JOHN PRIMER & GILES ROBSON.
The last day of September at Prague's Jazz Dock club was marked by Chicago blues. Guitar veteran John Primer, 80, wearing a black hat, shared the stage with British harmonica virtuoso Giles Robson. A slight inaccuracy in the information meant that some audience members missed the first part of the concert, as the flyers stated "9:00 p.m.," but the performance itself began shortly after 8:00 p.m. A Fender guitar amplifier and a red Gibson hollow-body guitar were the only symbolic equipment that set the stage for the presentation of raw American blues. Those who expected a set consisting of his own songs were surprised by the number of covers. Some were standard, but others were downright captivating. The latter category definitely included a distinctive version of the Rolling Stones' "Let it Bleed" (1969). Primer, who had the opportunity to play with American blues icons Willie Dixon and Muddy Waters, managed to play and sing the entire performance with charm and grace, occasionally adding more extensive narration and a few jokes, especially directed at the American concertgoers. The opening pair of songs, "Rock Me Baby" and "Love Me All Night Long," set the tone for the evening. The former is one of the absolute foundations of blues. The author, or rather the inspiration, is Lil' Son Jackson, but it was B. B. King who gave the song its final structure and shape, followed by Muddy Waters with his later very popular version. McKinley Morganfield, considered the father of Chicago blues, performing under the name Muddy Waters, filled almost the entire first part of the evening as the author. His songs "I Can't Be Satisfied," "Rosalie," "Feel Like Going Home," and "Hoochie Coochie Man" were played. British harmonica player Giles Robson was definitely not just there to make up the numbers. His high-quality and practically flawless playing was arranged into each individual song, until in the second part of the performance it seemed that it would be nice to hear more clean guitar. This did happen in a few moments, but there could have been more of them. Primer's own compositions were also performed, mainly from the album Grown in Mississippi (2025). The concert was an interesting insight into American blues culture, but it was perhaps a pity that John did not come with his backing band, the Real Deal Blues Band, as the performance would have been more colorful in terms of sound and thus probably more interesting.