Live Review
The Holmes Brothers
Cedar Cultural Center – Minneapolis, Minnesota
January 23, 2005
by Dave “Doc” Piltz
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"Keeping the Blues Alive Award" Achievement for Blues on the Internet Presented by The Blues Foundation
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If you are a church goin’ person, there is nothing quite so uplifting on a Sunday evening that to listen to some fine gospel music. If not, there may be few things better than sitting back and listening to blues, jazz, rock, country or soul music to prepare yourself for the week ahead. On Sunday evening at The Cedar Cultural Center on the historic West Bank of Minneapolis, music lovers of any genre were provided with a taste of all genres of music by the very talented trio, The Holmes Brothers. Comprised of Virginia-born brothers Wendell and Sherman Holmes (guitar and bass respectively) and fellow Virginian, Popsy Dixon on drums, The Holmes Brothers have been performing together since 1979, providing their own unique take on music rooted firmly in blues and gospel, but branching into other areas when the sprit moves them. One of the hallmarks of the group has always been their ability to put together some great three part harmonies with Wendell’s gravelly vocals, Popsy’s piercing falsetto and Sherman’s rich baritone voice.
On Sunday evening at The Cedar, The Holmes Brothers were in unusually fine form. Having seen the group several times at The Cedar and at blues festivals in other parts of the country, I was particularly impressed on Sunday night with how together the band was on each and every song. Performing songs from both of their Alligator Records recordings and a mix of tunes from their Rounder Records catalog, the band hand the packed house at The Cedar into the music from the first notes of the opener, “Amazing Grace”, to the final note on their encore number, “Thank You Jesus”. Wendell was particularly adept on guitar, performing nice solos on several songs including the best on of the evening on “Might Be the Wrong Time”. The harmonies were up to the usual high standards, but especially nice on “None But the Righteous” and “That’s Where It’s At”. With a nice mix of gospel (“Will The Circle Be Unbroken” and “Can’t No Grave Hold My Body Down”), blues (“Big Boss Man” and “Stormy Monday”), country (“He’ll Have To Go”) and rock (“And I Love Her”, “Whole Lotta Shakin” and “Hey Bo Diddley”), The Holmes Brothers gave everyone something to enjoy.
The Cedar is a great, comfortable venue for music of all kinds and one of the few (if not the only) place to listen to acoustic blues, gospel and other music from around the world. To find out more about The Cedar and upcoming shows, visit their website at www.thecedar.org. The Cedar relies on ticket sales and public donations for its survival (not an easy trick in the current economy), so feel free to make a donation or purchase a membership using their convenient online process. It will be worth it!
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