| To be honest, I was a bit passive about going to this show. Even though I have bothSheryl Crow CDs, Tuesday Night Music Club and her newest self-titled, I neverreally considered myself a big fan. Had it not been for The Wallflowers opening, Iprobably wouldn't have even considered the show, but how glad I am that I did. The Wallflowers are one of my favorite new bands. From the first time I heard "6thAvenue Heartache" on the radio, without even knowing who it was, I knew I was goingto like them. Then I find that the lead singer is one Jakob Dylan, son of Bob, and thatAdam Duritz of Counting Crows is backing them up. No wonder why I was drawn to theirsound. Anyway, the show was very tight. Jakob, although favoring his father, with adistinctive profile and gravel quality to his voice, has certainly developed his own styleand along with the other musicians in the band, has put together a talented ensemble. Withtwo Grammy nominations, we're sure to be seeing The Wallflowers headlining their own toursin the near future. In a word, Sheryl Crow's performance was "outstanding". I was very impressedby her musicianship and versatility. She played both acoustic and electric guitars withauthority as well as easily transitioned to the piano and organ at the top of the stage.Her voice was clear, at times sweet and others raspy. Her between-song banter was a littlebit of a strain, but at least she made the effort. Sheryl has lots of good songs, allwritten in whole or in part by her. Her catchy melodies sometimes distract radio listenersfrom the sensitivity of her lyrics, but in the live show, her true feelings were displayedin "Leaving Las Vegas" "Run, Baby, Run", and "Maybe Angels".Even though she must be sick of "All I Wanna Do", she played it with aconfidence that said "I know this is how I got noticed, but I can do so muchmore", and she did. For an encore, she even treated the audience to her accordion(jewel-studded, I might add) stylings with a rousing version of "Strong Enough". The Music Hall crowd was a little more sedate than I like to see at a concert, but theydid manage to get to their feet for some of the more popular numbers. After all, it was aSunday night, and most of the audience had school the next day. Actually, there was apretty good mix for a pop show, showing that Sheryl can draw from a variety of age groups. Sheryl had an easy stage presence that made it look like she was having a great time upthere. Who wouldn't, doing what you love, making big bucks, touring the US with anentourage of gorgeous men. Where can I sign up? On That Note, I'm outta here...... C |
