Taylor Hicks ~ "Whomp at the Warfield" ~ You gotta love the fun!

In 2007 on his first national Modern Whomp Solo Tour, Taylor Hicks was on stage, on fire and always “on!”

Forget radio play.

Taylor Hicks live on stage IS Taylor Hicks.

I waited.

I didn’t see “Whomp at the Warfield” on HDTV, so it was a gift for the New Year.

It brought back all the fun of all that whomp from opening night in Jacksonville, FL, the same town where Elvis launched his first nationwide tour, to the closing of the official tour in Seattle, and the final concert in 2007 at Pearl River in Mississippi.

Before the May, 2007, recording at the Warfield, I had seen Taylor live in concert only eight days earlier in Tempe, AZ. It was one of the smallest theatre crowds on the tour. That didn’t dampen the spirit and energy on the stage that night. I knew it was one of the best since I had seen him on stage in other concerts throughout the South.

I knew that he didn’t just turn “it” on for the cameras at the Warfield. “It” had always been there. Even when he was 18 years old and his father asked the legendary blues guitarist, Billy Earle McClelland, if Taylor had what it took to make it. His father was told by Taylor’s longtime mentor that yes, he had “it.”

“It” takes us all over the musical stage at the Warfield from jumping up and down with bass player Al Carty (who is a show by himself) on the Cream classic, “Badge,” to bringing the crowd down to a whisper on the beautiful encore that he wrote, “The Fall.” Taylor had wrapped up a beautiful spectrum of music that takes us on a journey from rocking out highs to soft songs delivered with pain in the rich, raspy vocals. I laughed out loud at the antics and felt the tears well up. Music is more than sounds. It is an experience.

You owe yourself the experience of “Whomp at the Warfield.”

It not only brings down the house with the unique talents of Taylor Hicks, it showcases a world class touring band that would make an Eric Clapton proud—Loren Gold, musical director, keyboards and vocals; Felix Pollard, drums; Brian Gallagher, saxophones, flute, percussion; Josh Smith, guitars; Al Carty, bass; Brian Less, organ and vocals; and Melanie Nyema, vocals and percussion. They rock the stage with a plethora of talent and personality!

Unless you are a “badge” carrying member of his Soul Patrol, I don’t think you’ve seen and heard live music like this. It warrants its own genre, “whomp.”

Even though you may think you don’t like the blues or soul music or the loud reverberations of swampy rock—whomp, you have to like the sounds and images of fun. And “Whomp at the Warfield” is 84 minutes of fun!

To find the fun in 2010, get “Whomp at the Warfield” just as soon as you can!

Taylor said, “You gotta love San Francisco!” You gotta love the fun!

~~~

“Whomp at the Warfield,” the first live concert DVD by Taylor Hicks, produced in stunning Hi-Def by Bennett Productions and distributed by Image Entertainment, is available from major music retailers in stores and online, including Amazon, Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, Target and others. See the "Whomp" preview below.

Whomp is back! Get it!


And there will be more whomp here…

Whomp music wakes up the worn walls of the Warfield from “Gonna Move” to “Naked in the Jungle.” It’s always about the music!
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“More Than 15 minutes” –working title. Taylor’s 2007 tour was one of the most successful of ANY artist that year. Taylor has always said this is a marathon, not a sprint. 2007, the Soul Patrol, and concerts like the Warfield jumpstarted that long haul….

“Warfield and WorkPlay”—different and the same. It’s been a long road with a few twists and turns...