Croakin at Toad's

Croakin at Toad's

The complaint that jam bands hear most often about their albums is that there's too much jamming, not enough songs. If anything, Frogwings, the supergroup brainchild of original Allman Brothers Band drummer Butch Trucks, suffers a bit from the opposite problem. While the songs themselves are nothing special, the jams are often scintillating. At the forefront of Frogwings is the incisive dual guitar attack of Aquarium Rescue Unit vet Jimmy Herring and 19-year-old slide sensation (and Butch's nephew) Derek Trucks. Various Allman Brothers and ARU members fill out a top-notch rhythm crew. John Popper's harp playing sounds as fresh and inventive as it has in years--clearly challenged and spurred by the fast company--although things tend to sour when the Blues Traveler frontman sings lines like these: "Some people call me lazy, everybody says I'm crazy, but I think I know how to have fun...ganja, heal me." That's just the kind of thing that gives ganja smokers everywhere a bad name. Still, get through the verses and choruses and you'll find the playing on this live set exciting, adventurous, and sharp as a tack. --Marc Greilsamer

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