By: David Schultz

Whether playing concise opening slots for Eric Clapton or the Dave Matthews Band, featured sets during the summer festival season or headlining clubs and theaters, Robert Randolph and the aptly named Family Band, consisting of his cousins Danyel Morgan (bass) and Marcus Randolph (drums) and extended family member Jason Crosby (keys and fiddle), have always lived up to their reputation as a band that must be seen to be believed. However, just about a year ago, their stage act seemed on the verge of stagnating; not from a musical perspective but from an originality standpoint. Although retaining their entertainment value, many of the antics that seemed fresh and endearing while word spread of Randolph's infectious buoyant energy and "Jimi Hendrix of the pedal steel guitar" skills were becoming predictable.



This past Friday, Robert Randolph & The Family Band returned to New York City's Roseland Ballroom as a headliner after more than two years with an extended Family Band that included Randolph's sister Lanesha on backing vocals and percussion and his cousin Joey Williams on rhythm guitar. Many of the live staples in danger of becoming stale were absent on this evening. The Michael Jackson and Jimi Hendrix covers were gone as was the instrumental switch bit where Randolph and his cousins rotate between the bass, drums and pedal steel during a lengthy jam. One trademark not shed from the set: the invitation to the women in the audience to come on stage during "Shake Your Hips" and illustrate the concept of the John Lee Hooker boogie style rocker. The visual display of women with widely varying dancing ability may not have been worth the apparent annoyance to the band: Morgan seemed perturbed at having the women swarm into his space and a couple ladies weightily hung on Randolph while he played his pedal steel.

In discarding some of their familiar gimmicks, they unfortunately dropped their lengthy instrumental jams featuring Randolph's lengthy, crowd-pleasing pedal steel guitar solos. With the exception of a quick run through "Run For Your Life," the uninspired instrumental interludes, which were used mostly as bridges between songs, offered nothing substantial and failed to give the eager audience a hook to latch onto. Akin to the disappointment that would be engendered by Eric Clapton playing an entire show on the piano, Randolph's decision to spend half the night playing electric guitar unfairly deprived the audience of a substantial serving of his pedal steel histrionics. On the other hand, Randolph's increased dexterity with the guitar turned into one of the night's pleasant surprises. During "Roll Up," the evening's closer, Randolph impressively traded riffs with Morgan, dropping to his knees in the show’s sole homage to Hendrix. Although Randolph's pedal steel was primarily missing in action, Morgan's bass, which is so integral to the band's fusion of gospel, soul, R & B and traditional classic rock, made its presence felt. Beginning the bass line from "I Need More Love" from backstage, Morgan led the return processional for the encore. It was to be one of Morgan's few times in the spotlight; the presence of Randolph's sister, who handled many of the higher-ranged vocals, relegated Morgan's signature wail to cameo appearances.

The band focused heavily on their Colorblind material. While their opening stomp through "Ain't Nothin' Wrong With That," "Diane" (featuring an assist from the Conan O'Brien horn section) and the set closer "Deliver Me" soared, their cover of The Byrds/Doobie Brothers tune "Jesus Is Just Alright" never gained momentum. Rarely one to lose the crowd, Randolph & The Family Band nearly did just that during an interminably long and uneventful "Homecoming." With guitarist Rocco DeLuca joining in, Randolph kept running through a lazy rap that endlessly namechecked the band, stretching the song beyond its limits without anyone adding anything terribly interesting. Randolph & The Family Band nearly refrained from their propensity to insert a mistimed, poppy ballad into their shows, waiting until the encore to slot the slow-moving "This Love" between a raucous "I Need More Love" and a stellar "Roll Up."

The newfound finesse Randolph & The Family Band showed on Colorblind has spilled into their live shows. Despite lip service paid by any group's fans to the concept of wanting to see their band grow and do new things, deep down, they don't want to see them deviate too far from what originally made them ardent fans. It's nice to see Randolph & The Family Band evolving and doing different things on stage, but they have to be careful not to alienate their core fanbase by transforming themselves into a different entity altogether.

Labels: Robert Randolph, The Family Band