When talking about the band from Boston, most probably assume you are talking about Aerosmith. Well, long before Aerosmith became a fixture across the US and then the world, there was another band from Boston who equally deserved fortune and fame. That band was J. Geils and unfortunately, the band never did receive the accolades it so richly deserved until its 1981 album “Freeze Frame” went to number one on the billboard chart.
This band is much more than those familiar pop tunes like “Freeze Frame” and “Centerfold.” They cut their chops primarily on a blues based edge and that’s what they brought to the Western New York area this past Friday night. The band included original members Peter Wolf (vocals), Seth Justman (keyboards), Danny Klein (bass) and Magic Dick (harmonica). There was the obvious absence of founding member J, Geils, who is in a legal battle over the use of the name with the current line-up.
Magic Dick appeared first, diving into the tune “Sno-Cone” off of the 1976 “Blow Your Face Out” LP. Wolf appeared with his backup vocalists before taking the spotlight, and for the rest of the show, he reminded the crowd why he is one of the most underrated frontmen of all time. He still has the groove as his early days of being DJ seemed to infiltrate his stage persona. Wolf also made many Buffalo references, talking about chicken wings and his fond memories of the band playing in the area way back when.
Although Wolf shined, it doesn’t go without saying that Magic Dick was right there with him. His harmonica playing is really what allowed the band to do what they do. All throughout the night, Magic Dick made his presence felt numerous times. “Whammer Jammer” is his baby and having it displayed in the encore was very fitting. The band also hired guitarist Duke Levine, who seemed to mesh right into the blues groove that the band was providing.
Besides “I Do,” the band really omitted many of their hits and focused on their blues based material in the first portion of the show. The crowd ate it up. From “South Side Shuffle” to the first song the band ever wrote “Sanctuary,” the band covered it all. During “Love Stinks,” a woman came out and handed Peter a dozen roses, which he proceeded to hand out during that song and the following song “Lookin’ for a Love.”
The sets on other stops of this short tour seemed longer, but from talking to people who have seen multiple shows, Buffalo was by far the best of the bunch. In my humble opinion, the band sounded great, Wolf (who is in his mid sixties) was up to the task and actually exceeded it. You could call this one of the gems of the summer concert season for sure!
Set List:
Sno-Cone
Hard Drivin’ Man
Homework
Night Time
Southside Shuffle
Cry One More Time (Gram Parsons cover)
Sanctuary
Pack Fair and Square
I Do
Make Up Your Mind
Just Can’t Wait
One Last Kiss
Cruisin’ for a Love
On Borrowed Time
Surrender
Freeze Frame
Detroit Breakdown
Give It to Me
Centerfold
Love Stinks
Lookin’ for a Love
Encore:
Whammer Jammer
(Ain’t Nothin’ But A) Houseparty
We would like to thank Anna Loynes from Solters PR for allowing BackstageAxxess to review the show.
