The Words & The Melody - Iris DeMent at Thornbury Theatre

Iris DeMent live at Thornbury Theatre 28/5/15

 



Iris DeMent last played at Thornbury Theatre in December 2013 to an enthralled sold out show. I didn’t really expect her to return so soon, considering that 15 years had passed since her previous tour in 1998.

Obviously Iris was impressed by the response to her music on her last tour. and appeared to be delighted to be back on these shores. And we who had tickets to her show this time were thrilled to welcome her back.

Concerts at Thornbury Theatre are normally seated at large tables and chairs, cabaret style, but this time it was arranged in concert mode with rows of chairs.  No doubt they could accommodate a larger audience in this mode.

I’d booked reserved seats early so was pleased to be seated in the fourth row, which turned out to be good for testing the G16 in the circumstances. Despite heads impeding my view, I managed to get much more glamorous photos of Iris DeMent this time.  And she was certainly dressed more colourfully this time in a dress she had just bought from a fashion house in Brisbane.

There were two support acts, the first being local duo Andy Wigglesworth and Laura Coates who perform as The Weeping Willows.

The Weeping Willows at Thornbury Theatre 28/5/15



They performed a short pleasant set of songs from their debut album Till The North Wind Blows. They’re into traditional old time music, influenced by Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, Emmylou Harris, etc.

The second support was Pieta Brown, daughter of Iris DeMent’s husband, singer songwriter Greg Brown. She grew up steeped in music, and follows in her father’s footsteps as a songwriter, musician and singer.

Pieta Brown live at Thornbury Theatre 28/5/15

 

Pieta’s musical taste extends beyond the folk and country spectrum into rock n roll and she is a brilliant guitarist. I have no idea what songs she played, but one was a tribute to Loretta Lynn.

Iris DeMent took the stage at about 9.00pm, and for most of the show played the piano as the accompaniment to her songs. It was only in the latter stages of her set that she took up her guitar and faced the audience directly.

Iris DeMent live at Thornbury Theatre 28/5/15

 

Iris was in a cheerful mood, despite her jet lag which she admitted she was treating with coffee, and gave a mesmerising and moving performance that lasted for well over an hour and a half and included 18 songs, including a two song encore.

 

Most of the songs she sang were drawn from her latest album Sing The Delta, and from a forthcoming record entitled The Trackless Woods, a collection of 18 songs that are poems of Anna Akhmatova,  Iris has set to music.

She explained that on discovering the poetry of Akhmatova, she felt compelled to create music for the words, stating that being used to expressing her own poetic vision in song, the words make more sense when set to music. “It’s like the melody is part of the language,” she added.

I was somewhat disappointed that she didn’t sing any of my favourites from her back catalogue, except “My Life” in the encore, but then again the Akhmatova poems sounded gorgeous.

Pieta Brown joined her on stage for the last two songs of the main set, where they sang a wonderful version Greg Brown’s “My Home In the Sky” and “Let The Mystery Be” from Iris’s second album Infamous Angel.

It was a low key night of beautiful soulful music and a rare pleasure to hear Iris DeMent sing again in her unique voice, her lovely melodies.



A Musical Interlude–Kevin & Dustin Welch at the Caravan Music Club

R to L –Kevin & Dustin Welch live at Caravan Music Club – 28/3/15

What a pleasure it was to be back in the urban wilds of Oakleigh at the Caravan Music Club! It has to be one of the best music venues in Melbourne, so it’s a pity it is so far away from where I live.

However, last night, after taking up the offer of a ticket from our neighbour B, I got to attend a wonderful concert by US singer songwriters, father and son duo Kevin Welch and Dustin Welch.

Kevin Welch is no stranger to these shores having toured here many times with fellow Dead Reckoner Kieran Kane. I first saw them in November 1999 at the Continental Cafe and like everyone who was present on the night, was blown away by their performance.

This is Dustin Welch’s first tour of Australia but he has been making a name for himself in his home country as an accomplished multi instrumentalist and literate lyricist.

He and his dad make a dynamic duo, sharing a taste for the same type of music, as well as having a ‘chip off the old block ‘ similarity in voices and delivery.

The evening was kicked off by local singer songwriter Dan Waters, who performed a mesmerising set, mostly comprised of songs from his debut album La Vita E Bella. Typified by his dry as a dust bowl delivery that reminds me of James McMurtry, and others of Merle Haggard and Johnny Cash, his gritty urban ballads of low life and desperation grow on you as you listen to the words.

Dan Waters live at Caravan Music Club – 28/3/15

Included in his set was the terrific Guilt And Shame, Didn’t Mean To Hurt No-One, and Heat of December.

There was a short break after Dan Waters’ set, after which the main act assumed the stage and played for something like two hours, taking turn about to sing songs from their dual repertoires with each providing vocal and instrumental accompaniment to the other.

The first song, sung by Kevin Welch was The Great Emancipation, one I had not heard before. In the main Kevin played mostly new songs, but there were several familiar tunes among them, such as Postcard From Mexico, Millionaire, Jersey Devil, Train To Birmingham and Marysville, a song he wrote in response to the Black Saturday bushfires of 2009.

Kevin Welch – looking older than when I last saw him

Of course I’d never heard any of Dustin Welch’s songs, so they were all new to me.  I was particularly taken with Sparrows, Paranoid Heart Poor House, Cannonball Girl and Whisky Priest, a song inspired by the Graham Greene novel  The Power and the Glory.

Dustin Welch live at Caravan Music Club – 28/3/15

Just about every time I’ve seen Kevin Welch in concert, he has experienced problems with his guitar. This time a string broke, a brief way into the set, so he was obliged to borrow Dan Waters’ instrument which he played for the rest of the night.

Dustin had no trouble with his instruments – banjo, slide guitar and acoustic guitar. And he certainly knew how to play them.

It was a great show by two consummate showmen, one young, one old, the family relationship creating a marvellously engaging listening experience.

Here’s a video of Kevin & Dustin performing Postcard From Mexico

Kevin & Dustin Welch Set list
Caravan Music Club (28/3/15)

1. The Great Emancipation
2. Postcard From Mexico (David Olney cover)
3. Paranoid Heart
4. Marysville
5. Sparrows
6. The Flower
7. The Lower East Side (co written with JTE)
8. Millionaire
9. Poor House
10. Come A Rain
11. Cannonball Girl
12. Dust Devil
13. Two Horses
14. Jersey Devil
15. Don’t Tell Em Nothin’ (co written with Cary Ann Hearst)
16. Train To Birmingham (John Hiatt cover)
17. After The Music’s Gone
18. Patch Of Blue Sky
19. Whisky Priest

Encore

Too Old To Die Young

I’m anticipating several musical treats in the coming months. First up in April is the exhilarating Pokey La Farge, followed by the soulfully beautiful Iris Dement in May, whilst in June I have tickets for the Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell concert at the Palais which promises to be a ripper.

Sweet Is The Melody – Iris DeMent Sings the Delta

Iris DeMent live at Thornbury Theatre 5 December 2013

You could almost imagine that you were somewhere in the deep south of America on Thursday evening at Thornbury Theatre, so transforming and evocative was the wonderful concert performed by Iris DeMent.

The grandiose ballroom was packed to the chandeliers with the sell out crowd, but we all experienced the show as if we were sitting in Iris’s living room. Such was the intimacy of a rare night in the company of an unique American singer songwriter.

I first saw Iris DeMent live in 1998 at the late lamented Continental Cafe in Prahran, so was delighted when this tour was announced, and booked tickets as soon as they became available.

The show opener was Australian Country artist Catherine Britt. I have not previously seen her perform, so was interested to see how she came across. Quite well, actually. She gave us a sweet set of 7 of her own compositions, including Charlestown Road, A Good Few Years and standout Sweet Emmylou, Catherine’s tribute to Emmylou Harris.

Catherine Britt live at Thornbury Theatre 5 December 2013

I remember my surprise when Iris DeMent first walked on stage at the Continental all those years ago. She was unassuming, dressed simply in shirtmaker dress, in fact she appeared quite dowdy. But as soon as she opened her mouth all those impressions were swept away in the glory of her unique voice.

This time she was wore a short sleeved dress in a cowboy print, and cowboy boots. She is not in least photogenic, but I doubt that she cares. It’s the music and the words of her songs that count for everything.

Iris began her set with Makin’ My Way Back Home, a song, from her latest album Sing The Delta, which is an exquisite collection of soulful songs inspired by the place where she grew up in the Arkansas Delta.

She performed quite few songs from the new album, Mama Was Always Tellin’ Her Truth, the title track, Livin’ On The  Inside and several others, but she covered songs from her four previous records as well, singing well loved tunes like Sweet Is The Melody,  When My Morning Comes Around, Easy’s Gettin’ Harder Every Day and No Time To Cry.

For the most part Iris accompanied herself on the piano, which gave the concert a somewhat churchy tone –hallelujah – playing to a hushed and respectful audience.  One of the highlights was her rendition of the song that is played during the credits of the Coen Brothers film True Grit. Iris recorded Leaning On The Everlasting Arms on her gospel album Lifeline, and informed us that when she received the request for permission to use the song, she had forgotten all about it.

Another song, Like A White Stone, one I had not previously heard, was inspired by the works of Russian poet Anna Akhmatova, and the words of the song are rendered directly from Akhmatova’s poem.

Iris DeMent gave generously of her time and performed 19 songs in all including the encore where she sang three songs, two of them being her best known “hits” My Life and Our Town. The latter song was famously played in the closing moments of the last episode of the TV series Northern Exposure.

It was simply wonderful to see Iris DeMent live in concert again after a hiatus of fifteen years. Her music is good for your soul, sweet to the ears, and emotionally engaging.  She is a treasure beyond compare.

Catherine Britt Set List

1. Sally Bones
2. I Want You Back
3. Charlestown Road
4. Hillbilly Pickin’ Rambling Girl
5. A Good Few Years
6. There’s Gotta Be More
7. Sweet Emmylou

Iris DeMent Set List

1. Makin’ My Way Back Home
2. Sweet Is The Melody
3. No Time To Cry
4. Mama Was Always Tellin’ Her Truth
5. Sing The Delta
6. When My Morning Comes Around
7. Livin’ On The Inside
8. Mornin’ Glory
9. Mama’s Opry
10. Easy’s Getting Harder Every Day
11. The Night I Learned How Not to Pray
12. Out Of The Fire
13. Go On Ahead And Go Home
14. Like A White Stone
15. Leaning On The Everlasting Arms
16. There’s A Whole Lotta Heaven

Encore

1. Old Fashioned Love (cover of Merle Haggard song)
2. My Life
3. Our Town

Check out this video of a much younger Iris DeMent singing Sweet Is The Melody..