If there was a guitarist who grew up learning at the knee of Son House while listening to Sun Ra records, toured with Jimi Hendrix, became a star in his own right in the early ’70s and is now putting the finishing touches to a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame career, that guy would probably sound a lot like Derek Trucks.
Only thing is, Derek Trucks seemed to just be getting started when Already Free arrived on Jan. 13, 2009. And he was, it just wouldn’t be with this group. A year later, Trucks co-founded the Tedeschi Trucks band with his talented spouse, Susan Tedeschi.
Of course, Trucks had done a lot already. He sat in and toured with his Uncle Butch’s group – the Allman Brothers Band – beginning when he was around 10. He then became a full-fledged member at 20, continuing until they retired in 2014. Along the way, he’s played with such luminaries as Buddy Guy, Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Joe Walsh and Stephen Stills. Trucks performed with some of those guys while still in his teens.
Listening to Trucks’ distinctive guitar style, it’s not hard to figure out why so many of rock’s biggest names want to have him around. The owner of a wicked slide approach that’s surpassed only by perhaps only Ry Cooder, Derek Trucks makes his axe sing with all the soul and urgency of Aretha Franklin.
For a while, Trucks’ insatiable hunger for making music seemed to lead him to notable sideman projects every year, including Scrapomatic and McCoy Tyner, among many others. He also found time to front his own outfit, the Derek Trucks Band, in 1994. Despite Derek’s globe-trotting ways, they had a pretty stable group: Todd Smallie (bass) and Yonrico Scott (drums) were around since near the beginning, while keyboardist/flautist Kofi Burbridge had a decade-plus stint. Percussionist Count M’Butu joined the Derek Trucks Band later. They were rounded out by Scrapomatic vocalist Mike Mattison, who came on board in 2002.
This talented bunch perfectly executed Trucks’ vast musical vision. They’d already become known for incorporating blues, blues-rock, folk, jazz, soul and East Indian, all while showing a lot of reverence to the most influential practitioners of those musical forms. As Trucks himself summed it up, “musically, it’s always been wide open in this band.”
The main impetus for recording this sixth studio release was straightforward: Derek Trucks had recently completed building a home studio with his own hands and the help of some friends, and quickly afterward began noodling around in it. From that Jacksonville, Fla., incubator came forth plenty of material for a new album, as well as ideas for some well-chosen updates.
Of the covers, “Sweet Inspiration” worked the best. I hadn’t heard this old Spooner Oldham/Dan Penn composition since Rita Coolidge tackled it in the mid-1970s, but the Derek Trucks Band gave this then-45-year-old tune new life by taking it to church – where it belongs. They also added a funky undercurrent. Still, Trucks couldn’t claim full credit for resurrecting this forgotten song by the Sweet Inspirations: Santana actually pitched it to him.
Another borrowed tune was Bob Dylan and the Band’s “Down in the Flood,” which was spun off as a single. Mattison sang this simple, country-blues melody with Delta authority, as Trucks unloaded a powerful slide solo, making this rendition a potent blues rocker that doesn’t forget for a single second the traditional blues part of that equation. Big Maybelle’s “I Know” recreated that trademark Allman Brothers shuffle, replete with Burbridge’s Gregg Allman-esque Hammond B-3 evocations. They then married it all to a joyful gospel melody which Mattison sang over with relaxed conviction. The song was driven to its finish by a turn on slide by Trucks that fades into a distant sound of a sitar. This served as a gentle reminder that the Derek Trucks Band may share a lot of territory with his “other” band, but they maintained their own identity.
Trucks’ own songs (or co-writes) revealed yet another strength of his: He gave these songs hooks but never made them too sleek. He also instilled in them enough depth to give them lasting appeal. Just listen to the driving funk of “Something to Make You Happy,” or the anthemic bluesy old-school soul of “Down Don’t Bother Me” for some solid evidence.
Mike Mattison’s gruff, deeply soulful pipes were a fine fit for the band’s gritty personality, but Trucks nonetheless brought in Doyle Bramhall II to take lead vocals on a couple of originals. Bramhall is very much a kindred spirit of Trucks’. Both played guitar together behind Clapton and they’re into much the same kind of roots-based American music forms. Bramhall, though, can also sing, and his vocal abilities proved to work rather well with the funky, mid-tempo rocker “Maybe This Time” and the breezy folk of “Our Love.”
And if there’s going to be some guest vocals, then it might as well include Susan Tedeschi. She gave a committed performance on the acoustic-based number “Back Where I Started.” Susan also contributed backing vocals on several other tracks, and I didn’t have to read any credits to know that: Her presence is hard to miss. The brief album closer, “Already Free,” was an appropriately laid back wind-down tune, with Trucks dubbing together an acoustic slide with a couple of electric ones.
They had a lot to live up to. After all, I felt the group really hit its stride with 2006’s Songlines. That album may still have been the fullest expression of the Derek Trucks Band’s breathtaking range and abilities, but Already Free came off as more tightly focused, yet relaxed. You could say it’s more “down home.” Literally.
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I agree entirely, Derek was literally born with a strong connection to the greats of the 60’s of 70’s and his talent has done nothing but greatly expand on that connection. Of all the musicians under 30, no one seems to “get” what was so special of rock, blues and roots music of that time than Derek. He’s music-wise well beyond his years.
Thanks for your comment, Olivia 🙂
I’m so jealous of Derek Trucks. It’s like he’s got the best of both worlds: the freshness of youth and the personal interaction with the great artists that made their mark in the 70s. So many people of Derek’s age wished they lived in the 70s – the music, the spirit, the freedom. Wow.
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OliviaB.