LIVE: David Bromberg & Larry Campbell @ The Falcon, 7/16/14

Review and photographs by Rudy Lu

Famed multi-instrumentalists David Bromberg and Larry Campbell played an inspiring two-and-a-half-hour set of sparkling acoustic music to an nearly jam packed crowd last week, kicking off their two-night stand at the Falcon in Marlboro.

The music encompassed the whole gamut of roots-Americana musical history, ranging from the bluegrass of Doc Watson, Bob Dylan covers, Celtic music and the blues of Skip James.

Larry Campbell showed his versatility with some expertly fiddle, mandolin and guitar playing. His performance clearly showed why he was chosen as the longtime director of Levon Helm’s band and was hailed by former employer Bob Dylan as simply “one of the finest musicians in the country.”

David Bromberg was described by Campbell as “playing Americana music before it was called Americana.” Displaying his famous virtuosity with ease, he had the audience join in a sing-a-long of the old Sam Cooke chestnut, “Bring It On Home,” interwoven with one of his humorous tales of woe.

The two magnificent musicians were obviously having a good time performing together as a duo, and the audience certainly joined in the fun. As one audience member put it, “It was like having a concert in your living room.”

The opening act was singer-songwriter Jarrod Dickenson, playing and singing a short set of originals accompanied by a singer and guitarist.