Live at the Avant Garde

Live at the Avant Garde is a live album by the American blues musician Magic Sam that was released by Delmark Records in 2013. It contains tracks recorded live at the Avant Garde in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on June 22, 1968.[1]

Live at the Avant Garde
Live album by
ReleasedNovember 18, 2013 (2013-11-18)
RecordedJune 22, 1968
VenueThe Avant Garde, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
GenreBlues
Length67:40
LabelDelmark
ProducerJim Charne, Robert G. Koester
Magic Sam chronology
Rockin' Wild in Chicago
(2002)
Live at the Avant Garde
(2013)

Reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [2]
PopMatters          [3]

Allmusic reviewer Mark Deming stated "for an amateur audience tape recorded in 1968, Live at the Avant Garde sounds remarkably good, with the instruments sounding clean and rich and Sam's voice suffering just a touch of distortion from the PA system. Magic Sam never broke through to real stardom, but he made a big impression during his short time in the spotlight, and Live at the Avant Garde shows he never dogged it, not even on a coffeehouse gig in Wisconsin, hardly a show where a blues legend would be expected to pull out all the stops".[2]

David Maine of PopMatters writes, "Magic Sam Live at the Avant Garde is a time capsule from the days when this Chicago blues trio could step into a Milwaukee club and tear the place up ... the band is simultaneously energetic, laid back and tighter than a watch spring ... There’s no showing off here, as Sam is a practitioner of the “less is more” school of guitar wizardry, but the solos are extensive and note-perfect without being busy ... this recording stands as a testament to his mastery".[3]

Track listing edit

All compositions by Samuel Maghett except where noted

  1. "San-Ho-Zay" (Freddie King, Sonny Thompson) − 4:01
  2. "Don´t Want No Woman" (Don Robey) − 3:37
  3. "I Need You So Bad" (B.B. King, Sam Ling) − 4:22
  4. "Feelin´ Good" (Herman Parker) − 4:28
  5. "It´s All Your Fault Baby" (Lowell Fulson) − 4:31
  6. "You Belong to Me" − 4:10
  7. "Bad Luck Blues" − 3:14
  8. "Come On in This House" (Amos Blakemore) − 3:46
  9. "Hoochie Coochie Man" (Willie Dixon) − 3:21
  10. "Still a Fool" (Muddy Waters) − 3:32
  11. "That´s All I Need" − 4:32
  12. "All Your Love (I Miss Loving)" (Otis Rush) − 3:58
  13. "That´s All Right" (Jimmy Rogers) − 3:07
  14. "I Found Me a New Love" (Little Milton, Bob Lyons) − 4:25 Additional track on 2LP release
  15. "Lookin' Good" − 4:20
  16. "Everynight Everyday" (Jimmy McCracklin) − 3:41
  17. "Hully Gully Twist" (B.B. King, Joe Josea) − 3:43

Personnel edit

References edit

  1. ^ Charne, Jim (August 2013). Live at the Avant Garde (Album notes). Magic Sam. Chicago: Delmark Records. 833.
  2. ^ a b Deming, Mark. "Magic Sam: Live at the Avant Garde – Review". AllMusic. Retrieved January 15, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Maine, David. "Magic Sam: Live at the Avant Garde". PopMatters. Retrieved January 15, 2023.