Based on his vocal prowess alone, Jess Roden should by rights have been a household name. Instead, and despite playing and recording since 1966, he remains a cult artist. I first discovered him on the LP by the Butts Band and he totally blew me away from the first notes. "Who are the Butts Band?", you ask...Well, they are but a footnote in one of the most exciting chapters in The Book Of Music, the chapter of The Doors. Seeing an unknown record with the names of Robbie Krieger and John Densmore on the back cover certainly caught my attention, but the music within was not what I expected: It was actually way, way better. Instead of a second-rate Doors imitation I got this Eagles/Bad Company amalgam, with this amazing soulful singer. I'll present the Butts Band album in due time, suffice it to say that it marked for me the discovery of a great talent. Indeed, Roden deserves a place among the all-time-greatest "blue eyed soul" singers, similar to -and every bit as good as- Paul Rodgers, Joe Cocker, Stevie Winwood and Steve Marriott. Unfortunately, his career floundered and most of his albums (including this and the one with the Butts Band) are out of print. I found my copy of "Live At The Robin" in a second hand store and approached it with caution. Sure, the guy has a great voice but what if the band sucks or if the material is substandard? Plus, live albums can be hit-or-miss, depending on the night they were recorded. Well, lets talk about the band: The Humans were Gary Grainger on guitar (former Rod Stewart collaborator), Nick Graham on bass (former Atomic Rooster), Bill Burke on 2nd guitar and Leo Brown on drums. With two guitars and without keyboards or horns, the music veers away from Soul and towards Hard Rock. The album was recorded in 1996 at a club in the English Midlands and it finds the band on great form, playing in front of Roden's hometown crowd. Most of the songs come from the Humans' only album. The first two (self-penned) tracks sound like a bluesier version of Neil Young & Crazy Horse, stretched out beyond the 6-minute mark and with both guitars banging away. "Cool Water" (another Roden/Grainger original) has a Creedence-like Southern Rock feel, and it's followed by a couple of heavy blues workouts, Willie Dixon's "I Live The Life I Love" and Buddy Guy's "Let Me Love You Baby". "If You Really Want Me" is a bluesy hard rock ballad and Joe Tex's "You'd Better Believe It" a rousing soul number. The album then ends as it began, with a couple of loud and grungy rockers: The original "Before I Hurt Myself" and Neil Young cover "Rockin’ In The Free World". Unbeknownst to the band, it was to be the last song they would ever play together. Well, they may not have known it at the time, but at least they went out with a bang...
**** for When I Call Your Name, So Fine So Young, Cool Water, Before I Hurt Myself
*** for I Live The Life I Love, Let Me Love You Baby, If You Really Want Me, You'd Better Believe It, Rockin’ In The Free World
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