Lil' Ed and the Blues Imperials tear up The 8x10
Oh man! Lil' Ed and the Blues Imperials lit up the stage last night at The 8x10.
A Chicago native, Lil' Ed calls himself the "King of the Slide," which is exaggerating a little bit. But Lil' Ed can sure make a guitar scream. And he loves every minute of it.
Sporting his trademark fez, Ed cracked big smiles after almost every line he sang or rif he played. He was having a ball, and you couldn't help but have a ball too.
Ed and the tight, punchy Blues Imperials tore through shuffles and ground out dirty Chicago blues.
At one point, Ed and rhythm guitarist Michael Garrett walked out into the crowd in the middle of a song.
Ed walked on tip toes (he's a blues ballerina!), bent over backwards and went down on his knees -- straight dealing on guitar all the while ...
I got to the club just in time to catch the beginning of Ed's second set. He started the show at 8:30 p.m. and was still going strong when I left after 11 p.m.
How can a musician play so hard for so long on a Monday night? In a video on Ed's MySpace site, he explains:
"I am a blues musician and I like to get wild. And if you wanna get wild with me, come to my shows. Let's have a good time."
He's not lying. And the next time he's in town, you better take him up on that invitation.Categories: Bars & Clubs, Local music, Random stuff
I've been The Baltimore Sun's nightlife and local entertainment reporter for a couple years, and it's surprising how much the scene has grown in that time. Most of Baltimore's bars and clubs are unpretentious places with fairly cheap drinks and plenty of character. I like dancing and think this city needs more clubs, but nothing beats having a cold, locally brewed beer with friends in a comfortably full corner bar.
Comments
Jealous Sam!! Heard these guys a few weeks ago on the Roadhouse and they caught my ear. Wanted to go and check them out last night.
Posted by: Sturmy | October 21, 2008 3:00 PM
It appears in his publicity photo that Lil' Ed is also able to levitate...I've gotta see this guy
Posted by: Greg S | October 21, 2008 3:48 PM
Truth. David Blaine's got nothin' on Lil' Ed.
Posted by: Sam Sessa | October 21, 2008 3:49 PM