If you’ve heard blues soulstress Janiva Magness at all during her decades-long career, you know that she’s one of the best in the business. And if you’ve ever been fortunate to see Magness live, well, that will only make you appreciate her talents even more. So many have of course wondered over the years when Magness might put out her first live album (aside from her limited, little-known 1991 debut More Than Live), something for which the time is apparently right with Magness’ release of Truth in the Room: The Clearmountain Sessions (Blue Élan Records). And we’re happy that say that this one, like everything we’ve heard from Magness, does not disappoint, with 10 tracks from throughout her catalog and mixed by famed producer/mixer/engineer Bob Clearmountain (Live Aid, Paul McCartney, Bryan Adams, The Rolling Stones, Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies, The Who, and much more).
It’s perhaps only appropriate that this Blues Music Awards 2009 B.B. King Blues Entertainer of the Year (a recognition Magness was only the second woman ever to win, following Koko Taylor) starts her set with a cover of a track from the King of the Blues himself in a swinging “My Bad Luck Soul”, the title track of a 1999 album from Magness.
Much of the set, in fact, consists of covers, but that doesn’t make them any less believable coming from Magness (so much that, if you didn’t know better, you’d swear some of these songs were her own), whether it’s groovers like George Jackson’s “Slipped, Tripped and Fell in Love” (Clarence Carter, Ann Peebles) and Little Milton’s “That’s What Love Will Make You Do” or slower numbers like the crawling heart-tugger “You Were Never Mine” (Delbert McClinton) and tender but powerful “Closer” (Annie Mack, from who Magness encourages the audience to go out and “get everything she put out”). There’s also a creeping “Make It Rain” (Tom Waits), a haunting “The Devil Is an Angel Too” (Julie Miller) with some particularly terrific keys from Jim Alfredson and Mike Mattison-like backing vocals, and the serene, closing “Things Left Undone” (Paul Thorn), with its masterful ending.
Magness delivers each of these songs with the same passion, and, true to the album’s title, genuineness, as her originals, something Magness speaks to in between songs when she says that “I can’t sing a song if it doesn’t have a deep meaning for me; sometimes these things hit you in the heart like a ball peen hammer”.
You do get to hear two of Magness’ originals near the tail end of the set, with a driving “Hammer” that pushes the listener to “keep on swinging the hammer every single day” followed by a breezy, triumphant “Love Wins Again”, and we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention that Zach Zunis still plays some pretty mean guitar.
Only 150 people were lucky enough to receive invitations to be part of the audience for the taping of this special recording, but fortunately, a whole lot more of us get to hear the finished product, which is a great way to be able to hear Magness live, at least until you get the chance to experience her in person, both of which we highly recommend!