Powerhouse of Blues : Roy Rogers & The Delta Rhythm Kings

“Seeing Roy Rogers hit the stage as the opening act on Tuesday was a delightful surprise. Once a producer for and band member with John Lee Hooker, Roy Rogers showed his Delta blues bona fides with a 40-minute solo opening set. There was plenty of showboating, his fingers strutting and sliding on acoustic guitar through “Down Home Girl” (an Alvin Robertson song later covered by the Rolling Stones). But his more nuanced interpretations were equally gripping like the way his wavy guitar melodies fell to a whisper as he contemplated his inevitable demise during Robert Johnson’s “Stones in My Passway.”  Bonnie Raitt sang his praises during her set before she sang a song, and her longtime friend joined her at night’s end for “Gnawin’ On It” — a song they wrote together for her 2002 “Silver Lining” album — and a cover of B.B. King’s “Never Make a Move Too Soon.” “