No Lonesome Dave, No Rod…No Foghat!

Often, like many of you, I apply song to my current mood. Today, it’s Foghat for me. And as I plug in to that one song, it becomes inevitable that the entire album is revisited. For me, that album is easily Rock and Roll. To me that is their most brilliant album. And it’s not that i don’t like their others, it’s that this one is pure, unadulterated blues as they intended to be. When they reached Energized, they were in a commercial mode. Again, nothing wrong with that. I LOVE Energized. Still, it’s easy to see.

Nevertheless, the point of this small piece is not about what song strikes the mood, or which Foghat album is their best, although you can certainly leave your opinion on that, if you wish. Instead, in listening, I have to say that without Lonesome Dave Peverett, and even Rod Price (but more Lonesome Dave), Foghat doesn’t really exist anymore. I say this because of two things. The first is that I saw the current lineup of Foghat a few years back with Charlie Huhn, Bryan Bassett, Roger Earl (who wasn’t even there, instead hiring someone to fill in), and Craig MacGregor (third bassist for the band, still legitmate). It was an awful exercise using well-known songs for what easily felt like a cover band experience at 20 times the cost of admission.

Listening to Rock and Roll, and hearing the impossible to replicate voice and energy of Dave Peverett makes me realize yet again, that there are sometimes simply no replacements for a band. This is quite true of Foghat after Dave and Rod’s tragic departures. This makes up the second point.

While I respect Roger Earl and Craig MacGregor as great musicians, once part of a superior band, I bemoan their carrying on the band using beloved songs as a way to cash some checks. I feel this way about many bands who have lost a part of their heartbeat. Many I will not mention as their mention would have a tendency to stir the cauldron of anger.

My personal opinion. Whatever it’s worth.