There’s not much of a market these days for meat ‘n’ potatoes journeyman rockers, and that’s unfortunate when you’ve got a talent as big as Alejandro Escovedo. The musical terrain is scattered with great artists like Willie Nile, Garland Jeffries, Ian Hunter, Graham Parker et al who’ve had periods of white-hot success in the past and have seemingly disappeared into the ether although they continue to record and release viable records. Escovedo came from a musical family that included brothers Coke and Pete (Santana) and his niece Sheila E. (Prince). His own recording career began in the 1980s as a member of the indie roots-rock bands Rank And File and then later in True Believers. He has released fourteen mostly consistent solo records since 1992 littered with great songwriting throughout them. Problem is, like so many other artists of his ilk, the records do not capture the power of his songs that can only be experienced on stage and in person. Putting is succinctly, the little guy can blow the roof off of a club. Since 2008, Escovedo has worked with producer Tony Visconti who was responsible for producing some of the greatest Glam Rock records including David Bowie’s “The Man Who Sold The World” and T. Rex’s “Electric Warrior.” To my ears, the glam hat doesn’t really fit Escovedo and the production hinders the power of a great collection of songs. Here’s a stellar live version of one of the highlights from his album, “Big Station.”
