Chambers/Nicholson & JT Earle @ Fitz
Posted on June 18th, 2009 – 3:15 AMBy Jon Bream
What a perfect match! Two entertaining acts of the alt-country persuasion.
Justin Townes Earle is a whole lot taller than his dad, Steve Earle, but as a performer, he came across as a witty, smart, almost vaudevillian version of Steve. Very impressive. Sorry I missed his recent headline gig at the Turf Club.
Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson came across like a modern-day Aussie version of June and Johnny. Kasey was super-chatty, as always, and Shane was dry and funny, too.
At one point, Kasey told the story of how they tuck in their 7 year old son, Talon. As has become their habit, she tells him a story and then Shane sings a song by the likes of Neil Young and Bob Dylan. One night, Talon requested “The Ants Song.” Neither parent knew what he meant, so they asked him to sing it: “The ants, my friend, are blowing in the wind.”
Another zinger from Kasey was when she was introducing their favorite love song, the O’Kanes’ “Gone Long Gone.” She said she’d wished she’d known about the song because it would have been in their wedding. Said Kasey: “We had ‘Highway to Hell’ as our wedding song.”
Between all the yakking, Chambers and Nicholson sang, often accompanied by her dad, Bill, on guitar or mandolin. They did material from their standout 2008 duo disc, “Rattlin Bones,” as well as tunes from Chambers’ solo career, a couple of covers, tunes from a forthcoming kids album and some Nicholson solo numbers, most of which haven’t been released in the States yet.
Here is the set list:1. Rattlin Bones 2. Bluebird 3. God & Elvis 4. Wildflower 5. Monkey on a Wire 6. Lost and Found 7. Not Pretty Enough 8. Still Feelin Blue 9. Summer Dress 10. You Don’t Know Me (Ray Charles) 11. Southend Song 12. Lost Music Kids 13. Once in a While 14. Picture in a Frame (Tom Waits) 15. Captain 16. Where the Water Flows 17. Pony 18. Woe Is Mine 19. Thank You and Goodnight ENCORE 20. One More Year 21. Last Hard Bible 22. Gone Long Gone (O’Kanes)
