Review by Shawn Perry
The last time I saw Little Feat and Tedeschi Trucks Band in the Nashville area was at the famous Ryman Auditorium. Separately, not together. Certainly, a double bill with both requires a bigger venue. The FirstBank Amphitheater, retrofitted within a former limestone quarry, proved to be the right fit. Here, the only rock extracted on this night came straight from the stage and shared with the audience.
The current lineup of Little Feat features lone founding member and keyboardist Bill Payne; percussionist Sam Clayton and bassist Kenny Gradney, both on board since 1972; Fred Tackett, who plays guitar, mandolin, and trumpet, and joined the group in 1987; and the newest recruits, vocalist and guitarist Scott Sharrard and drummer Tony Leone. Together, they served up piping hot versions (and plenty of jamming) of Little Feat favorites, along with new songs from the group’s most recent album, 2025’s Strike Up The Band.
Their 50-minute set opened with the classic “Fat Man In The Bathtub.” The calypso rhythm of the song evolved into a free-form jam where both Tackett and Sharrard traded leads effortlessly. This would happen time and again. Payne, on lead vocals and piano, lead the boogie groove of “Oh Atlanta!,” complete with map visuals on the backdrop just in case no one knew where Atlanta exactly was (about four hours south).
New numbers like “4 Days Of Heaven 3 Days Of Work,” “Too High To Cut My Hair,” and “Midnight Flight” resonated well, showcasing Sharrard’s vocals. He also handles most of the songs originally sung by the band’s late leader, Lowell George. After Tackett wound down an extended mandolin passage on ‘Willin’,” Sharrard exhaled a George-like growl at the end of the song’s verse, before ascending through Tucson, Tucumcari, Tehachapi, and Tonopah.
“Spanish Moon” had Clayton and Leone setting the pace and Sharrard tapping into George’s nuanced delivery, as Taggert sang backup and stretched out on an aching guitar solo. Payne then took it down another path, banging out a sharp piano retort to the laid-back rhythm. Sharrard answered back with a searing solo of his own.
As if all the heavy lifting was over with, Taggert blew through an idiosyncratic trumpet solo and Gradney unearthed a booming bass turn to get “Dixie Chicken” off and running. At one point, Payne grabbed the spotlight with Clayton and Leone juggling the beat. Everyone took solos and gathered up to finish the night up in grand style with “Tripe Face Boogie” and “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now.”
With such a strong opener, Tedeschi Trucks Band had their work cut out for them. As usual, they accepted the challenge without batting an eye. It was the same thing when I saw them in New York with Gov’t Mule. Even though those TTB shows at the Ryman certainly made the music feel more cozy, a medium-sized venue like FirstBank redefines the range of their unique musicianship and sound.
They shaked off a couple of new, still-to-be-released songs, “Crazy Cryin’” and “Devil Be Gone,” for the audience to absorb while angling for a common groove. With Tedeschi on the sidelines, Trucks lead the troops through the jazz-flavored, Eastern-seasoned instrumental “Pasaquan,” the only track of the night from 2022’s ambitious I Am The Moon, the most recent TTB release. Considering the new songs played, it’s clear the group is bringing in more accessible material.
Live, of course, all bets are off. Not many bands can successfully transition from an upbeat rocker like “I Feel So Bad” with Mike Mattison on lead vocals, to a wild explosion of finesse just between drummer Isaac Eady and saxophonist Kebbi Williams that goes on for a good five minutes. Or how about Gabe Dixon taking his Hammond B3 for a pastoral jog on “Let Me Get By” before Trucks throws in a few crunchers from Jimi Hendrix’s “Manic Depression.” As if by instinct, TTB thrives on a wide fabric of disparate musical dalliances, ready to switch it up and go in any direction at the drop of a chord change or shift in tempo.
Accompanied by Dixon on piano, Tedeschi delivered a tender rendition of Mike Reid’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” a major hit for Bonnie Raitt in the 1990s. As for hits of their own, “Midnight In Harlem,” which Trucks wrote with Mattison, is a close contender though it was never released as a TTB single (it does, however, appear on their 2011 Grammy-winning debut album, Revelator). They’ve played it every time I’ve seen them since 2013, and it always exudes a warm and fuzzy feeling in the house. Franklin was no exception.
Both Tedeschi and Trucks fired off fiery solos during “How Blue Can You Get?” Then Tedeschi painted the quarry blue on “Just Won’t Burn” with a slow, thoughtful read and guitar solo that pretty much summed up why her name is first on the marquee. Of course, Trucks followed up accordingly with a vigorous swipe at Santana’s “Soul Sacrifice” that would have left Woodstock in tatters.
No TTB show would be complete without an Allman Brothers Band song, and tonight it was a rollicking stroll through 1972’s “Stand Back,” with Stevie Ray Vaughn and Double Trouble keyboardist Reese Wynans sitting in. The horns, the singers, even bassist Brandon Boone, all added their own kicks and licks to the mix. As part of an ongoing tribute to Joe Cocker’s Mad Dogs & Englishmen, the evening ended with a jaunty, soulful “Space Captain” that had everyone on their feet, singing along, and salivating for more. Makes you wonder how many followed the ensemble to the next town.
