Tepid Start, Hot Finish for Taj Mahal

Because of the costs of touring with sideman, concerts by Taj Mahal, though rewarding, mainly have been solo acoustic affairs. But now, in conjunction with his last two fully electrified releases, the enduring bluesman is touring with a crack six-piece band that includes a spicy horn section and two Bonnie Raitt alumni.

Given that, and given that it was the first time Mahal had played Orange County at all in several years, the air at the Coach House on Friday night was filled with anticipation. And though it took them a while to do it, Mahal and his musicians turned the packed, smoky club into an inferno of sweaty blues, soul and R&B.;

Looking trim and dapper in a gold sequined vest, dark shades and brown-billed black baseball cap, Mahal was greeted warmly as he began a series of mid-tempo selections from his latest CDs. But they proved unexceptional, and through the first third of the 95-minute set, the band--particularly guitarists Mahal and Johnny Lee Schell--sounded tepid, playing with noticeable restraint.

Such songs as “Blues Ain’t Nothing” and T-Bone Walker’s “Hard Way” fell surprisingly flat, though the low-key mode did work well for “Don’t Tell Me,” a smoky ballad that featured strong lead and back-up vocals as Mahal’s deep-throated grainy textures were balanced nicely by tasteful harmonizing from Schell and bassist Larry Fulcher.

The song also found Mahal singing with emerging authority and urgency. Then things began to loosen up as a bouncy, free-spirited arrangement of Fats Domino’s “Let the Four Winds Blow” injected some welcome New Orleans-style swing.

The corner wasn’t really turned, though, until Mahal and the band played “Here in the Dark,” a heartbreaking, blistering Chicago blues. This time, Schell’s lead lines positively ached, while Wayne Henderson’s accents on piano were dazzling.

After that, the band seemed capable of anything--jumping from soul (“Down Home On”) into sweetly flowing Caribbean currents (“Cakewalk Into Town”). One melodic rave-up, “Cheatin’ on You,” combined elements of soul, R&B;, rock and the blues into one complete package. Ending strong, Mahal and his mates returned to play four encores including the rambunctious “I Need Your Loving.”

Opening act Barrelhouse, from Huntington Beach, played its customary, thoroughly satisfying soul and blues. If the band’s new originals previewed Friday night (“Everything I Do” and “Honey Jar”) represent the quality of material on its upcoming CD, “Peach,” that disc is going to make for some memorable listening.