Page 49 - ION Indie Magazine MarchApril 2018 Issue

It was a cold February night at The Fillmore in Philadelphia, on the eve of Super Bowl
LII. G. Love (aka Garrett Dutton) was coming back to his hometown and bringing his
trio with him and making it known that he was hyped for the Eagles game the next day.
It was the 25th Anniversary tour of G. LOVE & SPECIAL SAUCE and the house was
packed. And the audience didn’t miss a beat in joining G. Love when he started his set
with the home team’s fight song “Fly Eagles Fly.” It was a common theme all night,
among other home town themes, and clearly a sure-fire way to ignite a Philly crowd.

In those 25 years, G. Love & Special Sauce recorded 10 albums -- plus another 4 solo,
sans the sauce. The latest was their first Christmas effort, which was released this past
December, “Coming Home for Christmas.” Prior to that, the group’s last album was
“Love Saves the Day,” featuring abundant collaborations with Citizen Cope, Ozomatli,
DJ Logic, Lucinda Williams and others. Their debut record back in 1994 quickly blew up
-- thanks to MTV consistently showcasing “Cold Beverage,” which still is a crowd
favorite to this day. Despite a hiatus of a few years that ended around 2014, the band
has toured heavily since. They’ve had a few interesting gigs along the way -- like when
they spent a couple years as house band for Ben Stein’s show on Comedy Central. They
also were featured in one of the most memorable Coca-Cola commercials, when they
did their version of “I’d like to Teach the World To Sing” in 2005. They also joined many
tours of the festival circuit and were on the bill of Woodstock ’99.

Meanwhile, G. Love & Special Sauce has had a sound of their own that could be
distinguished any time in their 25-year run. At the heart of their sound is blues – raw,
and sometimes called “sloppy blues,” drawing from the roots of delta blues music. This
is clearly heard in G. Love’s approach to guitar and harmonica. His lyricism draws from
another era closer to his own generation, tapping into the classic hip hop sounds of his
youth like Run DMC and the Beastie Boys. That blend with a touch of funk in the sauce
is what makes the G. Love & Special Sauce sound indistinguishable.

On this night with a revved hometown crowd, G. Love led his group through a long list
spanning his repertoire, and much of the sellout room knew the words. After launching
their set with the Eagles’ pep song, they pulled from the catalog a local favorite from
rd
their 3 record, “I-76,” a run-down of routes to cruise to a 76er’s game and along the
way, pays homage to the 76er’s roster greats…and of course, with a mention of Rocky!

The trio was on point with their very full sound that sometimes is surprising to hear
from only 3. A lot of this can be credited to the powerful sound that “Jimi Jazz” Prescott
lays down on upright bass. He has impressive chops, but doesn’t approach the double
bass delicately, really digging in and getting more energy as the night and the crowd
build on. By the end of the night, he clearly is feeling the energy of the room and
doesn’t back down from showing off what he can do, especially during several
extended bass solos.