Live 1986 by The Blasters

The Blasters were lauded by the critics and developed a loyal following mainly because of the intensity of their live shows. Phil Alvin drenched in sweat with brother Dave wailing on the guitar while John Bazz on bass and pounding drummer Bill Bateman were pushing the rhythm into overdrive. With all that energy and talent, the Blasters never resorted to histrionics and that added to their appeal and authenticity. As time went by the roots rock scene had waned. Dave joined X and wanted to branch out record solo albums. In 1986, Dave was playing his final shows with the original Blasters line-up. Gene Taylor was gone, Steve Berlin was playing with Los Lobos and Lee Allen was honking the sax on tour with Fats Domino. This show takes us up to February 14, 1986 at The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano where this performance was recorded. Stripped down and back to the original quartet performing 17 songs including many from their first album in a blistering 70 minute set.

The Blasters are one of the bedrock acts that formed the template for the “Americana” music movement. Since their inception in 1979 the core members of the Blasters have been Phil Alvin, his younger brother and the group’s principal songwriter and guitarist Dave Alvin, drummer Bill Bateman, and bassist John Bazz. Dave Alvin is also an accomplished solo artist with two GRAMMY Awards® to his credit.