Robert Randolph and the Family Band 1/11/2004

Just 72 hours prior to Robert Randolph and the Family Band’s performance at Burlington’s rugged Memorial Auditorium, the lap steel star was playing center court at the Staples Center in Los Angeles for this year’s glitzy Grammy Awards. Selected to play in a funk tribute with Earth Wind &Fire, OutKast, Shaft man Samuel Jackson, and George Clinton and the P Funk Allstars, it’s no question that Randolph shared the stage with some mighty company. Later that week, it was announced that Randolph would be opening for guitar legend Eric Clapton on his European tour. For those that thought 2003 was a breakout year for the sacred steel master, hold on, as Randolph proved moving from the church to clubs to the Grammy’s is just the beginning. Perhaps visiting an old gymnasium in frigid Vermont was anti-climatic following these triumphant events of the same week.

This particular midweek evening, Randolph was to open for island –vibe roots rock band O.A.R. – or perhaps it should have been the other way around. It wasn’t quite clear as to what band the all ages crowd was here to see. Either way, it appeared Abercrombie &Fitch would have made the perfect sponsor for the night’s events.

Hip-hop folk singer Toothpick performed the opening set and had the crowd laughing and cheering to various drug references and rhymes about living the “highlife.” Soon, the new look Family Band took the stage with multi-instrumentalist Jason Crosby - who has played previously with Susan Tedeschi, Oteil Burbridge &the Peacemakers and God Street Wine - took over for the recently departed John Ginty on keys. The foursome opened with an instrumental that featured Randolph on rare electric guitar duties, which he handled in surprisingly solid fashion. Crosby immediately let his presence be felt as he teased the 80’s “Axel F” theme from the Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack. With such an odd placement, one would think “Oh Yea” from Ferris Bueller ‘s Day Off was soon to follow. Instead, Randolph revisited “I Need More Love,” the same song he played Grammy night that resonated with Sly and the Family Stone's pop/soul/rock energy. Randolph then lent his so-so vocals to a version of Jimi Hendrix’s Purple Haze that got the crowd energized with its patented riff.

“Shake Your Hips” featured a dozen girls on stage, yes, shaking their hips seductively behind Randolph. For a man who prides himself on being raised with church ethics, it was certainly going against the grain, as most of the females shaking it, looked younger than 18. Following a new age jazz tune gone bad, the band hiked up the energy in a disco instrumental march of Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough” which had Randolph’s steel wah wah’s mimicking Jackson’s falsetto vocals, as Crosby nailed the disco beats on his keyboards and cousin Marcus Randolph kept the catchy beat alive. The band regrouped to their own material and dove into “ I Don’t Know What You Come,” followed by the stomp friendly “Ted’s March.” Minutes later the lights went up, perhaps an hour too soon, as the band seemed to be just catching its groove. Robert Randolph proved he can clearly warm up a crowd, but proved big enough to hold his own stage with or without O.A.R.