Archie Bell, Roy Head
Continental Club, Sept. 2
Roy Head and Archie Bell, the voices behind two of Texas’ most enduring hit singles, joined forces Friday night to kick off Labor Day weekend with a swinging rock & soul revue that was anything but a garden party. Houston’s hijinky Allen Oldies Band epitomized the support act function, touching the show off with a spirited version of Sir Doug’s “She’s About a Mover.” Bandleader/class clown Allen Hill moved over to bass and the El Orbits’ David Beebe assumed drum duty when Bell took the stage. Outfitted in fireapple red right down to the shoes, Bell tossed out “Tighten Up With Archie Bell” hand towels and put his Southern soul pipes to good use on “Soul Man,” “Mustang Sally,” and “In the Midnight Hour.” Bell’s own “I Can’t Stop Dancing,” a Top 10 hit in 1969, was a highlight, but the No. 1 Houston name-checking smash “Tighten Up” was the money shot. This proto-funk masterpiece is like a piece of gum that never loses its flavor, and the dancing crowd joined right in with the soul clapping. Three Rivers native and blue-eyed soul legend Roy Head was up next, armed with lascivious dance moves and sleight-of-hand mic tricks that would’ve left Roger Daltrey’s head spinning. Head dusted off his first regional hit, “One More Time,” as well as his 1978 country rendition of Rod Stewart’s “Tonight’s the Night.” Then the sixtysomething dynamo somersaulted off the stage to end “Treat Her Right,” the full house chanting his name. As the man himself would say, “Too much, baby, all right!”
This article appears in September 9 • 2005.
