5 June 2001, Amager Bio, Copenhagen, Denmark.
I went to the concert with my son, Morten, age 17. He was enthusiastic, and so was I ! Johnny went on stage at 22:15 by the help of a roadie and a transparant plastic-cane. He looked very fragile and walked on stiff legs with small steps. On stage was a stool, which he used frequently during the concert. Johnnys first song was HIDEAWAY, and he did'nt play it very well ! He seemed tired and unconcentrated, and he played a lot of wrong notes. Still, standing in the first row to the stage, it was fantastic to wach him.
During the second song, 15 minutes in the concert, some jerk threw the contents of a full half litre beer at Johnny, hitting him, his hands and guitar, so Johnny dripped from beer ! Johnny was for half a second a bit shoked, but went on playing with beer all over the fingers and neck of the guitar. At the end of the number, he said: "Who was that motherfucker, who threw beer at me ?" And the bass-player said: "It's all-right, Johnny, he has been thrown out"
Johnny had to clean his fingers and guitar, that was all sticky from beer, and I said to myself, whoops - is he going to leave the concert, like he did on Roskilde Festival about 15 years earlier, when idiots threw beer-cans and bottles at him ? Luckily he did'nt - credits to you, Johnny ! I'm glad, that you choose not to let one idiot spoil the expectations of the rest of the crowd !
The concert went on, and Johnny became better and better, still not as good as before, but he had the spirit and still som of his greatness from the years before !
I think the concert was OK for me and particually for my son, who loved every minute, though he can play HIDEAWAY with a lot more correctness. But he don't have the feeling of an old guy, who had played the blues for allmost 50 years. And Johnny had two great guys to back him up, the drummer and the bass-player. Good work following him up, guys !
The crowd loved it, and at the end, after giving an extra song, Johnny seemed quite pleased - despite of the beer-incident He walked away with his stick - a little man with a GIANT inside.
Thank You Johnny, you still got the blues, and me and my son wishes you the best for the future - look after yourself !
Michael Madsen, Denmark
2 Jun 2001 - Katalin, Uppsala, Sweden
I have been a fan of Johnny's music for about ten years, and own and love many of his albums. He has not visited Sweden for a long while, so this was my first opportunity to se him live. Despite the rumors surrouding his health and playing, and a ticket price of $ 35, I decided to go. He's playing about 5 gigs in Sweden, one of them an extra concert in Stockholm, as the first show there was sold out. The first 2 shows, in Gothenburg and Stockholm, got really bad reviews, so I was forewarned that he might not be so good. The club, Katalin, was sold out, so there was a big and enthusiactic audience. It seems like Johnny has always been popular in Sweden, and he still has quite a following here. Johnny and the band came on stage a quarter past ten, but I missed the first number, Hideaway, as my friend fainted and I had to carry him out and wake him up. It was very warm in the club. Anyway, we were back in the hall as the first number ended. Johnny looked really weak, he barely moved and was all stiff in the face. It seems pretty clear that he is suffering from Parkinson's decease. But I was pleasantly surprised by his performance. He followed Hideaway with Mojo Working, and although he plays a lot slower than before, he still plays with impeccable taste and he still sounds like himself. His vocals were a bit weak at times, but as sleazy as on the records. I think he followed Mojo Working with She likes to boogie real low. That is one of my favorites, and he performed it well. The guitar work was tentative at first, but got good in the latter part of the song. Then he moved to the side of the stage and the roadie helped him change guitar and the band played The sun is shining. His slide work was fine, although he sang out of tune on this number and played a bit out of tune towards the end. This happened a couple of more times during the show, but was not so noticeable. They ended with Johnny Guitar, and Johnny just went to one side of the stage before the encore, some kind of instumental with the Fast life rider riff thrown in. I enjoyed the show and was happy to see one of my favorite artists live. It is true that he plays far below his previous standards, but this must be because of his medical problems. He still plays with taste and feeling, and I did not think it was a tragic performance. The band was very good too, supportive and tight. Johnny does look shockingly frail, perhaps he shouldn't tour any more, it cannot be good for his health. But it does seem like he enjoys playing; he smiled now and then and a big grin was visible on his face during the encore
peter strömbäck.
Fri 20 Apr 2001
Portland, Oregon
Johnny played the Aladdin Theater in Portland, Oregon on
April 20 to a near sell-out crowd, who paid $30 each to get in. I've been a
big fan since the late sixties, but hadn't seen him play live in close to fifteen
years. What I saw was not what I expected, and I was shocked by Johnny's condition.
His eyesight was always marginal, but now he is also very frail and hunched
over, could only walk very slowly with a cane, and sat motionless on a stool
for most of the show. My impression was that he has had a stroke or other serious
debilitating illness. His singing was weak and although his guitar tone was
good (mostly due to the equipment he was using), his guitar playing was only
a shadow of its former glory. The speed and the blazing solos were gone, his
timing was way off, and he frequently missed notes--either hitting entirely
wrong notes or missing the hammer-ons and hammer-offs, fast triplets, etc. All
he really appeared able to still do on guitar was riff the chord changes on
rhythm. To his credit, the young rhythm section he had with him was hot, and
carried the show. The only real bright spot in the show were the couple songs
that he played slide on his Firebird, and a respectable version of his theme
song, Johnny Guitar. In the end, I was more saddened than disappointed. I completely
agree with Matt and Fred, who reviewed the two BC shows: Johnny's legendary
status is secure, but I think he's being misrepresented by his management, who
shouldn't be charging fans the kind of money they're asking to see him play,
without any forewarning regarding his current health and condition. I've seen
Muddy
Waters , Johnny Shines, Robert Jr. Lockwood, and other well known blues
artists when they were either ill or past their prime, but I always went to
those shows more or less knowing what to expect, and as a result those artists
were treated with the respect they deserved and maintained their own dignity
in the process. If Johnny really needs the money that badly, there are plenty
of musicians who owe their careers to Johnny's groundbreaking style of electric
Texas blues-rock, who should be more than willing to donate their talents to
benefit Johnny.
-Randy Albright
21 Apr 2001
Ballard FireHouse, Seatle
Caught the tail end of JW's performance at the Ballard FireHouse in Seattle last night (Sat, April 21, 2001). Let me fling out some random observations since I did not catch the whole show. Physically, yes, there's some real problems there: the glass cane, the on-stage/off-stage help required; the scary lack of affect, the spuer-frail luminous frame; something is going on against doctors orders. I've got to agree with Matt - who saw JW in Canada just a few days before...
Musically: yes, missed notes and some uncoordinated playing. But here's the mysterious thing (and I think I am echoing just about every review posting from 1997 onwards): even playing slow and safe and bit awkward, JW is wonderful to listen to. I know classical, rock, jazz and latin musicians and they all have a code word to describe guitar playing they respect: "musical". Is it "musical?" the all ask. In other words does it flow, is it free, is it techincally accomplished, is it imaginative and - does in combine all of these to send you to a special space - that, I think, is the musician's definition of "musical." Johnny is nothing if not musical.
Compared to Johnny, the millions of notes laid down by Al, Joe, Steve, seem like so much sound. It must be really frustrating for these guitarists to attain such technical mastery of the guitar and then find themselves so often incapable of seducing their audience. Yeah I know, we're supposed to like them, and like every guitar lover, I do. (I even wonder if the guitar is cut out to be a single note, high-octane, high-volume, bob-scale solo instrument - aren't the sax and the violin better cut out for this? - the guitar's real strenth seems to be in polyphony...but that's another subject)But Johnny's got the duende (the Spanish word for magical guitar imp/demon that makes listeners fall in love with the player).
Back to the concert: if you want to see Niagra falls, don't go. If you want to contemplate a small beautiful creek (or even a small fountain!), go.
Das
18 Apr 2001
Commodore Ballroom/ HOB, Vancouver
I just saw Johnny Winter at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver and was completely saddened by it. Johnny's place in the world of blues/rock guitar is secure. No one who saw him at his peak could argue otherwise. I had the privilege of opening for him in 1997 at the Commodore and the man was still on top of his game. However, seeing him in the shape he is in was very disheartening.
First, he should not be on the road charging money to see him play when in fact he can't any longer for what ever the reasons. Yes, he has had life long addiction problems and I am sure a variety of other aliments, but that cannot be used as an excuse to go out and charge people money. Whoever is responsible in allowing this to happen (I.a. his manager) knows full well that his fans are being ripped off big time and the mans dignity is being destroyed. It is obvious to anyone that he is beyond his playing abilities and should not allow his legendary status to be tarnished by uncaring music business types.
I am and will continue to consider myself a Johnny Winter
fan, but I will never attend another show. If his management really wants what's
best for Johnny, then call together his many friends in the music world and
have a fund raising benefit for him. The who's who of the guitar world would
be there in a second for this man who has given us so much.
Matt Steffich
17 Apr 2001
Legends, Victoria
I just saw Johnny Winter for the third or was it the fourth time, at Legends in Victoria, BC, Canada (April 17, 2001). Two of us taped, and one took pictures from 4 feet back of the stage. I went to see one of the 9 best guitar players I've ever seen (I've seen Hendrix, Zappa, Clapton, Beck, Page, McLaughlin, DiMeola, Vai, not to mention many other greats) and I was shocked and saddened. The legend was there in front of us but - what happened? He had lost it almost totally. The sound was there from the Firebird and the Laser, but the word I got was that he had had a stroke last November and that he was on tour against doctor's orders. That would be the only explanation for his playing and singing. I've been a fan since I heard first pressings of Progressive Blues Experiment and Johnny WInter, and when I saw him in the seventies and eighties..wow!! But two nights ago, he could barely play, he found the main notes only sometimes on guitar and barely kept time with his great rhythm section. His vocals weren't as gravelly as usual, they were distant and listening to the tapes out of tune too. The phenomenal picking was gone, and the rhythm section had to lead the song arrangement as he could hardly move to look at them.. Johnny, everyone who went to the show loves you and wishes you a speedy recovery. We're glad you came to Victoria. Get better, and even if you don't, we'll always remember you for who you were. Godspeed, you've been the greatest blues player, all the best.
Fred
6 Apr 2001
Royal Oak Michigan
I attended the April 6, 2001 concert at the Royal Oak Music
Theatre. As mentioned in previous reviews, Johnny indeed looked frail and had
obvious trouble walking onto the stage. He used a cane to walk and had to be
assisted by a companion with a flashlight whenever he moved. He appears to be
suffering from a prior hip injury and his vision is obviously compromised. Unfortunately,
I think that this deterioration of his physical condition leads many people
to believe that his musical skills are slipping as well. I am not of that opinion.
Although I am not a guitar aficionado, I do know my Johnny Winter music and
can say, aside from a few miscues in the first song (due to nerves?), that Johnny's
guitar work was superb. He appeared almost effortless on stage while playing
in a manner that few musicians could duplicate. To me, that was impressive.
The song selections consisted for the most part of the "typical" concert repertoire
featured and listed in recent reviews with the addition of the rock standard
"Going Down" during which his drummer supplied the primary vocals. The only
disappointing aspects of the evening for me were the terrible acoustics of the
Royal Oak Theatre and his return for only a single encore. The solid stone walls
and ceiling of the building reverberated throughout the evening and lessened
the quality of his performance. The crowd was extremely enthusiastic and appreciative
of his efforts. Most stood in front of the stage throughout the entire 80 minutes
he was on stage. I would have hoped that Johnny would have responded in kind
with another encore number, but he did not. Johnny sat for much of the concert
on a stool and didn't sing as much as I would have expected so it may have simply
been a question of endurance. All in all, an excellent evening with Johnny Guitar.
ED FISHER
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26 Feb 2001
Hi I checked out Your website-Excellent! I just wanted
to let You know I that I saw Johnny Winter in concert last night at Harper's
Ferry in Allston, Mass. which is in Boston. His guitar work was unbelievable!
The only thing I didn't like was that the guitar drowned
out his voice-You couldn't hear what He was singing. He started off with
the Laser and did most of the tunes off Live in N.Y.C. including Black Jack,Boogies
real low, Mojo working, Johnny Guitar, and then He played a copuple of slide
tunes on the Gibson Firebird! I was hoping He would play more of this guitar.
He played for about an hour and twenty minutes. I was a little concerned with
His looks. He looked very frail and had to be helped on to the stage with using
a cane. I have seen Him three times, this was the first I ever saw Him have
to use a cane. He also was on a stool at least half of the show. Is He suffering
from some thing or did He have a stroke? He looks like He has aged very fast.
I hope He is alright, Johnny Winter will always be one of My favorite guitar
slingers!
Take care, Bob P.