Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds have been playing together since the early ’90s, when Matthews joined Reynolds’ band, TR3, onstage during performances around the Charlottesville area. His performances with TR3 preceded the formation of the Dave Matthews Band, and may have provided part of the inspiration for doing so.
It has been eight years since the release of Live at Luther College, the duo’s popular album culled from their tour in 1996. While the album is mostly filled with tracks from the Dave Matthews Band’s Crash, Live at Radio City Music Hall, the pair’s follow-up of sorts, also features a predominance of tracks from Matthew’s lone solo album, Some Devil.
As with Live at Luther College, this double album features lots of talking by Matthews before and after songs, which fans of the pair affectionately refer to as “Davespeak.” These anecdotes often take the form of a funny story or silly reactions to the songs, but can also go in a more somber direction, as with Matthews’ story about a wounded soldier returning from Iraq. The story is not meant to ruffle feathers; it is told in an apolitical fashion, quite the opposite of most musicians today.
The first disc highlights more of Some Devil than disc two, using songs such as “Stay or Leave” and “Gravedigger” along with songs from the Dave Matthews Band catalogue, such as “Bartender.”
“Some Devil” is a highlight of the first disc, with Matthews adding jazz style scatting to fill in for the percussion of Brady Blade (who performed on the album version), and Reynolds’ sublime guitar work filling in nicely for the rest of the band. The song comes alive in this pair’s capable hands, expanding beyond the recorded version – their passionate performance elevates the track to a whole new level.
Even in the wake of this excellent performance, the rest of the first disc is not without passion. “Eh Hee,” one of Matthews’ new songs, brings spirit and fire behind the lyrics: “I’m gonna drop the/Devil/To his/Knees,” and a screaming chorus of the song’s title.
The second disc draws more heavily from the Dave Matthews Band side of things, bringing out crowd favorites such as “Crash into Me,” “#41,” and “Two Step.” A cover of Neil Young’s “Down by the River” and “You Are My Sanity,” the mellower of the two Reynolds solo songs featured on the album, also highlight the second half.
“Lie in Our Graves” is the standout of disc two, using Reynolds’ signature guitar tremolo to stand in for Dave Matthews Band violinist Boyd Tinsley’s violin work. The solo draws loud applause from the appreciative crowd, and along with the spontaneous clap-along following the solo, really helps capture the feeling of seeing the duo in person.
This album also serves as an excellent intro to the work of Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds as a duo, a perfect compliment to Matthews’ work with the Dave Matthews Band. The songs are very different from their original recordings – whether they are from Matthews’ solo efforts or from the lengthy catalogue of the Dave Matthews Band, they are all given superb treatment from the guitars of these two.
Live at Radio City Music Hall is also available on DVD, as a standard version and in high-definition on Blu-Ray.
Contact reporter
Tripp Laino at
diversions@dbk.umd.edu.
