The Revivalists at Rumsey Playfield

David Shaw

One day in 2007, guitarist Zack Feinberg was riding his bicycle when he heard David Shaw singing on his front porch in New Orleans, Louisiana. They started a conversation and jammed later that day. Feinberg  recruited drummer Andrew Campanelli, and within a week they formed a band and played live. The Revivalists is now a seven-piece band, with the addition of Ed Williams (pedal steel guitar, guitar), Michael Girardot (keyboards, trumpet), Rob Ingraham (saxophone), and George Gekas (bass). The Revivalists' third and most recent album is 2015's Men Amongst Mountains.

The Revivalists drew a large crowd to SummerStage's Rumsey Playfield in Central Park, but how many people were really listening to the live music? Throughout the venue, conversations drowned out the band's performance. For the many who were present but not really present at all, they missed a slick concert by a funky, jammy, good-time rock and roll band. Shaw crooned soulfully, Feinberg picked, tapped and slid bluesy guitar licks, and Ingraham and Girardot punctuated the songs with brass. The arrangements were bright and sunny, and frequently the pedal steelwork or country-blues guitar work reminded the audience that indeed this was a southern band with deep roots. Buzz-worthy guitarist Eric Krasno joined the opening act, White Denim, for one song earlier in the evening and returned to jam on the Revivalists' best-known song, "Wish I Knew You." More than half the set drew from the band's most recent album, but the band concluded with a sparkling cover of the Beatles' "Hey Jude." The Revivalists put on a solid concert, even if many in the audience missed it.

Visit the Revivalists at www.TheRevivalists.com.

Setlist

1. You and I
2. Stand Up
3. Keep Going
4. Amber
5. Straw Man
6. BTBD
7. Bulletproof
8. Got Love
9. Upright
10. Catching Fireflies
11. It Was a Sin
12. All in the Family
13. Fade Away

Encore

1. Wish I Knew You (with Eric Krasno)
2. Hey Jude (The Beatles cover)