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| John Mayall at The Coach House. |
Who: Walter Trout, John Mayall
Where: The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, CA
When: Friday, Dec. 10, 2021
Next: John Mayall is performing a series of "Final Shows" including a trio of forthcoming Saturday night concerts at The Coach House on Jan. 29, Feb. 26 and March 26, 2022. Visit www.TheCoachHouse.com to secure tickets for any of these dates.
Information on upcoming Walter Trout concert dates: https://www.waltertrout.com/tour-dates
Review by Robert Kinsler
Photography by Bob Steshetz
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| John Mayall behind his keyboards at The Coach House. |
Two blues rock giants shared the bill at The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano on Friday night, bringing a true celebration of the enduring genre to an enthusiastic and packed house.
John Mayall performed a full-length set before Orange County's own Walter Trout took the stage to cap the night.
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| From left, Greg Rzab, Jay Davenport, John Mayall and Carolyn Wonderland. |
Mayall, who celebrated his 88th birthday last month but looks considerably younger, has a long legacy of recruiting top-tier players who enhance his recordings and live performances. Guitarists Eric Clapton, Peter Green (Fleetwood Mac), Mick Taylor (The Rolling Stones) and the aforementioned Trout all got their first major taste of international fame performing with Mayall. Indeed, as great as Mayall's talents as singer and keyboardist were on Friday night, the collective power of drummer Jay Davenport, bassist Greg Rzab and guitarist Carolyn Wonderland brought additional firepower to the 80-minute outing.
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| Guitarist Carolyn Wonderland impressing the crowd throughout the night. |
The opening cut — a rollicking cover of Curtis Salgado's "The Sum of Something" — immediately thrust the crowd into Mayall's time-honed British blues rock sound. The eight-minute foray featured Mayall's work on the keyboards and a long dramatic guitar solo from Wonderland; Rzab and Davenport were razor sharp with their rhythm section work.
Other early highlights of Mayall's set included the dance floor-ready jaunt "Movin' Groovin' Blues" (with Wonderland getting a huge ovation at the end of her tasty and artful lead guitar solo), a Louisiana soaked take on Clifton Chenier's "Why Did You Go Last Night" (featuring Mayall and Wonderland on tandem vocals) and a rousing cover of Blind Willie Johnson's "It's Nobody's Fault but Mine" featuring Wonderland on lead vocals.
Late set standouts included an inspired reading of the Lionel Hampton classic "Ridin' on the L & N," the ambitious marathon-length "California" complete with dazzling solo turns for all four musicians and the blasting British blues rocker "Ain't No Guarantees."
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| Guitarist Walter Trout headlining at The Coach House on Dec. 10, 2021. |
Trout, 70, was obviously thrilled to be performing back before a hometown crowd (he lives in nearby Huntington Beach) and delivered a powerful 90-minute set anchored by songs pulled from his winning albums that have been issued since he received a second lease on life via a successful liver transplant in May 2014.
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| From left, Teddy "Zig Zag" Andreadis, Walter Trout, Johnny Griparic and Mike Leasure performing at The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, CA. |
As outstanding as Trout's virtuoso guitar work, poignant lead vocals and confessional original songs are on his albums, he is even more impressive in concert. That was clear across his 11-song set at The Coach House. After taking the stage at 10 p.m., Trout and his terrific band (keyboardist-harmonica player Teddy "Zig Zag" Andreadis, drummer Mike Leasure and bassist Johnny Griparic) tore into "I Can Tell" introduced by a flat-out amazing guitar solo.
Before performing his second selection "Walkin' In The Rain," Trout took time and noted "We are so happy to be down here tonight...It's good to be home." He then acknowledged Mayall's profound impact on his life and career: "He is my mentor...he is my musical father. I love you John."
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| Walter Trout, left, with Johnny Griparic in San Juan Capistrano. |
While "Walkin' In The Rain" is a slower Chicago blues-styled cut, Trout's guitar work erupted with power and emotion. The dreamy blues rocker "Wanna Dance" followed and was one of the most poignant cuts of the night, Trout's nuanced baritone vocals were the equal to the probing lyrics and his otherworldly fret work.
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| Teddy "Zig Zag" Andreadis at The Coach House. |
Other early set cuts that connected powerfully included the soulful blues track "All Out Of Tears," the blistering "Got A Broken Heart" (featuring Trout's guitar dueling with Andreadis' organ), the arching "My Foolish Pride" and soul-stirring "Almost Gone" (the latter a song that chronicles his near death experience from liver disease featured on 2015's acclaimed Battle Scars).
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| Drummer Mike Leasure in the zone. |
Trout's set maintained its mighty momentum throughout, with late set favorites including the rollicking blues rocker "We're All In This Together," a anthemic cover of Floyd Lee's "Red Sun," an affecting run through of Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released" and the night-ending Chuck Berry-on-steroids styled run through William Harris' "Bullfrog Blues."
"Thank you," Trout said after the final note was played. "Good night. God bless you."
A night to remember for sure.
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| Audrey Anne Gelb at The Coach House on Dec. 10, 2021. |
Opening the night was a 40-minute set from Orange County native / singer-songwriter Audrey Anne Gelb, who performed a mix of original songs including sparse covers of hits originally released by Stevie Wonder, Adele and more.
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