Larry Carlton/Steve Lukather - No Substitutions: Live in Osaka
	Released: 2001 Label: Favored Nations Cat. No.: FN2060-2 Total Time: 52:26
	Reviewed by: David Cisco, April 2001 Sometimes great musicians get together for a tour just so they can go out to play great music and have a great time doing it. Apparently, this was the case back when Larry Carlton invited Steve ("Luke") Lukather to join him on a three-week tour of Japan. Luke accepted his mentor's invitation, and - with a fine pick-up band and literally no rehearsals - the duo headed to Japan to visit the Land of the Rising Sun. No Substitutions is the tour's official document, recorded at the Blue Note in Osaka in November '98. And it is a great documentation - the band's expertise, the audience's enthusiasm, the recording quality and production (courtesy of Luke and Steve Vai) combine to make No Substitutions a very pleasurable listen. Things get rolling with "The Pump", a Jeff Beck tune from his There and Back album. Gregg Bissonette and Chris Kent provide the rock-steady pace while Rick Jackson adds atmospheric support. Larry and Luke open up with a nice stretch of call-and-response and dual guitar harmonies, then each steps up for his solo. Luke rocks the house down with lightning-fast riffing, feedback, and that unique vibrato technique, followed by "Sensei" Carlton's eloquent, emotional blues and nimble jazz runs. "Don't Give It Up" immediately picks up the pace and really gives the band a chance to show their chops. The ensemble playing is extremely tight - almost psychic it seems - and each member gets a solo, with the highlight being some nice work from drummer Bissonette. The show takes a mellow turn for "(It Was) Only Yesterday", a lengthy cool jazz piece which showcases the emotive skills of Carlton. From there, the band rolls into Miles Davis' "All Blues", which adds nice touches of swing and funk to proceedings. Young Master Luke looses some wild jazz-blues improvisations (heavily informed by his rock foundation), Larry Carlton chooses to explore his guitar's neck with jazzy chord-soloing and nice scale runs, and the two trade tasty licks in the final coda. The show closes with "Room 335", which sounds stylistically similar to Steely Dan's "Peg". Carlton and Luke demonstrate their ability for harmony riffing, then each gets in one more good blow before the song brings the cd to a rocking conclusion. All in all, No Substitutions is an excellent album - Hell, I like it so much that it goes straight into my Top Ten Favorites of 2001! My only gripe: "Why did they wait so long to release it?!?" More about No Substitutions - Live in Osaka: Track Listing: The Pump (14:28) / Don't Give It Up (6:38) / (It Was) Only Yesterday (14:08) / All Blues (12:06) / Room 335 (5:06) Musicians: Larry Carlton- electric guitar Steve Lukather- electric guitar Rick Jackson - keyboards Chris Kent - bass Gregg Bissonette -drums Contact: Website: www.mr335.com www.toto99.com Note: will open new browser window Discography Larry Carlton (selected discography) Larry Carlton (1978) Strikes Twice (1980) Sleepwalk (1982) Friends (1983) Alone But Never Alone (1986) Discovery (1987) Last Nite (1987) Christmas At My House (1989) On Solid Ground (1989) Collection (1990) Kid Gloves (1992) Renegade Gentleman (1993) Larry & Lee (1995) (w/Lee Ritenour) The Gift (1996) 4 (1998) (w/Fourplay) Snowbound (1999) (w/Fourplay) Fingerprints (2000) Yes, Please! (2000) (w/Fourplay) No Substitutions (2001) Steve Lukather (selected Toto discography, *solo) Toto (1977) Hydra (1979) Turn Back (1981) IV (1982) Isolation (1984) Fahrenheit (1986) The Seventh One (1987) Lukather (1989)* Past To Present (1990) Kingdome Of Desire (1992) Absolutely Live (1993) Candyman (1994)* Luke (1996)* Tambu (1995) XX (1998) Mindfields (1999) Livefields (1999) No Substitutions (2001)* Through The Looking Glass (2002)
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