Emmylou Harris / July 23rd, 2008 / Orpheum Theater / Vancouver, B.C., Canada
It is with a sense of reverence and respect that one approaches an Emmylou Harris concert, for the sixty-one year old country-Americana-folk, singer / songwriter / musician, has more gold and platinum albums than one can fathom and has on numerous occasions been the recipient of Grammy Awards, in both the country and folk music genres. Unlike some country music or folk rock acts, she has not succumbed to the temptation to allow lights, glitz and glam to substitute for quality music and great performances. On July 23rd, at the Orpheum Theater in Vancouver, Canada, Emmylou Harris, was backed by a superb cast of musicians, which included, fiddler / mandolin player Rickie Simpkins, bassist Chris Donahue, drummer Brian Owens, Phil Madeira (keys/accordion) and guitarist Colin Linden. To say that their music was breathtaking and beautiful, almost seems inadequate, but for lack of a better description, those words will have to suffice.
Harris opened her concert with the pretty “Here I Am,” from her 2003 album Stumble Into Grace, a song on which Harris also played the acoustic guitar, and a tune on which the audience was treated to some fine mandolin picking by Simpkins. She followed her opening number, with the lonely, “Orphan Girl,” a song which sounds like it was birthed in either the Appalachian Mountains of Harris’ native North Carolina, or perhaps even the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.
Not unlike Naomi Judd, Harris is still physically and vocally beautiful as she is seemingly unaffected by the passage of time. During her performance, Harris wove together original tunes with covers of other several noteworthy artists. In commenting on her repertoire and the vast catalogue of songs, upon which she has to draw, Harris said that she, along with her band were going to play, “Some old stuff, some new stuff and some in between stuff.”
Harris’ newer tunes came from her June release of All I Intended To Be, and included the already mentioned Haggard tune, “Kern River,” “Hold On,” and Tracy Chapman’s “All That You Have Is Your Soul.” The song, “Hold On,” contains some soulful fiddlin’ by Simpkins, augmented by Colin Linden’s sweet licks. “All That You Have Is Your Soul,” provides a warning to be true to yourself, to hold your dreams close and not to give into short-term pleasure or fanciful romance, at the expense of the things that you value most in life. Madeira’s accordion playing was poignant and Simpkins mandolin lamenting, on the sorrowful “Kern River,” a ballad about the tragic loss of a loved one.
We used the word breathtaking in our opening salvo, to describe the music of Emmylou Harris, and her pretty arrangements and emotive vocals were evident in “Love And Happiness,” a song that she recorded with Mark Knopfler. Harris collaborated with Austin Texas singer / songwriter Kimmie Rhodes (Wynonna Judd, Trisha Yearwood, Willie Nelson, Peter Frampton) to pen “Love And Happiness.” Rhodes and Harris wrote, "Love And Happiness," as a birthday gift for Rhodes' son Jeremie, and gave it to him on his birthday at an Austin City Limits show a couple of weeks later. The words embody the wishes that one would hope that every parent would have for their child.
Harris introduced the Buck Owens’ tune, “Together Again,” as, “A song that I did for many years and revisited when a friend of mine, who was in his late sixties, got married for the first time. The friend had been tracked down by an old flame that he had known decades earlier. The song “Together Again,” was a # 1 hit for Harris in 1976.
Other highlights during Harris’ concert included her rendition of Bill Monroe’s “Get Up John,” Townes Van Zandt’s “Pancho And Lefty,” which was a blockbuster song for Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard, and “Evangeline,” another tragic love ballad.
For this tour Emmylou Harris pulled together one of the finest country music / bluegrass / folk ensembles that you will ever hear. These are not simply good musicians they are great instrumentalists who are at the top of their craft. At one point, while introducing the band members, Harris accidentally referred to Phil Madeira as Phil Donahue (the talk show host) and, when later in the concert Madeira joined her to sing a song, she used her faux pas to great advantage saying, “Who would have thought that Phil Donahue could sing?”
Emmylou Harris is a music icon for good reason, and her star is still shining brightly. Do yourself a favor, and purchase her new CD All I Intended To Be. You will not be disappointed.
Photos by Rocky Schenk, property of Warner Music Group, protected by copyright ©
Review by Joe Montague
Click here for printer friendly article
Reviewed July 23rd, 2008
Riveting Riffs wishes to thank Live Nation for making it possible for us to review this Concert
