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Big House packs Palace in reunion
| Thursday, Mar 22 2007 11:15 PM
Last Updated: Thursday, Mar 22 2007 11:20 PM
You'd never know it's been seven or eight years since they last performed together, but the original members of Bakersfield-born "soul country" band Big House sounded as fresh as they did when the were selling records by the thousands.
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The band -- Monty and Tanner Byrom, Sonny California, Ron Mitchell, David Neuhauser and Chuck Seaton -- played a sold-out reunion show Thursday night at Buck Owens' Crystal Palace, and greeted the enthusiastic crowd with energy.
Frontman Monty Byrom, dressed in a black suit, kicked off the set with one of the hits that made Big House a top-selling band in 1997-98, "You Ain't Lonely Yet," to the delight of fans, many of whom sang every word without missing a beat.
The band jumped into a Hank Williams classic, "There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight," before launching into more material from its first album -- the ballad "Love Ain't Easy" and "Blue Train."
Byrom demonstrated that time has had virtually no effect on his ability to hit even the highest notes, and the backing vocals were equally superb -- particularly on "Sunday in Memphis."
Then the band broke out another signature ballad, "Faith," a song Byrom wrote for his wife.
Bakersfield guitarist Billy Russell, an early member of Big House, was called to the stage to join the band and play a song he wrote years ago, "Cryin' Town," and sounded right at ease on the acoustic ax and backing vocals.
On "Whose Baby Will You Be Tonight," Neuhauser (slide guitar) and California (harmonica) dropped tasty licks that no one could ignore. Neuhauser displayed his monster slide chops throughout the evening.
On "Soul Country,"Byrom channeled the late James Brown.
Byrom and Seaton traded guitar licks to ride out "Road Man," wrapping up a hot-wired set before returning for an encore, which included a tribute to Buck Owens -- Big House's version of "Big in Vegas" -- and Elvis Presley's "Suspicious Minds."
The opening act, Sacred Cowboys -- fronted by "Deadwood" actor Earl Brown -- mixed bouncy country shuffles, rock and Western swing into a lively set. The band even worked in a rocking version of one of America's greatest protest songs, "Fortunate Son" by Credence Clearwater Revival, and received a positive response from the crowd.
But a preceding tune, "Wrapped in Our Flag," contained some critical words about the war on terror. Judging by the audience's tepid reaction, the song was uncomfortable for many.