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Toots and the Maytals - Orpheum Theatre

Reggae show flops

May 01, 2004

Before Tuesday, April 20's Toots and the Maytals concert at the Orpheum Theatre, my mood heightened whenever I heard good ol' Toots Hibbert on my stereo.

His lively pioneering reggae/ska sound never let me down. I don't like every tune by Toots, but anyone who's heard "Pressure Drop" can testify his music has the power to boost bodies onto the dance floor or at least make house cleaning a delight when singing and skanking along.

So the $22 ticket I purchased with my measly student income seemed worthwhile. Whoops.

Toots bopped from stage-left to stage-right, wearing a cut-off jean jacket and resembling Mr. T. Well, at least from my spot in the seats, he looked like the leader of the A-Team.

His energy was contagious. The front-row dwellers suffered from dance fever, but only for about three songs. After that, the sound quality seemed to reverberate all of Toots' excitement into an arms-at-the-side head bob.

Between crowd pleasers, Toots and the Maytals busted out the new stuff. Despite my appreciation for his work, I just couldn't get into it. Songs from his recently released album "True Love" did little more than get my toes tapping.

He belted the tunes in a style so similar to gospel I started gathering my pocket change for the collection plate.

Nonetheless, Toots and the Maytals also gave us some of the good stuff."54-46, That's My Number" forced me from my seat. The theater vibrated from the old school reggae and ska music that lit up Toots' 40-year career and enabled him to perform with fellow rasta-men who also hail from trench towns.

When the music stopped and the lights turned on, I realized I shouldn't have been waiting for "Pressure Drop." Instead I should have skipped the show, dropped $22 on a couple of the band's early albums and mopped my kitchen floor.