Perkins Shows He Can Still Rock With Best

Carl Perkins was a foot soldier in the rockabilly army, without the larger-than-life aspects and strings of hits of his Sun Records stablemates Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash. That’s fast company, but Perkins has endured, and today he probably remains the closest of all his contemporaries to the pure sounds and spirit of early rock ‘n’ roll.

Nostalgia might have been the main motivation for the crowd at the House of Blues on Tuesday, where the patriarch was making a rare L.A. appearance, but the fans got more than a polite history lesson. Given a lively jolt by one of his disciples, English guitarist Dave Edmunds, the set generated all the energy, urgency and innocence a cat could want.

As Perkins nears 65, his voice has thickened a little, but it remains strong, and it hopped with deceptive ease around the syncopated beats established by his four backing musicians. When he wasn’t deferring to Edmunds during the Englishman’s mid-set visit, the leader also delivered some blistering guitar solos.

Perkins’ survival is a testament to the value of solid craftsmanship and honest expression--and one bolt of inspiration: His “Blue Suede Shoes” is one of the sacred texts of rock ‘n’ roll.

That celebratory anthem climaxed a show that was memorable not just for its revisiting of rock ‘n’ roll’s roots, but also for the dignity and poise of a modest man who’s supremely comfortable with himself.