Shades of blues
Props to the city of Clearwater for throwing a blues (and seafood) fest that's gratis and features a pair of ace headliners whose work veers from the standard blues template. The event runs Saturday and Sunday, with the first date being the evening not to miss thanks to back-to-back sets by soul diva Bettye LaVette (6 p.m.) and the genre-busting Derek Trucks Band (8 p.m.). Best known for his day job with the Allman Brothers Band, the 28-year-old Trucks coerces a rich, round tone via his slide guitar playing that brilliantly builds on the sweet, innovative sounds pioneered by Duane Allman. The Derek Trucks Band features the namesake ax man joined by a gifted cast of players, including vocalist Mike Mattison. The quintet deftly surveys blues, jazz, classic rock, Latin and Eastern-informed music. LaVette, a largely forgotten soul singer who cut records for Atlantic in the 1960s, finally enjoyed much overdue recognition when she teamed with producer Joe Henry for 2005's I've Got My Own Hell to Raise — a collection of stirringly rendered covers that catapulted her to the upper echelon of the blues scene.
Knology Clearwater Seafood-Blues Festival w/Derek Trucks Band/Bettye LaVette/Eric Lindell/Sack O Woe/Rent Money (Sat., Feb. 23); Coco Montoya/Chris Thomas King/Sue Foley/Angel for Blues (Sun., Feb. 24). Gates open at 11 a.m. both days. Coachman Park, Clearwater. Free Admission. —Wade Tatangelo
Swing master
One of the more decorated jazz piano players on the scene, Kenny Drew Jr. lives in south St. Pete and plays gigs all around the world. He still performs in the Bay area on a pretty regular basis but never enough to overstay his welcome. A Kenny Drew Jr. show is always an event — more than anything because he's a dazzlingly gifted pianist who excels in the standard trio format (with bass and drums). Possessing extraordinary technique, he can play fast and fiery, his fingers dancing across the keys, or dial it down to subdued and introspective. While Drew occasionally ventures into outré territory, he generally keeps his playing solidly in the post-bop mainstream style. And to do that, you gotta be able to swing: swing hard, swing easy, swing with style. Drew will be joined by drummer John Jenkins and bassist Richard Drexler.
Kenny Drew Jr. Trio, 7:30 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 21, The Palladium, St. Petersburg. $20. mypalladium.org. —Eric Snider
Sworn brothers
Long touted as the Next Big Thing, Lucero has regularly toured and issued critically acclaimed records on various boutique labels for nearly a decade. The Memphis quartet's blend of country, punk and roots rock — often performed in concert with the reckless exuberance of a rowdy bar band — is marked by the raspy, emotive vocals of singer/guitarist Ben Nichols. Lucero's chief songwriter, Nichols often poignantly details working-class dilemmas and failed relationships, earning favorable Springsteen comparisons. The band's latest album, Rebels, Rogues & Sworn Brothers, came out in 2006. Lucero's fifth album proper, it easily ranks as one their most consistent releases. Although organ/piano player Rick Steff (Hank Williams Jr., Cat Power) played a significant role on the album, Lucero had no problem recreating the new songs sans a keyboardist when I saw the four-piece perform before a packed house at Ybor City's Orpheum in June 2006.
Lucero w/Whiskey & Co., 7 p.m. (doors) Sat., Feb. 23, State Theatre, St. Petersburg, $12 —WT
This article appears in Feb 20-26, 2008.