Delta blues disciple Eric Sardinas blew into town to play the Redstone Room recently and having seen him tear up a guitar three times previously, I knew I had to go see him again.
I first saw Eric Sardinas at The Renassaince in Dana Point, CA in 1997. Playing in front of - maybe - 75 people, he put on a show like he was playing for 10,000. Playing an electric dobro, the guy just didn't slow down. He played what I would call "amphetimine blues" as song after song was just faster than the last one. But it was all traditional Delta blues that he was playing. He had a bass player (playing an upright bass) and a drummer and he just rocked the place.
I went back to Iowa and was telling friends about him. They couldn't fathom a guy just playing fast traditional blues all the time. He finally put out his first CD in 1999 and though it was good, it didn't capture the energy of his live shows.
I saw Eric Sardinas again on a Thursday night back in August of 2001 at the old Music Box in Omaha. I went with a couple of buddies and I said, "You just aren't going to believe this guy."
And they didn't. They hadn't seen anything like him or heard anything like him before. Sardinas put on one helluva show in Omaha that night.
The next time I saw him was at the Mississippi Valley Blues Festival in 2004. Once again, he just tore the place up. It was probably the best performance at the fest that year and a lot of people still talk about it. He actually set his dobro on fire that night. It was quite a sight.
Here's a great picture of Eric Sardinas at the Mississippi Valley Blues Fest by Cindy
Sardinas was born in Florida in 1970 and moved across the country playing music after he got out of high school. He ended up in Southern California in 1990 playing music on street corners for spare change. He met up with bass player Paul Loranger, and with a drummer they began to play some of the clubs around Southern California. His reputation grew and he suddenly was touring the United States and parts of Europe.
Ten bucks was the cover charge to get into see Eric Sardinas at the Redstone Room when he recently came into town. The crowd wasn't as big as the night Junior Brown was in town, but it was a weeknight in the middle of the week and not a lot of people get out on those nights. It was a lot easier to get a drink and a pleasure to not get jostled around all night.
Sardinas was backed by Patrick Caccia on drums and Levell Price on bass guitar. Once again, he put on a great show. I was telling a couple people there that night that he does things with an electric dobro that some people can't do with a regular electric guitar.
He did two sets - the first one was about 90 minutes in length, then he came back after a 30 minute break and did another hour. He actually did some slower blues tunes during the show, the first time I'd heard a more "soulful" side to him in the times I'd seen him.
After the show (no he didn't light his guitar on fire - he only does that for outdoor shows), I was sitting with Lon Bozarth, the president of the River Music Experience, and Tom Swanson of Jim The Mule, who is the new marketing coordinator for the R.M.E., having a couple of drinks. Lon was telling me that he lost his camera the night Junior Brown played. Lost it, as in, someone stole it. He said he set it down at the back of the stage to go talk to Junior, and when he came back it was gone. He said, "I would have thought that someone would have found it and brought it up to the bar. But, no. Someone just slung it over their shoulder and walked out with it."
He said with all the attachments, it was probably worth about $3000. He said, "I checked our insurance and found that we have a $1500 deductable for theft up here. So, I guess I'm out the money for all new gear."
I sat and talked to Tom while the crowd was thinning out and Eric Sardinas was signing autographs outside the Redstone Room. I waited until the "groupies" had cleared out and I went up to him and shook his hand. I said, "I just wanted to say that I first saw you in 1997 in Dana Point, California..."
He immediately lit up and said, "The Renaissance!!! Man, all you had to say was Dana Point and I knew you were talking about the Renaissance! You know, we were the opening act the first night that place opened up in 1995."
We stood and talked for a bit and he looks scary and menacing on stage, but he was very well-spoken and mild-mannered off stage. A very nice guy.
He's on the final leg of a tour in the Midwest, but if you're into blues and good guitar work, I wholeheartedly recommend you see Eric Sardinas if he gets close to you sometime down the road.
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