Dr. John and the Nite Trippers. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool. March 2015. Picture kindly reproduced by Adrian Wharton.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Let the good times roll…and eventually they did, it just seemed to take a while for the legendary Dr. John and the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall audience to find each other.

There is never a doubt that Dr. John is one of the most stylish men to be welcomed to the stage at the Philharmonic Hall, he also has the overpowering ability and back catalogue to back it up, in that, legendary is perhaps too shallow a description in which to place before the all rounder and man of many parts.

Legendary comes with a price though, an audience perhaps may expect too much, the artist not too sure of the crowd’s intentions and in the end the meeting of minds is not quite fully gripped; the music sounds great, the beat electric and as smooth as a well-made ice-cream sliding down the back of the throat in the Louisiana summer heat, the artist and the band playing with vigour, it just becomes apparent that something is not quite right between the stage and the stalls.

Thankfully all is rectified, the symbiotic nature of instrument and appreciation is restored and tracks such as Love For Sale, Right Place, Wrong Time, Let The Good Times Roll and the superb Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child echoed round the Philharmonic Hall like a siren call but with the bonus of it being attractive and resolute and without a hint of malice to its name.

The spirit of New Orleans has always been alive and well, it has traversed the great oceans and found itself nestling wherever a city or time comes calling for it, it may have taken a while but the music certainly found a home from home inside the Philharmonic Hall.

Ian D. Hall