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If one had seen Toots on many occasions, one might have showed up to The Fox Theatre this past Friday night in Boulder, Co, expecting the normal Toots type show;  Energy, stage presence, boisterous voice, the whole package Toots brings every time he hits the stage. 

If that was the expecations, you would not be let down. However, one would be quickly, and pleasantly, surprised by the bonus material at the opportunity to see opening up for Toots and the Maytals.  The B Side Players, performing more like their A side counterparts, gave an hour set that may have made many wonder why there was a headliner behind them.

Of course, Toots came out shortly thereafter and reminded the crowd, but the fact that The B Side Players put on such a polished and powerful act should not be understated.    Coming out of Mexico, currently by way of San Diego, The B Side Players proudly display their Mexican heritage where typically you’d find a red gold and green reggae flag.

Performing a refreshing mix of reggae in both Spanish and English, The B Side Players were both smooth and polished.  Sounding similar to Steel Pulse towards the beginning, and distinctively Mexican towards the end of their set, The B Side Players played an electric, energetic set of some familiar tunes, such as Waiting in Vain by Bob Marley, and some of their own music, which was received well by the filling Fox Theatre.  Providing a solid rhythm section with some quality extended instrumentals (including a full horn section), the B Side Players captivated and moved the crowd, warming them up at the same time leaving them needing nothing more.

It is remarkable to observe that an island nation in the Caribbean has sparked and exported a worldwide musical movement with such strength and vigor.  Taking into account John Brown’s Body, an American Reggae Band from upstate New York, headlining The Fox Theatre on Saturday Night, and The B Side Players descending from Mexico opening up for the Jamaican Legend Toots Hibbert the night before, it’s fascinating to see the diversity and variety of backgrounds which reggae has begun to offer.

Also as refreshing is to see a band such as The B Side Players, who, notably, celebrated their Mexican heritage with a Mexican flag behind them, where some bands not sharing the same heritage of the Caribbean may have a red gold and green flag waving behind them.  The B Side Players, like John Brown’s Body, are a genuine act proud of where they come to us from, and they are who they are; a quality reggae band which will give us bigger and better things in the future.

After a short set break, the packed Fox Theatre was treated to one of the better performances one can ask for, Toots and the Maytals.  It is hard to overestimate the legendary status Toots holds in the reggae genre, and each and every time he takes the stage one always gets a bit more excited for what may one experience in the coming 2 hours.  Anyone who’s seen Toots before knows that anything can happen throughout the course of his sets.

Toots wasted very little time, and quickly went to work, coming right out on stage and starting off with his regular favorites, and continuing on with the good rocksteady/ska/blues/reggae vibe all through the night.

Toots blended the regular crowd favorites -- Bam Bam, Pomp and Pride, Country Roads -- with material off his new album, True Love, which curiously enough is most of his old tunes with new twists.  His regular repertoire always brings the Fox Theatre to fever pitch, and this night was no different.  The consummate entertainer was at his best again, putting on an energy packed performance for an hour and a half which had the crowd moving and dancing to the beat.  Toots was helping to promote his latest album, True Love, whose collaborators reads as a who's who in the music business (Bonny Raitt, Eric Clapton, and Willie Nelson to name a few).

Curiously, Toots took advantage of quite a few long breaks throughout the night as instrumentals led the way through many of the songs, leading one to wonder if either Toots’ voice may have taken a half day.  Regardless of the breaks in his performance, the whole show was vastly entertaining, and once again Toots, as well as The B Side Players, should be thanked for a great show.

Larry Leiber, The Reggae Movement