Band performs original blues,
provides upbeat atmosphere
By Jamie Teibel
Staff Writer
At the beginning of Johnny Marshall Blues Band's
set on Friday night, no more than 30 people filled the Knickerbocker
Saloon. By the sixth song, there was standing room only.
"Let's have a good time tonight," said Marshall,
as he began strumming his Fender Stratocaster. "Let's let it all hang
out — we gonna have some fun tonight."
Then he closed his eyes and began to play. Marshall's
voice echoed from the speakers overhead as he sang what he calls his
"Georgia blues."
Marshall sang about his hurting from the love of
a woman who is no good in "Heart of Gold." "When it comes to lovin'
she makes it right/when it comes to livin' all we do is fight."
But there's nothing sad about the way he sings
the blues or plays the complicated chords that accompanied each song.
From one song to another, Marshall continued to
sing emotionally, all the while shaking his head 'no' and parading around
on stage.
Marshall called "Not Like This Before" blues like
you’ve never heard before. Again it was a song to a woman, but
this time the words described how she made him feel good. "The way she
moves/let it pour/as long as you walk through my door/cause I haven't
loved like this before."
For his next song, "Crazy About My Woman," Marshall
invited the men to "bring your ladies to the dance floor for some bumpin'
and grindin.'"
Perhaps out of shyness or out of unfamiliarity
with the 'moves' that accompany the blues, the audience stayed seated
.
That's not to say that the audience had no appreciation
for the band's performance. Many times throughout the night, its shouting,
clapping and wolf-whistling drowned out the voice of Marshall as well
as the sounds of the bass and drums. Marshall didn't seem to mind though.
The three-man band played from late evening until
early morning, with one break in between, so they deserved all that
praise. Marshall said it best himself, "We're playin' from the heart
and that's what counts; we’re playin' from the heart."
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