Hounds of Love - James and the Cold Gun (Atlanta 7-29-2023)

"James and the Cold Gun" is one of very few songs in Kate Bush's catalog that could be classified as hard rock. It originates from Kate's early days playing the pub circuit with the KT Bush Band circa 1977. The song was recorded that same year for her debut album, THE KICK INSIDE. The lyrics paint a picture of the American Wild West and a gunslinger's friend that is pleading for James to return home before he may inevitably be killed by the same choice of weapon that he's chosen to live by.
This was one of the songs that I picked out as a worthy candidate to add to the HOUNDS OF LOVE live set. The guitar player in me certainly relished playing something a bit more aggressive, which would certainly stand among the mellower and more nuanced selections we'd already planned. Audrey had fun with singing something a bit more up-tempo as well. It starts with a bouncy piano figure before setting into an edgy, but rollicking groove.
It was our first time playing this song live, so it wasn't as perfect as we might have wished, but still plenty good enough to share with you here. Many thanks to James Poulakos for capturing such nice close-up's of our band in action at our last Atlanta show here at The Earl. He did a very nice job of even capturing my 'wireless walkabout' moment when I ventured into the audience to play an entirely improvised guitar solo. Usually, the footage will show me disappearing and then returning, but James was able to preserve the moment pretty closely to the way I experienced it.
THE PLAYERS
Audrey Gámez - lead vocals
Regeana Campbell - backing vocals
Rob Dwyer - guitar
Allen Welty-Green - keyboards / synth
Jeff Blanks - keyboards / piano
Bill Sommer -drums
VIDEO NOTES: This footage is a composite of handheld footage done by James Poulakos, center camera footage from Rob’s Canon Vixia and onstage footage from Allen Welty-Green’s CAM. The audio is a blend of soundboard and room audio from Rob’s TASCAM near the SB. Editing work by Rob Dwyer.