G.Love Got Funky AF on His Saturday Show in Deep Ellum

Remember when music was just plain fun? That’s what the crowd got this weekend with the return of G. Love to Dallas: infectious grooves, snappy, happy lyrics with singalong choruses and booty-shaking beats.

G. Love, funky as ever, made his first post-COVID tour to showcase his 2020 Grammy-nominated release The Juice. His current band is named after the album and they lit up Trees on Saturday night with groovy guitar rhythms and G.Love's super-syncopated, lyrical style. Born Garrett Dutton, the Philly musician has had a strong following since his hits “Baby’s Got Sauce” and “Cold Beverages” introduced his style of laid-back blues mixed with hip-hop, though he uses no samples or computers. His band meticulously pumps out beats on a standard setup of drums, upright bass, two guitars and harmonica. It’s just as danceable but has somewhat of a more old-time feel.

The show was pure joy. Dutton played two sets and many standards, including a fantastic cover of “Gin and Juice" by Snoop Dogg. His own “Who's Got the Weed” prompted an enthusiastic skunk-like smell from the audience but that was quashed fairly quickly. It was nice to be in a room of people singing along to “Peace, Love and Happiness.” Known for bringing out guests, G.Love ended the first set with Texas blues guitarist Wes Jean jumping onstage. After some furious blues guitar solos, Delta blues man (and the show's opener) Jontavious Willis took over lead vocals as Dutton slid over to harmonica for a fantastic Deep Ellum-style jam. Time seems to have had no effect on the baby-faced G. Love. He had the energy of a teenager and an infectious smile that only left his face to make room for his screaming harmonica solos. The singer delivered the goods as always, and the crowd, thirsty for G.Love's brand of fun, gladly showered in The Juice.