This show at the finest spit and sawdust saloon in North London The Dukes Of Highgate was part of The Blues Against Youth's tour to promote their latest album Gianni Tbay's Blues Against Youth and Gianni was playing solo, he opened the set playing electric guitar, drums and tambourine and singing the classic blues of Come Back Baby full of the pain of being left once more. The Pure At Heart Blues were next, well hopefully everyone at The Dukes was Pure At Heart, this had some great deep blues guitar.
I'm not certain which Long Way To Go Gianni sang next, but I'm pretty certain it wasn't the Phil Collins one, Gianni took us deep into the night and the desperate need to find a way back home once more, that of course led us to a trip down that Lost Highway once more that had bags of emotion and some deep twanging guitar. Not sure where Gianni was going Down In on the next song but wherever it was, he needed some kazoo to help him get there.
We then got some classic English folk of the St James Infirmary Blues easily one of the most regularly covered songs for the last 250 years, this took it to the Louisiana delta via Italy. Gianni then tried his luck asking if it was possible to Take Me To Your Home, well I hope she said yes to the dark blues and seductive kazoo.
Gianni then switched from electric to acoustic guitar and played the dustcart blues instrumental for the dustmen collecting rubbish outside the window behind him, this had some nicely stretched slide guitar notes, he was soon Getting Along with the slide working well against the solid beat he had going, he was certainly ready to embrace all the animal heads on the wall of the Dukes to get in the right spirit to be Going To East Texas that is one of his spiritual homes.
Like all of us Gianni swings between being High & Low this was full of those struggles we have to get by. He then dug into the Jimmie Rodgers song book for a cool version of Goin' To California or Blue Yodel No.9 if you prefer the songs original title. Soon enough Gianni was singing about your Chance To Cheat or was it your Chance To Choose neither of which were the right song title, but the deep chiming guitar got the point across at the pain it was causing him.
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We got another instrumental blues work out before he played Particle Filter Blues that was the single from his As The Tide Gets High And Low album, that had a real chug to the rhythm he created.
Gianni then had the Lonesome Whistle Blues that seem about right when I hit the deserted streets of Highgate after the gig, like everyone Gianni has battles with Need and the desires that go with it. The Last thing of Gianni's mind was the modern world as he created this opening to the 30's and 40's dustbowl blues master's with more careful licks to emphasise the Last Thing On My Mind. He closed his set by paying tribute to a meal he ate a while ago on tour, the mythical Chicken 65 it sounds like it was quite a meal.
Gianni had done more than enough to deserve an encore, he chose to play an Terry Allen song about his Need For Money For Whiskey, which when you’re in a well stocked a bar like The Dukes Of Highgate is, was totally understandable and was a cool end to a really great show.
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