Blues-rock titan returns to the Ryman Auditorium with his world-class band to preview his new album Royal Tea.
Outfitted in an elegant custom-made suit and black shades typical of his buttoned-up on-stage attire, blues-rock titan Joe Bonamassa dug into his first hard-hitting tune at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee after six long months off the road. For twenty years straight since his debut album, Bonamassa has been touring and recording nonstop, averaging more than 100 shows per year, and releasing 13 studio records and 17 live albums. He had his tour operation down to a science, but when the greater power of COVID-19 forced him to shut down the blues-rock machine in March, he began planning to adapt.
Bonamassa lives for the stage, for his fans, for the music, and most of all – for his guitars. Bonamassa owns about 450 guitars and 400 amps, a testament to his life’s dedication to the instrument. So one can only imagine how this self-proclaimed guitar geek felt when he had to put a halt to his US Spring 2020 tour. Just two months before, Bonamassa and his band of Hall of Fame inductees and highest in-demand session players recorded his new album Royal Tea at Abbey Road Studios in London, and it is set to come out on October 23, 2020. With this recording session completed just before the world changed, Bonamassa had a fresh batch of new material to serve up for fans at his virtual livestream on September 20, 2020.
With the exception of one song and some rearranging, Bonamssa played Royal Tea in full, giving fans more than a glimpse into what the album will sound and feel like. Bonamssa’s vision for Royal Tea was to pay tribute to British guitarists such as Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Paul Kossoff, who inspired him to take up the instrument as a budding musician. This new record’s sound is entrenched in late 60s early 70s British music, which is even more apparent upon knowing that Bonamassa co-wrote many of the songs with blues-rock guitarist Bernie Marsden from the band Whitesnake. Eight months later, with cardboard cutouts of fans aligned in the benches, guitar amps turned up to 11, and a setlist waiting to come alive, the blues-rock was ready to commence.
The virtual extravaganza opened with “When One Door Opens,” a heavy tune that awakened Bonamassa fans after a six-month live music drought. Bonamassa is known for playing Les Paul guitars, following in the footsteps of Jimmy Page, Paul Kossoff, and Peter Green, but in this opening song he used a B-bender telecaster, a guitar commonly used by country-style players. This axe gave Bonamassa a unique tonal ability that formed an integral part of the main riff, and the high energy song proved to be the perfect way to start off the album and concert. At many virtual shows, artists have their crew members applauding throughout to mimic the audience’s reactions, but Bonamassa decided to have absolute silence between songs to reflect the current state of the world.
Loosened up from their opening song, the band jumped into “Royal Tea,” the title track of the album. This bluesy song featured backup singers Jade MacRae and Dannielle De Andrea on the verses with the repeated line “royal tea,” as they alternated with Bonamassa’s vocals. “Royal Tea” felt royal and rooted in British culture as the main pulse of the song was very similar to a British marching band prodding down a street. At the breakdown, the song escalated from a riff identical to the intro to Jeff Beck’s “I Ain’t Superstitious,” reaching a climax, and then returned to its original feel to close out the song.
Each musician in Bonamassa’s hand-crafted band is regarded as of the highest caliber on their instrument. On stage left was Reece Wynans, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee and keyboard player from Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble; on bass was Musician’s Hall of Fame inductee Michael Rhodes; and filling in for his usual drummer Anton Fig from the David Letterman Show house band, was Academy of Country Music Award for Drummer of the Year winner, Greg Morrow. For this gig, Bonamassa also added Rob McNelley as backup guitarist, who filled out the band’s sound with a unique blend of colors, as well as Jimmy Hall, who guested on harmonica for a few songs.
After playing through Royal Tea, the brief intermission gave the band a break before ripping through the powerful encore, which consisted of material from A New Day Now (20th Anniversary Edition), a reissue album of Bonamssa’s first record A New Day Yesterday (2000), as well as a track from his Redemption (2018) album titled “Evil Mama.” Each of the four songs in the encore were more vivacious and jaw-dropping than the previous. The finale, a combination of Jethro Tull’s “A New Day Yesterday” and Yes’s “Starship Trooper: Würm,” ended the concert in royal fashion. For avid Bonamassa fans, this song was particularly exciting to watch as he has not performed this arrangement since 2008. The three chord sequence of “Würm” was the perfect platform for Bonamassa to end this virtual livestream with a melodic and energetic solo, leaving viewers hungry for more.
Bonamassa was mentored by many guitar greats like B.B. King, so he too has given back by helping budding musicians, even more so now that many have been affected by COVID-19. Last spring, Bonamassa launched the Fueling Musicians Program through the Keeping the Blues Alive organization, which provides financial support to artists. A portion of each ticket bought for the virtual concert went towards this worthy cause. What’s more, following the lively Bonamassa show, the After Party Showcase featured performances from a variety of other artists including The Cold Stares, Jared James Nichols, and Tyler Bryant.
Music fans all over the world suffered several long months without live events, but September 20 was a reminder that loud blues-rock is a necessity. Bonamssa’s tour machine lays dormant for now, but when the time comes for fans to experience his mesmerizing live shows in person again, it will be a religious ceremony and a punch in the face all at once.
Setlist:
- When One Door Opens
- Royal Tea
- High Class Girl
- Lookout Man!
- Why Does it Take So Long to Say Goodbye
- A Conversation with Alice
- I Didn’t Think She Would Do It
- Beyond the Silence
- Lonely Boy
- Cradle Rock (Rory Gallagher)
- Walk in My Shadow (Free)
- Evil Mama
- A New Day Yesterday / Starship Trooper: Würm (Jethro Tull / Yes)