Music

Chris Isaak, the luckiest guy in rock

By SEAN DALY
Published September 2, 2006
CLEARWATER

In a fair world, Chris Isaak would be as sad and lonely as the songs he sings. In a just world, the swinging 50-year-old bachelor would have long ago lost those movie-star-hunky looks, that cool wave of hang-ten hair, that peerless high-lonesome croon he learned at the School of Roy Orbison, for whom he once opened.

But some guys have all the luck ... and the looks ... and the talent ... and the ladies falling at their cowboy boots. And in front of 1,791 swooning fans oh yeah, swooning dudes, too at Ruth Eckerd Hall on Friday, Isaak, in his vintage sequined suits, proved that he just may be the luckiest rock star around.

Part rockabilly revivalist, part Vegas lounge singer, part smooth-talking cad, Isaak spent 100-plus minutes busting out hits (Somebody's Crying, Let Me Down Easy), pumping new blood into well-worn covers (Only the Lonely, I Want You to Want Me) and cranking out jokes and bada-bing banter like a Borscht Belt comic.

Isaak's show was a full-contact affair, and during a hammy take on Dean Martin's Return to Me and then his own Speak of the Devil, the hard-working singer hopped off the stage and into a crowd that instantly engulfed him.

"Are you wearing a ring?" he purred to one female fan.

"There's plenty for everybody, baby," he cracked to another.

Watch your back, Wayne Newton.

For all the zaniness, however, the music (a cool, kitchen-sink cocktail of country-meets-surf-meets-rock) was tight and sparkling. Isaak remains a tremendous vocalist with a mind-boggling range; you've heard Wicked Game thousands of times, but when Isaak nails it live, it's devastating. The notes he hits and holds would send most singers to the emergency ward.

It also helps that his five-piece band, Silvertone, with whom he has spent a lifetime, know all of the boss' tricks. Kudos especially go out to drummer Kenney Dale Johnson and bassist Roly Salley for seamlessly shifting tempo whenever their boss felt like going off setlist. (Also give props to the burly Johnson for his bluesy tune about NyQuil. There's an endorsement deal coming any day now.)

The highlights of the night included: Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing, that ominous ode to infidelity which Isaak stretched out with extra twang and menace - not to mention a hilarious story about dirty dealings in a double-wide. The sweet, soaring Let Me Down Easy, featured on his quirky Showtime comedy series, made for a nice sing-along.

And then there was Go Walking Down There, a ripper of a rock song that requires Isaak to go high and low, howl and coo. With the guys charging and stomping behind him, the song built to a furious climax. If you were sitting at song's start, you were standing by the end. Wow.

If you can't be Chris Isaak, watching the man have the time of his life ain't too shabby, either.

Sean Daly can be reached at sdaly@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8467. His blog is at www.sptimes.com/blogs/popmusic.

[Last modified September 2, 2006, 07:05:56]

http://www.sptimes.com/2006/09/02/Artsande..._the_luck.shtml

Great article! Thanks!

That was a really, really good article! Chris and the guys sure have been getting some amazing reviews!!!

"And then there was Go Walking Down There, a ripper of a rock song that requires Isaak to go high and low, howl and coo."

MY FAVORITE LINE.

That was a great review article of the Clearwater show that Chris & the guys did recently. Thanks for posting it. I enjoyed reading it.

-Deanna

Thank you muchly, oh Guest. I enjoyed that. This bit - "Some guys have all the luck" reminds me of the song of that name (Robert Palmer).




A hammy take?! If Chris is singing this a la the Baja Sessions version - there's nothing hammy about it.



What a wolf.



Ditto.




Gawd...wouldn't ol' Wayne be somebody's Granddad by now?!

KV ~ My favourite line: "(a cool, kitchen-sink cocktail of country-meets-surf-meets-rock)" Ya don't hear that one every day of the week, lol.

I've never done the kitchen sink cocktail.

But I have had a B-52 (a mixed drink)...which looks like dish water!

Well, as long as it didn't taste like it, lol. I've actually drank sangria which was mixed up in a USED rubbish bin before...let me explain.... It was inside one of those large plastic bins with the 'flip' lids. It was scrubbed out first, and then we put in a CLEAN bin-liner, and mixed the drink up in that. Resources were kind of scarce at the time, and we didn't have anything big enough to mix sangria up in for about 25 people.

I wonder if Chris has been called this before:

"Borscht Belt comic"



Seriously, thanks for posting the review. Chris nails those notes in "Wicked Game" like nobody's business.

So glad y'all liked it - see, Guests are good for something!

Robert Palmer didn't sing the song "Some Guys Have All The Luck". It was sung by Rod Stewart. That's a neat song.

-Deanna

After Chris said "Are you wearing a ring?" to one girl and "There's plenty for everybody, baby!" to the other, he went back to the stage and said something that he was going to remember going into the crowd because his butt would be black and blue the next day (because everyone was grabbing him. LMAO)!

Different version, Deanna. I'm a long-time admirer of Robert Palmer, he was another 'Mr Smooth' - he always dressed impeccably (like Chris) and had those really smooth looks as well. Bryan Ferry is another in that mold. There's nothing more attractive than a sexy-looking guy with a smooth voice, in a well-cut three-piece suit - especially on stage.

I am getting a major "visual" from this!!! Not only the black and blue butt, but also "there's plenty for everybody, baby"! What can I say, I am single again!!!!

The notes he hits and holds would send most singers to the emergency ward.

ain't that the truth!

I hear ya!


And I definitely agree getouttadenver.

I also think it's great how Chris smiles when everyone cheers and claps after he hits those notes. You can really tell that he really enjoys what he's doing!