Dennise and I had the total pleasure of seeing Lucinda Williams last night at the UB Center for the Arts. I had never been at the Center for the Arts before, but I was really impressed. The rows of seats are sloped almost like a stadium and the acoustics are tremendous. After the first song, Lucinda even commented on how great the room sounded. She was very warm and funny onstage and introduced practically every song. Lucinda receives a great deal of regard for her songwriting, so the explanations she gave of each song seemed appropriate and provided a lot of insight that made old favorites even more enjoyable to hear. It led me to focus much more closely on the lyrics. The lyrics for “Drunken Angel,” for example, are actually quite literal from a storytelling perspective, but I had never listened all that closely before.
Lucinda referred to a big binder of lyrics for some of the songs. It made me think of Frank Sinatra recording an album, like on the cover of “Strangers In The Night.” When she wasn’t focusing on the book and was more comfortable with the words, she could really focus on her phrasing, which along with her voice is absolutely incredible.
I thought the band was great. The guitarist used a lot of feedback on his guitar and it actually reminded me of Pete Townshend a little in terms of sound, while his playing style was totally different. I thought “Changed The Locks” would have sounded awesome with that guitar and harmonica as well, but although they have played it on this tour, it wasn’t for Buffalo.
The songs I enjoyed the most were 2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten (one of my favorites), Fruits of My Labor (which I don’t think I had even heard before), and “Lake Charles.” I always dug “Lake Charles,” but the intro Lucinda gave about it being autobiographical really put me in the place and time. It’s a view into a lot of interesting people, places, and things that I will never see! It’s about as close as knowing Blaze Foley and Townes Van Zandt as I will get. To hear her perform live is just so real and beautiful.
I found these quotes that are only slightly related, but wanted to add them here:
"Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world and I'll stand on Bob Dylan’s coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that." - Steve Earle
"I've met Bob Dylan and his bodyguards, and I don't think Steve could get anywhere near his coffee table." - Townes Van Zandt
Lucinda referred to a big binder of lyrics for some of the songs. It made me think of Frank Sinatra recording an album, like on the cover of “Strangers In The Night.” When she wasn’t focusing on the book and was more comfortable with the words, she could really focus on her phrasing, which along with her voice is absolutely incredible.
I thought the band was great. The guitarist used a lot of feedback on his guitar and it actually reminded me of Pete Townshend a little in terms of sound, while his playing style was totally different. I thought “Changed The Locks” would have sounded awesome with that guitar and harmonica as well, but although they have played it on this tour, it wasn’t for Buffalo.
The songs I enjoyed the most were 2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten (one of my favorites), Fruits of My Labor (which I don’t think I had even heard before), and “Lake Charles.” I always dug “Lake Charles,” but the intro Lucinda gave about it being autobiographical really put me in the place and time. It’s a view into a lot of interesting people, places, and things that I will never see! It’s about as close as knowing Blaze Foley and Townes Van Zandt as I will get. To hear her perform live is just so real and beautiful.
I found these quotes that are only slightly related, but wanted to add them here:
"Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world and I'll stand on Bob Dylan’s coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that." - Steve Earle
"I've met Bob Dylan and his bodyguards, and I don't think Steve could get anywhere near his coffee table." - Townes Van Zandt
2 comments:
I thought the show rocked Mikey!
Did you hear some guy in the audience during the show yelling "Yeah" like a mental patient the whole time? We were sitting right in front of him.
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