Tags
James Brown, Michael Jackson, Otis Redding, Prince, Sananda Francesco Maitreya, Terence Trent D'Arby, The Rolling Stones, Wilson Pickett
Another nice “first” for me was recently watching Terence Trent D’Arby (1962-) in concert on an Ohne Filter Musik Pur DVD, released under the in-akustik label.
This 12-song set consisted of about 59 minutes of high-octane music, wherein he sang both original and cover songs, such as the Rolling Stones “Under My Thumb.” Presumably, this concert was from 1987, when D’Arby’s career took off from the beginning in a trajectory that few have experienced, before or since. It’s almost as if he started at the peak of his popularity!
Although he’s a multi instrumentalist talent, D’Arby (born Terence Trent Howard and now known under the name, “Sananda Francesco Maitreya”) solely relied on his singing for this concert, but what a varied use of colors and emotions were at his disposal. I particularly enjoyed hearing the soulful side of his voice, reminiscent of Otis Redding (1941-1967). He also effortlessly ventured into Pop and Funk genres. His band was quite good too, including two male backup vocalists and two guitarists (one of whom doubled on tenor saxophone, keyboard, bass, and drums.) They kept a strong groove going throughout and followed D’Arby, as though he was a hyperactive maestro. His footwork was a big part of the show as well, akin to that of Prince (1958-2016), Michael Jackson (1958-2009) and James Brown (1933-2006), and he frequently dropped into splits.
In addition, there were the aforementioned cover songs by other artists, such as Wilson Pickett (1941-2006), James Brown and the Rolling Stones, as well as originals, such as the hits, “Wishing Well” and “Sign Your Name,” which I recognized instantly.
As always with the Ohne Filter Musik Pur DVDs, the sound and camera work were first rate and the disc was accompanied by a generous printed bio of D’Arby in a variety of languages, as well as an interview with the producer of the series, who obviously deserves a commendation. I’m glad that I watched this.
