Leon Redbone – Live (1962 The Olympia Theater, Paris)

Leon Redbone is a noted American guitarist and singer, known for his stylized performances of early jazz and blues songs. His gravelly baritone and omnipresent fedora, dark glasses and Groucho Marx moustache made him one of the more distinct and recognizable characters in popular music. 
Redbone usually performs old and often largely unknown songs from vaudeville and minstrel shows of the 1910s and '20s. He sings with a full, expressive baritone, often mumbling incoherently or yodelling. His guitar technique is excellent, with a quick, jaunty bounce. 
Redbone prefers performing live to recording. As his career has continued,he has left successively longer periods between albums. He has released only 14 albums in 25 years, three of them (four with this new one) live albums. He has toured extensively, usually in the eastern US and England, often appearing at small venues and folk, jazz, or blues festivals. 
This new live album cut at the Olympia in France in 1992 gives a good picture of a Leon Redbone's concert. On stage, Redbone often appears in a white suit, with a panama hat and dark glasses; while he is relatively sedate and unassuming, the shows are punctuated by his unusual sense of humour, and of course his excellent performances. Between songs he usually charms the audience by blowing soap bubbles, performing with hand shadow puppets, and taking a photograph of the audience. 
For this live at the Olympia Leon Redbone has for accompaniment a pianist (David Boeddinghaus), a cornet player (Scott Black) and a second guitarist (Frank Vignola).

Track Listing:
1. Sweet Mama, Papa's Gettin' Mad - 3:24   2. Ain't Misbehavin' - 4:29   3. She's My Gal - 2:56   4. Goodbye Charlie Blues - 5:17   5. Up a Lazy River - 3:30   6. Csardas - 2:16   7. Polly Wolly Doodle - 2:09   8. Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone - 3:02   9. Waitin' On You - 3:48   10. Think of Me Thinking of You - 3:47   11. Marie - 3:57   12. Sugar - 2:21   13. Big Time Woman - 2:44   14. Love Letters in the Sand - 5:12   15. Piano Interlude - 0:57   16. I'm Going Home - 2:58   17. Diddy Wa Diddie - 3:45   18. Play Gypsy Play - 3:13   19. The Whistling Colonel - 3:30   20. Gotta Shake That Thing - 3:04   21. So Relax - 4:41

Personnel:
Leon Redbone (guitar, vocals) , Scott Black (cornet) , David Boeddinghaus (piano) , Frank Vignola (guitar)