Before Bonnie Raitt walked out of the 1991 Grammy Awards with an arm full of trophies, she was a singer/songwriter trying to keep her music alive with a yearly ritual of a new tour and a new album. Although in 1979, her big commercial breakthrough was still a dozen years away, Raitt was well on her way to blending raw blues, R&B and rock into a decidedly more adult contemporary style.
When this show was recorded for the King Biscuit Flower Hour in 1979, Raitt was on the road promoting a new album on Warner Brothers entitled The Glow. Since her first Warner LP, Give It…entire summary
Bonnie Raitt - vocals, guitar
Freebo - bass
Rick Vito - guitar
Walt Richmond - keyboards
Dennis Whitted - drums
Marty Grebb - saxophone
Pat Hayes - harmonica
Before Bonnie Raitt walked out of the 1991 Grammy Awards with an arm full of trophies, she was a singer/songwriter trying to keep her music alive with a yearly ritual of a new tour and a new album. Although in 1979, her big commercial breakthrough was still a dozen years away, Raitt was well on her way to blending raw blues, R&B and rock into a decidedly more adult contemporary style.
When this show was recorded for the King Biscuit Flower Hour in 1979, Raitt was on the road promoting a new album on Warner Brothers entitled The Glow. Since her first Warner LP, Give It Up in 1972, Raitt had expanded her live band from an acoustic duo consisting of herself and bassist Freebo, to a full fledged electric band doing much more contemporary styled blues, rock, R&B and folk than she had in her earlier years. This show marks the end of nine weeks on the road, and the band is as tight as a drum - this lineup smokes.
She opens with "Baby I Love You" and moves straight into Sam & Dave's classic “I Thank You.” This show moves from one highlight to the next. Raitt's take on Mable John's "You’re Good Thing Is About To End” is a particular standout, as is "Angel From Montgomery." The show also features a one-two punch of “Runaway” (Raitt had had a hit in 1977 with a rocked-up version of the 1961 Del Shannon hit) and raucous replay of Robert Palmer's “You’re Gonna Get What’s Coming.” The show closes with a powerhouse version of "Under The Falling Sky" featuring Pat Hayes' smoking harmonica work.
When Raitt recorded this show at the Orpheum in Minneapolis, she and her band were only a few months away from the historic No Nukes rally held in the fall of 1979 in Battery Park, New York City. That event would forever place Bonnie Raitt on the list of activist artists, and she has consistently supported multiple causes to this day.
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