on he went to work the room. Time went by and alas the night was coming to a close, we made our way back up to the green room collected our belongings and we went our separate ways after a heartlfelt goodbye.
This was such a special night for me for so many different reasons. I can't thank Mark and Luther enough for making it happen. I'm eternally grateful for Luther's friendship to always be someone I can talk to about the music biz and what it entails. While it's a tough living there are nights like this where you get to see the behind the scenes of what goes on in the upper echelon and it's inspiring to see in person. Especially a unit like TTB who I've never witnessed so up close and for everyone there to have been as gracious as they were is something I won't forget. One day I hope to be in a position where I could bring a young gun out to experience these sort of life changing moments. Until then I'll keep pushing the rock up the hill little by little. Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed this unique perspective from a night I won't soon forget!