I hadn't heard of Knoxville's The Dirty Guv'nahs until a few days ago, when an email found its way to me notifying me of an upcoming Chicago gig. Intrigued by the tone of the mail (seemed to stand out from a lot of the standard promo stuff I receive), I checked them out. I found their retro-styled mix of blues, soul and rock carries a definite Black Crowes vibe, with confident lead vocals and abundant, nimble fretwork.
I enjoyed their album on Spotify, but it wasn't until I, by chance, clicked through to the video below for "Baby We Were Young" that I felt compelled to write up this short show preview.
I fell in love with the song and the approach -- the band takes suggestions from fans about what they'd like to see in the video. What plays out is clever, funny, raw and inspiring-- in five minutes I felt like I really connected with the band and knew what they were about. It doesn't hurt that they get a little help from a U of Tennessee basketball player, a Knoxville morning news team and David Koechner (Champ Kind from Anchorman). I would hope that energy and personal carries through to their live performance.
They play tonight at Schuba's -- a part of a sizable US Tour.