Stacey Earle & Mark Stuart
We're going to Hugh's Room tonight - Stacey Earle and Mark Stewart are playing! I'll post a review later.
The Review
Jory Nash opened the show with a set of good songs, well played - likely the best opening act I've heard at Hugh's Room.
This was the first Stacey Earle / Mark Stuart show I've been to, and I found myself delighted with the songs, the singing and the playing - not to mention the storytelling - throughout the show. Mark Stuart is a very skilled guitarist - it's magical simply watching his hands at work. It is difficult to describe the experience of watching and listening to Stacey Earle. Infectious is the word that comes to mind. She's a really fine song-writer, and a really good singer in that Texas singer-songwriter tradition that includes her brother Steve, the late Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, Joe Ely, and so on. Mark and Stacey (I feel like we're on a first name basis now) seem to be made to play together, and you can feel the admiration they have for one another's talents. They played one long set, about 2 hours of top drawer roots music. I felt like I could listen to them play all night.
If they come to your town, get some friends together and go see the show. Tonight's show gets my highest rating - a full can of anchovies.
4 comments:
Sounds like a great time!
I didn't realize that Stacey Earle was Steve's sister. I really love the Austin sound, I have seen all the people you just mentioned a number of times. Plus Michelle Shocked, Nanci Griffith, and the late great Kate Wolfe. But my absolute favorite is James McMurtry. The kind of lyrics you would expect from the son of novelist Larry, and a voice made for telling stories.
First time i saw him he was just a young kid, opening for Nancii Griffith at St. Andrews Hall in Detroit in the early 90's. Have seen him a number of times since. Great talent!
She told a story at the show about there always being song-writers around the house....her brother would bring them around and they wouldn't leave. She then played what she called one of the prettiest songs she's ever heard - If I Needed You, by Townes Van Zandt
I love that song!
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