ASBURYJUKES.NET – BY STAN LISOWSKI – JULY 27, 2001

it’s been a couple of days since friday evening at bb kings. and the “buzz” from that night still lingers fairly strong. in what ranks up there with jukestock and the NYE millennium performances, to us, this was a HUGELY memorable show. quite simply, it had everything one could ask for. the energy, music, and comedy that came from this gig, were something special. from the get go with johnny in a wackier than wack mood, this night was filled with smiles and laughs. right off the bat southside is bemoaning his mic stand. “never being able to catch a break” he mutters. then he goes into busting the horn duo that play on network tv.

only coming to “slum” with the jukes. max weinberg was next to catch the redass from johnny, as south proclaimed him “the luckiest man in the business”. by the time “tell ‘em i’m broke” was thru, southside was in full stride. “if you got horns, IF you GOT horns, IF YOU GOT HORNS……USE EM”, was a chant that perfectly fit the festivities.

musical highs, in no particular order, “sinful”, nasty, bluesy, soulsonic. johnny’s vocals going guttural. chris, wearing one of the coolest shirts i have ever wanted, closing his eyes, shaking his head side to side, mouthing “you’re sinful baby”, while shaking his hand, fanning the heat. “i played the fool”, muddy providing the big bass intro.

kingfish just nailing the big baritone solo. “25 miles”, a sweet treat, with edwin starr’s classic, never sounding so horny with all that brass. south, jeff, bobby sharing vocals. the “countdown” on “miles to go” was the balls.

soulful instances occurred during “gladly go blind” and “tired skin”. witnessed some swooning from the ny girlie contingent during the former.

chris anderson providing a most passionate accompaniment to johnny’s vocals on the latter. thanks for making my wife all mushy, chris.

bandiera, wailed on “livin’ with the blues”.

“on the beach”, louie louie, slammin’, hammerin’. drumstick pieces flying like shrapnel. pounding the shit outta his kit.

and muddy, muddy, that young looking sonuvabitch, just staying with him. fingers flailing like mad. honestly, in one humble opinion, this was a great night for mr. shews.

KZ, the surfin’ bird, riding the waves on top of his set. hood peering out from the back, mindful of any jeff wipeouts. joey’s wonderfully smooth solo during “walk away renee”. chorus had every single bandmember singing. “the fever”, always an all-time fav. labamba’s solo, maddening. growling into his piece. visually, spinning and kicking his leg into the air, showing off those brown and white spats. triumphant body language saying “take that, motherf%#$er!!!!”

johnny looking fit in his black tee and black all-stars, bleeding from the heart, emotion never fails to give goosebumps. “better way home” as a kamikaze finale had the room in a frenzy. heads ready to explode. so strong, so much energy. what could be left?

animated moments were as usual, pender. markus, gyrating, ball-bearings in his hips, pleading amore to the air. is it any wonder he wears “the loveman” moniker so well??? horns doin’ that kumbaya thing. the “illegal motion” movement is hardcore R&B.

jocularity, almost constant from johnny was the nutz. for some unknown reason, out of nowhere, he starts singing, “i’m a little teacup”. jeff and bobby, of course, follow right in. chris provides the pantomime. during the dedication to an anniversary couple, he ponders, why “renee”. suggesting instead, “sacrifice”. then pushing the envelope further, southside starts singing tammy wynette’s “d-i-v-o-r-c-e” to the couple. jeff and bobby, of course, follow right in.

johnny, obviously, a fan of “behind the music”, details the ricky nelson story. does “travlin’ man” in it’s entireity. south starts a yankee chant. labamba, a flushing by the bay devotee, objects and starts sqawking about the mets. johnny gives him crap. richie says, “my kids love the mets”. southside responds by saying, “yeah, but they love YOU, too.” later on, southside comes back to this, almost like a delayed reaction, bringing up the ambiguity of labamba being a met fan, yet richie is from philadelphia. which led to the phillies. johnny starts improvising on a chant/song for philadelphia going, “let’s go phillies, give me a cheesesteak.”

very awkward, personal instance, happened during “without love”. johnny comes over to where my wife and i are standing. he leans down slightly, actually singing to us. i’m having a flashback to jukestock thinking, “YES, the south’s gonna headbutt me again!!!!!”. unfortunately, as i leaned in, in great anticipation, the bastard stands straight up. now, i am directly, DIRECTLY at eye-level, not more than 5 inches, from his crotch. being a dedicated practitioner of heterosexuality, i am trying to be cool, looking to my left, my right, left again, straight ahead, SHIT!!!!! eye contact, AGAIN, to the crotch!!! turn my head. thank god southside is leaving. our friend gail, slaps me on the back and says, “THERE’S your F%$#ing birthday present!!!!!!!!!!”

thanks for a most succulent evening, johnny and jukes.

OW OW OOOOOOOOWWWWWW
stan and kim

ps-it would truly be a sin if a shout-out wasn’t given to 2 of our buds. gail and linda. who helped kick off this birthday weekend by doing us up with tickets and dinner. thank you ladies, for the night, and most of all, for the friendship. we love you!!!!!!!!!!!! pps-who was the soundguy??? he KICKED ASS!!!!!!!!!!

Copyright (c) STAN & KIM LISOWSKI – 2001, all rights reserved
Picture Copyright (c) by Judy Berger, 2001