Chris Isaak's rockabilly sound comes straight out of the heyday of 50's Rock and Roll. His vocal style and stage presence are directly linked to Jerry Lee Lewis whom Isaak proclaims as the "King of Rock and Roll." Chris is a well rounded entertainer that has fine tuned his craft over the last 25 years. His first album, "Silvertone," was recorded in 1984. I began attending his shows around 1987. I had the good fortune to see him play often at "The Coach House" in San Juan Capistrano, CA. Over the course of the first 10 years of his career, his audience changed drastically. In the mid 80's Chris Isaak had a hard-core rockabilly fan following. Lots of Pompadours, tight skirts and classic cars in the parking lot. After airplay and popularity of the song "Wicked Game," in 1991 the majority of the Chris Isaak crowd were no longer rockabilly kids but middle-aged yuppies.
His stage show also changed, evolving from his early beginnings as a formidable musician who would give each member of his band a break, while he took over playing each instrument. He'd rotate from guitar to bass to the drums, then back again to center stage. This was such an impactful experience that 20 years later I remember that show like it was yesterday. Since then he has evolved into more of an entertainer that involves the crowd by poking fun at his band members and dishing out 1 liners. He also makes a habit of running out into the crowd to connect with the audience.
Isaak's current tour is in support of the Beyond the Sun record that released in October. On the album he covers classic Sun Records' songs by Johnny Cash, Elvis, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis. His 28 song, 2 hour set included several tracks from the album including "It's Now or Never," "Ring of Fire" and "Great Balls of Fire" complete with a smoking piano and fake flames.
With no opening act, Chris gave the crowd their money's worth. He opened the show with "Beautiful Homes" from San Francisco Days and from that point on played a career spanning retrospective which also included several songs from his 2004 Christmas album. Even though Isaak continues to make records you can tell he feels most comfortable in front of a live audience. His witty banter and silly jokes are styled after the great showmen of the 1950's. He is a true entertainer and knows how to work the crowd.
Drummer Kenney Johnson, guitarist Hershel Yatovitz and bassist Rowland Salley are all excellent musicians that form a tight unit with Isaak. You can tell these guys are road warriors and are all seasoned pros that enjoy playing with each other.
The six song encore was highlighted by a cover of Roy Orbison's "Pretty Women" complete with a large pin up girl that was hoisted behind the band during the song. For the show closer, Isaak was alone on the stage playing an acoustic version of "Forever Blue" which ended the show intimately.
The near capacity crowd was mellow but appreciative. At one point during the show Isaak thanked the crowd for supporting live music which I thought was a nice touch. Spotted in the audience was local rockabilly legend Big Sandy who was showing his own support for live music.
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| Our Niece Natalie with Rockabilly Legend Big Sandy |
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