oh...my...god...

[sawyer@xxxxxxx]

I saw Howard Levy for the first time last night.  He appeared with
Mike Turk at "Johnny D's Uptown Lounge" in Somerville, MA. 

His virtuosity defies description.  None of the accounts of his
playing prepared me for what I heard.

Turk opened with his band.  After about 30 mins Turk turned the band
over to Howard.  He's a fine entertainer, too boot.  He began with a
little self ridicule, saying he proposed to entertain us on an
instrument that cost less than the dinner we'd just finished.  His
repertoire ranged from "Funny Valentine" to a medium tempo blues
shuffle on which he improvised lyrics.  At the end of the set when he
called Turk back, they traded solos, then individual bars. 

Second set opened with Paul Rishell (guitar) and Little Annie Raines
(acoustic harp) playing country blues, followed by Howard and the
band, joined quickly by Turk, who soon called Kim Field to the stage.
Turk and Howard gave Kim lots of room and he sounded great, singing
and playing a blues standard. Then Little Annie replace Kim.  At times
the three of them were huddled around one microphone; at other times
they stood in a line and played three-part horn riffs.

My meager musical observations: Howard uses the full range of the
instrument, all ten holes, with equally lyrical melodic lines...  He
gets the intricate harmonies we associate with the chromatic, but with
the diatonic sound... Such a level of virtuosity as Howard has leaves
the unaccustomed listener with little attention left over to hear the
*music*.  I heard more music from Turk, perhaps, because I was not so
spell bound by his playing.  Howard's scales *seemed* more complex and
surely his velocity was greater than Turk's.

oh...my...god...

	--Charlie

P.S. And to think that Billy Boy Arnold was playing only a few miles
away in Cambridge!