Wolf Trap has a well-earned reputation for having appreciative but not wildly
enthusiastic crowds. This was definitely not the case Tuesday evening, with the
first clue being the two pre-show lines to buy merchandise, which were the
longest I can remember in my years of Wolf Trap concert-going. (They do have a
really cool logo.) At least half the crowd was standing for their opening song,
and most were on their feet for a number of others (“Stray Cat Strut”, “Gene
And Eddie”, their cover of Dick Dale’s “Misirlou”, “Sexy + 17”, and of course “Rock
This Town”, as well as their three-song encore). Those who only know their hits
would be surprised at the depth of their repertoire; “Lust ‘N’ Life”, which I
hadn’t heard before, is now one of my favorites. (And it wasn’t just a
nostalgia trip, as they threw in 5 songs from this year’s reunion album, 40.) Visually, Setzer certainly had his
moments, although much of his flash consisted of his flying fingers on guitar.
Drummer Slim Jim Phantom and upright bassist Lee Rocker were the most physical
of the trio, with the latter also taking a share of the lead vocals. All in
all, a thoroughly enjoyable show.
James Hunter, along with Myles Weeks on upright bass, opened with a
30-minute set that was a trimmed-down version of his show in Annapolis last
week – 3 covers, 3 new songs, and 3 previously-recorded originals. Somewhat
surprisingly, given the length of the merch lines, most folks were in their
seats for his set and seemed to appreciate it, with a fair number of us
standing at the end. I was afraid he might lose the crowd permanently by
trotting out the old chestnut “September In The Rain” as his second number, but
any diminished enthusiasm was regained a couple songs later with his cover of Sonny
Boy Williamson’s “Step Back”.
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