Talent In Action:

Boz Scaggs/Leo Kottke/Streetcorner Symphony
Santa Monica Civic Auditorium

      The admirable professionalism of Boz Scaggs sparked a delightful demonstration of the new movement in rock towards a cascading liquid sound rather than its old crudely chugging quality.  A thoughtful musician rather than a flash theatrical showman, Scaggs stands up and sings in his individual sweet-yet-funky voice, playing solidly tasteful guitar fills between vocal phrases. He is surrounded by a fiery aggregation of guitars, percussion and horns.  And he sets the keynote of their appearance by dressing with casual elegance, rather than a crummy pseudo- natural look.  Scaggs, former top sideman in the Steve Miller Band, has long had a following of his own and wide respect from fellow performers.

      Now with his new turn to more commercial production in the recent Columbia "Slow Dancer" album, Boz Scaggs seems an excellent bet to attain some overdue mass appeal.

      Leo Kottke, wizard of the acoustic 12-string guitar, has awesome playing technique, a pleasingly eccentric stage presence and far less shyness than he showed last time here in using his very pleasant deep country voice.  Unhappily, his set was overlong and revealed that too many of his songs sound alike and depend on a limited range of spectacular riffs.  Kottke's talent is undeniably awesome, but perhaps he now needs the inspiration of finding new sounds by playing less of his original material.

      Unbilled guest artists Streetcorner Symphony are a hardworking a capella [sic] who put on an effective set but cannot yet match the smooth, soaring artistry of the Persuasions in singing without instrumental accompaniment. -- Nat Freedland