The electric blues guitar boss -- only in his early twenties at the time of this release --
Christone "Kingfish" Ingram brought his tight quartet to London's Garage on June 6, 2023, for a standing-room-only crowd.
Live in London, the guitar slinger's third album for
Alligator, appeared just three months later. It's a beautifully recorded, incendiary gig captured in the moment. The 17-track program is equally split between selections from his first two albums: 2019's
Kingfish and 2021's
662, plus new tunes and a cover.
Kingfish leaves plenty of room for spontaneity live. Set opener "She Calls Me Kingfish" is introduced by
DeShawn Alexander's reverbed, floating Rhodes piano that's replaced by a Hammond B-3 organ before
Paul Rogers' bumping bassline and
Chris Black's drum kit establish a funky shuffle.
Ingram's playing crisscrosses jazz, prog rock, soul, and blues before it's time to solo. In contrast, his biting Stratocaster delivers a strolling break that melds the phrasing of
B.B. King and
Jimmy Johnson with an innate, deeply personal lyricism. Over seven minutes, its dynamic and intensity shift several times, drawing the enthusiastic crowd in. "Fresh Out" is even longer, a slow, wrangling, Chicago blues, it offers locked-on group interplay even during the solos by
Ingram and
Alexander. The tempo remains relatively laid-back through the poignant soul blues of "Another Life Goes By." (Interestingly, one can hear the influence of
Gil Scott-Heron and
Brian Jackson in the melody and lyric.)
Michael "Iron Man" Burks' "Empty Promises" is
Hendrixian in invention, drama, and tension. Its loss-laden lyric is underscored by the B-3 and sets a perfect frame for
Ingram's arrestingly soulful singing on top. The nasty, gritty "Hard Times" is a keyboard and rhythm collision that
Ingram elevates with his hip vocals and distorted wah-wah soloing. "Mississippi Night" is a previously unissued scorching ten-minute instrumental that puts all of
Ingram's considerable improvising skills on display. The middle section offers two solo acoustic Delta jams. "Been Here Before" is an autobiography and tribute to his grandmother with canny fingerpickinging and percussive strumming. The other -- "Something in the Dirt" -- is also a testifying autobiography of person and place set to a celebratory I-IV-V shuffle with killer turnarounds. The second half commences with the swaying blue soul of "You're Already Gone," driven by B-3 as
Ingram testifies with conviction in his vocal. His solo adds depth, dimension, and power. While "Rock 'n' Roll" remains a deeply moving tribute to his late mother complete with gospel overtones, "Not Gonna Lie" combines blues, funk, and rootsy rock in a personal manifesto. "Midnight Heat," another new song, is snarling and potent, as
Ingram's lyric offers intimacy to a lover with a loose groove that crisscrosses electric Southern blues and
Meters-esque R&B. Closer "662" is bursting with the uptempo dancehall Texas groove of
Albert King,
the Vaughan Brothers, and
the Fabulous Thunderbirds.
Live in London provides more evidence that
Ingram is a force to be reckoned with: Not only can he play like the legends, but he's an original vocalist, a solid songwriter, and a disciplined bandleader. ~ Thom Jurek
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