June 30, 2007

Willie Nelson blogging

Just got back from the show and it was an incredible four hours of music. It started at 7:30 with a couple youngsters that started off with some funky folk music (acoustic except for a subdued electric bass) and box drums for percussion. The name of the band was 40 Points They played three songs and then switched to an electric format and the guitar player proceeded to shred the heavens -- amazing. When he sang, the tone of his voice wasn't all that good but it did sound very reminiscent of Willies voice -- same reedy Texas twang. Amazing electric guitar player though. They announce who they are and the guitar player is Lukas Nelson. The drummer (also good) is Micah Nelson. Yup -- his kids. I googled a bit when I started to write and it turns out that Lucas is all of 14 years old which explains the lack of depth in his voice... A three-woman Canadian band then took the stage - shaye (see here and here) The first link is to their official website where they have streaming complete tracks of their two albums -- think the Dixie Chicks but not Country -- sort of indie folk. Think Indigo Girls with a lot more vocal power and quality. Not to disparage Indigo Girls but the three women in shaye are classically trained and fantastic vocalists both solo and ensemble. Finally, the stage was prepped and the lights went dark. About five minutes passed and a small electric cart with blinking lights drove over to the back of the stage and Willie and company took over for the remaining three hours. OMFG -- they were in top form. Lucas was back on stage as the electric counterbalance to Willies acoustic. I can't find a list of who was on stage with him although it was his kid sister playing piano and the harmonica was Mickey Raphael. All in all, a wonderful evening (except for the concession food at the venue but then again, why do they call it a concession...) Off to bed... Posted by DaveH at June 30, 2007 12:57 AM