Local R&B/Soul act

Peter Wolf

Nothin' got lost

It's ironic that in a year when Peter Wolf released the best solo album of his career, plans were announced to reunite him with his old crew, the J. Geils Band, for a summer tour that would be their first official get-together in 17 years. Fool's Parade (Mercury) brought Wolf back to his R&B roots. The songs are intimate, reflective, underlined by piano, Hammond B-3 organ, and, of course, big, bold guitars. Wolf drew from the spirit of the touring Royal Soul Revue (for which he served as MC) and the spirit of heroes such as O.V. Wright (who's "I'd Rather Be Blind, Crippled, and Crazy" gets covered), Don Covay, and Dan Penn -- writers and singers from the heart of the R&B tradition. On Fool's Parade Wolf takes an elegiac trip down Cambridge's Green Street ("The Cold Heart of the Stone"), plays some pointed Dylan-esque wheezy harmonica to accompany his reflections ("Long Way Back Again"), and, yes, rocks out plenty. The new songs and their soul-dipped horn and Hammond B-3 arrangements raised anticipation for the next set of Wolf club shows (which have always been major events). Instead, for the second time in five years, his label went into upheaval, the executive who signed him split, and Wolf was again left high and dry, all dressed up with nowhere to go. Now he's stepping back 17 years. He'll get to show off the chops he's never lost in front of a larger audience than has heard him in a while, and maybe he'll get to show off some of his new moves.

-- Jon Garelick

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www.peterwolf.com

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