Guest Book

HEADLINE: MUSIC REVIEW; Tedeschi and Trucks team up for inspiring show at Brown By Jeffrey Lee Puckett The Louisville Courier Journal "When Musicians Marry" would make for a pretty good reality show because the results are usually disastrous, involving epic, groupie-related battles, out-of-control egos and more than one divorce. Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks probably wouldn't be invited, however. They're too good of a team and presumably not just as husband and wife. Ratings would nosedive. Case in point: the current tour featuring the Susan Tedeschi Band and Derek Trucks Band sharing a stage, musicians and encores. It came to the Brown Theatre Wednesday night and delivered more than three hours of American roots music. Tedeschi and Trucks complement each other well. She has the voice, all honey and sandpaper with a big helping of Southern soul. He has the guitar chops, with complete command of any style he chooses. When their kids grow up, they'll rule the world. Tedeschi was the headliner, although it could have gone either way. Her emphasis was on soul and rhythm & blues, with the occasional straight shot of blues. She started a bit unsure but everything came together around five songs into the set with a cover of Otis Redding's "Security" that seemed to ignite both Tedeschi and her band. She played her first solo on the song Tedeschi is also a fine guitarist, although more tradition-based than Trucks and the rest of her set was more loose and fun, even though she struggled with pacing all night. Trucks opened with a set that must have both thrilled and decimated any guitarists in the audience he has the kind of skills that could inspire greatness or retirement. He effortlessly incorporated blues, jazz, rock, soul and Indian influences on a dizzying array of solos, most often utilizing his bottle-neck slide, and he was rarely gratuitous. Trucks is a musician first, soloist second, and his playing always served the song. There were times when he sounded like John Coltrane during the saxophonist's free-jazz period only to turn around and reference someone like Ali Akbar Khan seconds later. The entire set had a distinct 1960s feel, a Fillmore West vibe, and it was nice to hear a jam band with such strong ideas.