Live in London

The electric blues guitar boss -- only in his early twenties at the time of this release -- Christone "Kingfish" Ingram brought his tight quartet to Londons Garage on June 6, 2023, for a standing-room-only crowd. Live in London, the guitar slingers third album for Alligator, appeared just three months later. Its a beautifully recorded, incendiary gig captured in the moment. The 17-track program is equally split between selections from his first two albums: 2019s Kingfish and 2021s 662, plus new tunes and a cover. Kingfish leaves plenty of room for spontaneity live. Set opener "She Calls Me Kingfish" is introduced by DeShawn Alexanders reverbed, floating Rhodes piano thats replaced by a Hammond B-3 organ before Paul Rogers bumping bassline and Chris Blacks drum kit establish a funky shuffle. Ingrams playing crisscrosses jazz, prog rock, soul, and blues before its time to solo. In contrast, his biting Stratocaster delivers a strolling break that melds the phrasing of B.B. King and Jimmy Johnson with an innate, deeply personal lyricism. Over seven minutes, its dynamic and intensity shift several times, drawing the enthusiastic crowd in. "Fresh Out" is even longer, a slow, wrangling, Chicago blues, it offers locked-on group interplay even during the solos by Ingram and Alexander. The tempo remains relatively laid-back through the poignant soul blues of "Another Life Goes By." (Interestingly, one can hear the influence of Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson in the melody and lyric.) Michael "Iron Man" Burks "Empty Promises" is Hendrixian in invention, drama, and tension. Its loss-laden lyric is underscored by the B-3 and sets a perfect frame for Ingrams arrestingly soulful singing on top. The nasty, gritty "Hard Times" is a keyboard and rhythm collision that Ingram elevates with his hip vocals and distorted wah-wah soloing. "Mississippi Night" is a previously unissued scorching ten-minute instrumental that puts all of Ingrams considerable improvising skills on display. The middle section offers two solo acoustic Delta jams. "Been Here Before" is an autobiography and tribute to his grandmother with canny fingerpickinging and percussive strumming. The other -- "Something in the Dirt" -- is also a testifying autobiography of person and place set to a celebratory I-IV-V shuffle with killer turnarounds. The second half commences with the swaying blue soul of "Youre Already Gone," driven by B-3 as Ingram testifies with conviction in his vocal. His solo adds depth, dimension, and power. While "Rock n Roll" remains a deeply moving tribute to his late mother complete with gospel overtones, "Not Gonna Lie" combines blues, funk, and rootsy rock in a personal manifesto. "Midnight Heat," another new song, is snarling and potent, as Ingrams lyric offers intimacy to a lover with a loose groove that crisscrosses electric Southern blues and Meters-esque R&B. Closer "662" is bursting with the uptempo dancehall Texas groove of Albert King, the Vaughan Brothers, and the Fabulous Thunderbirds. Live in London provides more evidence that Ingram is a force to be reckoned with: Not only can he play like the legends, but hes an original vocalist, a solid songwriter, and a disciplined bandleader. ~ Thom Jurek