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Best-known as the late Stevie Ray Vaughan's rock-solid rhythm section, Double Trouble actually began life as a band of equals in 1978, the year vocalist Lou Ann Barton left a blues group called Triple Threat in which Vaughan was the guitarist. Accompanied by bassist Jackie Newhouse and drummer Chris "Whipper" Layton, Vaughan took over vocal duties and the band renamed itself Double Trouble after an Otis Rush song. Bassist Tommy Shannon, who learned the blues serving an apprenticeship with Johnny Winter, joined the outfit in 1980, and he and Layton would accompany Vaughan throughout the guitarist's meteoric career, from his 1983 debut album Texas Flood to his tragic death in 1990. Shannon and Layton regrouped as part of a blues-rock supergroup called the Arc Angels, who released a self-titled album in 1992; subsequently, the duo became an in-demand session team, backing artists like W.C. Clark, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, and Doyle Bramhall, among others. Shannon and Layton also recorded with the Austin-based blues collective Storyville during the '90s. For their first album as Double Trouble, the duo recruited a bevy of guest stars to handle vocals and guitar, including Bramhall, Lou Ann Barton, longtime Vaughan keyboardist Reese Wynans, Jonny Lang, Willie Nelson, Dr. John, and Jimmie Vaughan. The result, Been a Long Time, was released in early 2001 on the Tone-Cool label. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
MP3.com Live: A tale of double Zero 7s
UK down-tempo act's two vocalists, Jose Gonzalez and Sia Furler, embody the smooth and the sloppy in a show at San Francisco's Fillmore.
Last night's Zero 7 show at the Fillmore in San Francisco was best summed up in a single and decidedly nonmusical moment involving the downtempo outfit's two vocalists, Sia Furler and Jose Gonzalez, as they stood far from center stage.
Zero 7
As Zero 7 principals Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker led their band through a lengthy instrumental jam late in the set, Furler bounced manically all over the back of the stage, returning to the corner to swill her cocktail, perform some off-kilter dance moves, and deliver fake karate chops to Gonzalez, who was playing a shaker and smiling politely at his giddy cohort.
Furler's glee was a pleasure to watch at times, but it was also indicative of the fact that--at least in a live setting--Zero 7 has a tendency to get pretty darn sloppy. Last night's show was a stark departure from the immaculately produced, electro-for the-latte-set sound of the duo's three studio albums.
In addition to Furler and Gonzalez, Binns and Hardaker brought a full band on tour with them. The live instruments added a rich texture to what is already a fairly lush sound. But they also proved to be the show's downfall, bringing a messiness that was ear-splitting at times. Simply put, if the band isn't tight, extended rhythmic jams are the sonic equivalent of a runaway train: It's not going to end well.
Furler, a terribly gifted vocalist, delivered a fine performance on several tracks, including "Destiny" and "The Pageant of the Bizarre." She was often the victim of her own zeal, however, constantly asking for--and getting--more volume in her mic as that volume level reached deafening levels.
But last night's 90-minute set was saved on several fronts by Gonzalez, whose vocals on four songs on the duo's latest album, The Garden, are spectacular. The word on Gonzalez--think Christopher Cross-meets-Jose Feliciano--has been out for a while, with his debut album Veneer drawing rave reviews.
Jose Gonzalez
But he particularly shines on stage, and last night was no different, both in his solo opening set and during his Zero 7 songs. A fantastic acoustic guitar player and a wonderfully emotive singer, Gonzalez can be mesmerizing despite playing very quiet music.
That's surely what drew Binns and Hardaker to seek him out last year, and the result--Gonzalez crooning and picking over lush, downtempo beats--provided several highlights last night, particularly the Zero 7 version of Gonzalez's "Crosses." That song, with its buffed-up percussion and building rhythm, commanded the attention of an otherwise preoccupied crowd last night for a lengthy stretch.
That is, until the wheels started coming off at the end.
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