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- Cat.no: WNRD2346
- Released: February 2006
- Format: DVD 5
- Rating: 8/10
- Running time: 76 minutes
- Region: 2, PAL
- Fullscreen: 4:3
- Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 / Stereo 2.0
- Classification: E (Exempt)
- Languages: English & German
- Retail price: £15.99
- Extras: John Hiatt interview, October 9, 1987, Hamburg
Even though US singer-songwriter John Hiatt,has never managed to make a bigcommercial splash in the UK, he’s always been regarded as an iconic figure.Best he could do here was three top 100 albums – Stolen Moments (1990),Perfectly Good Guitar (1993) and Walk On (1995) out of 34 officialreleases up to 2005’s Live From Austin TX.
This DVD precedes those releases. Filmed around the time of Bring The Familyin 1987, Hiatt shows why the coveted writer has been admired and covered bythe Neville Brothers, Bonnie Raitt, Iggy Pop, Three Dog Night, Dave Edmunds,The Searchers amongst others. Ironically, his sales have never matched hisreputation, though this excellent concert might solve the problem.
A big fanof the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, he struggled to find his own niche fornearly a decade. Having started his solo career in 1974, the Indianapolistroubadour gravitated towards a more direct and stripped down presentationthan previous albums. It synthesised the blues, folk and Rock’n’Roll withgreat effect, found on this disc.
Bring The Family, his third release, became a turning point in his career asit peaked at 107 on the Billboard Hot 200 charts, his first entry. Itincluded legends Ry Cooder (g), Nick Lowe (b) and Jim Keltner (d) it wasquickly knocked together over a few of days, still bringing his best reviewsup to then. Capitalising on its success, he toured America and Europe.
For this show in Hamburg he opted for his regular touring band the Goners -Sonny Landreth (g) Dave Ranson (b) and Ken Blevins (d). Keen to plug the newalbum, Hiatt and co pull out all the stops across a well balanced set of 14songs. There’s impressive bottleneck blues work by Landreth on up-tempoopener Memphis In The Meantime, the slow blues of Tip Of My Tongue,highlight of the show, and Thank You Girl dedicated to his wife.
Folk andcountry influences surface on Learning How To Love You, a tale of young lovein turmoil, and Lipstick Sunset. Rockabilly pops up in the shape TennesseePlates.
Closing a bumper set, Hiatt tackles the keys on tear-jerker Have LittleFaith In Me. The German crowd loved it.
A polished performance, from a seriously underrated songwriter.
Elly Roberts passed away in 2011, but he was a man who was so passionate about all types of music and loved meeting his musical heroes, such as Mick Hucknall at a book signing at the Trafford Centre, Manchester in 2007.
A former teacher and also a music journalist, DJ and radio presenter on local community station Calon FM, plus appearances on BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru and BBC Radio 2, Elly started doing reviews for DVDfever.co.uk in 2004 and he did the majority of the CD and concerts reviews on the website.
I know also that he loved getting away for the summer to Spain and I hope that wherever he is now he is enjoying the hot sunshine and, as one of his friends has said on his Facebook page, that he is interviewing his musical heroes.