Johnnie Johnson Live at the Basement

Rating:
Summary: Johnnie be good, band be awful
Review: I would have thought that a performer of Johnnie Johnson's stature would have been accompanied by a quality backing group for his appearance at the Basement in Sydney. In all fairness, the 3 piece combo are obviously all skilled musicians, but while I was anticipating some vocal magic (a la JJ and Friends, or JJ and Kentucky Headhunters CDs)the band put together for this show could be best described as forgettable. The lead guitarist/vocalist has difficulty in adding any sort of life to his share of the songs, almost delivering them in a monotone. Johnnie sets up a mind blowing piano intro to 'Georgia' only to have it crucified by the flat rendition offered by the vocalist.
Interaction between the band and JJ was often corny or stilted. The 3 stars are all for Johnnie's efforts. Interview sequence was mildly interesting. Overall, I found this DVD to be quite disappointing, especially as it seems to be the only live DVD available at present.