With a career spanning seven decades and nearly fifty albums, the 81 year old Taj Mahal can justifiably lay claim to the title of musical legend.
He has won four Grammy Awards and has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. His collaborations include The Rolling Stones, Ry Cooder, Etta James, Angelique Kidjo, Ben Harper, Ziggy Marley and Toumani Diabate. The genres he is associated with include reggae, Latin, R&B, Cajun, Caribbean, gospel, jazz and calypso. Not so much world music as a world of music.
He has nothing left to prove but this wonderful live album is more than just an ‘I’m still standing’ statement. The setting is a church which Leon Russell purchased in 1972 and converted into a recording studio/office for his Shelter Records label. One of the aims was to have a venue for showcasing the “Tulsa Sound” and to celebrate black history and culture.
Taj Mahal is backed by bassist Bill Rich, drummer Kester Smith, and guitarist/Hawaiian lap steel player Bobby ‘Roberto’ Ingano. Tis kick-ass band is augmented by dobro player Rob Ickes. Guitarist and vocalist Trey Hensley features on two tracks: Sitting On Top Of The World and Lovin’ In My Baby’s Eyes.
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Taj says “It was a great opportunity to capture this particular sextet, and also pay tribute to Leon and all that he did, and my friendship with him, at one of the premier studios on planet Earth.”
He sounds his age but in a good way and still knows what makes for a great show. The set includes classics like Corinna,Queen Bee, the instrumental Twilight in Hawaii and closes with a ten minute jam on T-Bone Walker’s Mean Old World.
Taj says “I don't play no song because I have to. I play songs because I love them, and I want to share them. It's all about lifting the spirit, being positive towards women, positive towards yourself, positive toward life, toward other people, other languages, other cultures.”
Amen to that.
Taj Mahal’s website
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