Al Kooper turned 65 and decided the best way to celebrate his birthday was a concert at BB Kings nightclub in Times Square. The birthday bash included four different bands playing with Kooper and a variety of music spanning from the 50s to Kooper’s most recent release.

Kooper is one of rock and roll’s unsung heroes. He helped form Blood Sweat and Tears and played an integral role in the formation of The Blues Project. He’s played with the Rolling Stones, Jimmy Hendrix, Cream and The Who on their records. Kooper is credited with finding and producing Lynyrd Skynyrd’s first album, which includes “Sweet Home Alabama.” Kooper has also played organ for Bob Dylan for numerous performances as well as on a few albums, where he met blues guitarist Mike Bloomfield. Kooper and Bloomfield also toured successfully as an improvisation blues group performing great songs of that time period.

The show started on time at 8 p.m. on the dot. Kooper came out and walked on stage wearing what seemed like a velour-sequenced jacket. He greeted the crowd in a jovial friendly manner and began to play Randy Newman’s “Just One Smile.” Not only was this a crowd pleaser, it was just Kooper playing it by himself on the keyboard and singing. Kooper then announced that the show will have several parts to it as he brought out his first guests.

Danny Kalb and his trio came out to join Kooper. Kalb was the guitarist in The Blues Project, a psychedelic jam rock band that Kooper co-founded. The trio sat down and Kooper acted as backing band member on the organ. They rifled through three blues songs in which Kalb and Kooper traded solos graciously. Kalb played the acoustic guitar and created sounds that you just never thought you could hear from an acoustic instrument. The audience was in awe. 

While the stage was being changed for the next group of musicians, Kooper talked to the audience about his birthday. He told a story of how he decided to by a 75-inch HD television but his wife said no. Kooper was shocked as he said, “This is the first time I’ve ever heard of a woman turning down inches.” It was a very relaxed show and setting throughout the entire evening filled with fun stories.

Next, Kooper brought his rockabilly group on stage. This part of the show consisted of songs mostly from the 50s. The bass player was grooving on a stand-up bass as the drummer played simple yet powerful fills. During this segment Kooper played guitar. They played, what Kooper has said, were his favorite songs. This set included Gene Vincent’s “Be-Bop-A-Lula”, “Sixteen tons” written by Merle Travis and Procol Harum’s “Whiskey Train,” which got the crowd into an excitable mood.

The Prisoners of 2nd Avenue then joined the stage and the rockabilly band left. Jimmy Vivino, Al Kooper’s best friend, kicked the set off with an older tune before they jumped into Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Mississippi Kid” in which Kooper played the mandolin. Alan Bloomfield, Mike Bloomfield’s brother, then joined the stage for a quick story and gave Vivino a proto-type Bloomfield series Les Paul guitar to play for the first time ever. It was a very sweet moment.

Vivino made the guitar come alive, honing in as much of Bloomfield’s spirit as possible and purely letting it rip. Vivino led the band through a blues jam that wailed. Next, they played “59th Street Bridge Song” a nod to the days when Kooper played this with Mike Bloomfield. The set ended with “Gimme Some Lovin” and “Like a Rolling Stone.” Vivino played keyboard during this as the Fab Faux guitarist joined the band. Kooper and Vivino traded keyboard licks without hesitation.

For the last set, Kooper brought on the Funky Faculty to end the night of music. A band made up of people who have taught at Berklee School of Music like Kooper. They played songs off Black Coffee, White Chocolate and an old Blues Project song called “Flute Thing.” The band covered both “Green Onions” and “It Takes a lot to Laugh and a Train to Cry.”

The show ended just after 11:30 p.m. wrapping up a night of approximately three and a half hours worth of music.

Our Take: This was an incredible night of music. Featuring some of the most talented musicians out there that many people don’t even know. The cover songs were fantastic. Kooper has not lost a step nor has anyone else. The variety of music played was diverse and really took you through what seemed like a time warp.

Vivino continually impresses me on the guitar and truly has a great understanding of music. Kooper’s bands were all very tight and seemed to enjoy ever moment of the show. Everybody loves Kooper and they should because he was so important to music that now influences today’s artists.

A great show and a great time, it’s always worth checking out Kooper. My favorite moment was when Vivino led the band through the blues jam into “59th Street Bridge Song.” Also, going back stage and meeting Kooper was a thrill for me, but even more so for my father.  It was an exciting evening that kept both my father and I up to the wee hours.