March 14, 2008

The Dixie Performing Arts Center is nestled in a corner of the town square in Huntingdon.  Parking is easy to find and what a greeting you receive upon entering! Friendly smiling faces welcome you and check your tickets, and someone also makes sure that you find your seats quickly and have no questions.  It's a very attractive venue with great sound and very comfy seating.  I was completely impressed with the surroundings, and the excellent seats we had! Why can't we get a place like this in Kansas City????

After a wonderful introduction that included pointing out the fans in the front row that had traveled so far (especially Frank from Holland and Kerryn from Australia!), Suzy took the stage right at 7:30. She was cute and casual in indigo jeans, high-heeled silver pumps, and a lovely gray and yellow patterned jacket-style sequined top. She told us that we were very quiet for a Friday night.  Someone called out, "We've been waiting for you" and she assured us that she was going to be making some noise.

"Outbound Plane" opened the set, with Will sounding fabulous on the lovely Steinway piano at stage right. When the song was done, Suzy asked Pat to unplug her guitar, saying she didn't like to make that sound when the plug popped out. She told everyone that all through the song, her other guitar had been calling to her saying, "You hardly play me anymore!"  So she took it and began strumming, asking if it sounded okay.  She then turned back to the microphone, "We're gonna start….oh, we already did!" Starting again, she advised the they were going to do another song that "hopefully you will know and I will know.  But if I know it, it will be better!" Light-hearted laughter was heard as Suzy said, "Hit it, boys" and began "Someday Soon." It was, of course, perfect!

Suzy spoke fondly of Ian Tyson, saying she was glad she had gotten a chance to sing that song. Then she went into "Aces," which wafted beautifully throughout the venue – the acoustics were great!  Afterwards, Suzy promised that she would dig more songs out of the archive a little later.  She spoke of the new record, saying she knew it was always hard to hear a song for the first time, but asking us to stay with the story – "this is a cool little story." This was to be a flawless performance of "Bus Ride," which the audience seemed to really enjoy.

Suzy mentioned the album and how it came to be, discussing the blend of Nashville and New York.  Pat tossed out the word "fusion" and Suzy asked if it was country-jazz fusion, saying that actually sounded scary.  Will asked Suzy if she knew what to call country-rap fusion, calling it "crap" and the crowd laughed. Pat chimed in, calling the album "con-fusion" to more laughter. The next song was introduced as one of Doug's, which was supposed to leave you feeling "uplifted in sort of a down kinda way."  It could only be "In Heaven."

As she finished singing, Suzy reached for a small package on her stage table and took out a mint.  Looking at the size and shape of the tin, she jokingly offered, "Candy cigarette?  Just kidding!"  She commented that the box reminded her of those candy cigarettes that we used to have when we were kids….before they were "dastardly!" 

She told us about writing songs with Gary Scruggs and how he is really shy, and writing songs with him is a little tricky – he won't look you in the eye.  He walks around the house, and tosses out a line as he walks by.  Suzy said she watched him do a lot of laps!  The treat that is "Hammer and Nail" was the next selection. Pat played the harmonica flawlessly for this one, while Will played his accordion and Dan got out the big bass.  Suzy couldn't resist complimenting her band on the performance, starting with Pat.  She told us that when Pat came to work with her on this song, she asked him to play "Bob Dylan bad." She asked him to play something for everyone, totally putting him on the spot. Of course, Pat was nothing less than wonderful! She declared him bad, in a different kinda way.  Looking over at Will, she asked, "You want to do that on the accordion?" Everyone laughed.

Suzy remarked that she is all over the place with the music – she likes to explore and experiment. She reflected on her camper truck days, saying this song was sort of a true story about following your gut and doing something that doesn't necessarily make a lot of sense to everybody around you. She said she does that a lot, and that's why this song keeps hanging in the set list for so long. Cheers of appreciation met the intro of "Night Rider's Lament."  Will accompanied Suzy quite well during the yodels and the song finished to lots of applause, whoopin' and hollerin'!

The next song, she told us, was from one of her earlier records. It had ended up inspiring a whole album later on.  She advised it was a sing-along, and she knew we were all thrilled.  What else could it be except "Eat at Joe's?"  Pat added an entirely new element this time, making that guitar absolutely talk! I understand now that this sound was made using something called a wa-wa pedal, but it was certainly impressive! Will rocked out on the Steinway, as well.

Suzy paused to introduce us to the band: Will Barrow on piano, Dan Immel on bass, Todd London on drums, and Pat Bergeson (he plays it all!). "Hey Cinderella" was the last song of the first set, as a 15-20 minute intermission followed.

When Suzy came back out, she was alone.  "I fired the band while we were gone," she told us. "I just didn't feel like I needed them!"  She spoke again of traveling out there alone in her camper truck way back when, bartering for free stuff for her singing, including free skiing.  She called the next song one of her favorites she has ever recorded, one by Tony Arata. "Part of Me" was phenomenal with just Suzy gently strumming her guitar on the stage. I would have to say that this one is one of my all-time favorites as well.  It never ceases to impress me with how poignant and perfect it is.

The band came back out on stage when the song was done, and Suzy said she was "diggin' out of the archives now." She introduced another oldie-goldie, and her first top fourteen. She worked to get her guitar on tune, chanting, "mi-mi-mi-mi." While she did this, she noticed hand signals from Pat to the other band members and teased them about it, asking if they were signaling what they planned to do after the show.  The guys played along, making play-call type gestures and Suzy remarked that she wasn't paranoid or anything. "Cross My Broken Heart" was her next selection.  After that, she said she should have started with this one, cause it was her first top 46. At least she went from 46 to 14, she joked.

Telling the brief story of Merle Haggard, Buck Owens, and Bonnie Owens, stating that's the way country music works and that's how we get such great songs.  "Somewhere Between" sounded perfect, as always. Does anyone else have trouble resisting the temptation to sing along with this beautiful classic?

You can't have a Suzy show without at least one instance of a cute Suzy joke and/or some sort of faux pas, and this one was adorable!  As she finished the song, Suzy told us that it was really just pretty much every day married life.  "You know, what that guy says about girls being from Venus and guys being from…..Uranus?" she asked.  "No, wait a minute!" she hurried, turning a little bit red.  "Moving right along….." She had to fight a smile as she introduced the next song.  It was recently performed on American Idol, and Simon Cowell said that nobody had ever covered it.  Suzy said she was sitting there saying, "I did!" Someone in the audience assured her that she did a really good cover of it, too. She talked about this being a Chicago song and said she had sent a recording of it to Peter Cetera.  He called her…but she wasn't home. He and Doug apparently had a good conversation, though. 

After "If You Leave Me Now," Suzy switched gears to do some songs from "Swing."  She mentioned Ray Benson and Asleep at the Wheel and said she used to open for them out in Montana a hundred million years ago, back when she was riding a dinosaur to get to gigs. She told us about a time when Ray Benson literally saved her life on stage.  They were outside of Big Sky, Montana, at a truck stop.  People had come to see Asleep at the Wheel and dance, and she was the opening act. They were not impressed with her and her guitar. As the beer bottles started to fly, she remembered, Ray came up to the microphone – and he was about 8 feet tall.  He leaned in and said, "All right, now, y'all.  She's gotta get her gas money!"  So, that's how they became friends – with that "really nice compliment."  The audience laughed in appreciation at the story.

The first "Swing" tune was "My Dream is You."  The band was wonderful and Suzy's voice pristine. She commented on the next song that she wasn't sure she knew the arrangement very well, but then she and Will did a beautiful duet on "Cupid Shot us Both with One Arrow." It was very interesting to get to hear Will sing other than backup.

Next was a very rare treat.  Suzy called it one of her favorite songs as she began the amazing "Someone to Watch Over Me." I could listen to her sing this one every day, and was thrilled to find it was part of the set list for this show. The audience appeared to appreciate it greatly, too.

Doug's original tearjerker, "Letting Go," an audience favorite, was Suzy's next choice, and then they picked it up a bit by going right into "No Way Out."  Suzy encouraged the audience to clap in rhythm while she sang, and we managed to keep the beat fairly well for a change!

The show concluded with "Drive South," and then the most terrible thing happened!! As Suzy thanked everyone for coming out and the standing ovation began, she left the stage……and THE LIGHTS CAME ON!!  Can you say "Whoops?"  Those of us at the front continued cheering and voices called out, "We want more!" but the people in the back got up and started to leave.  We didn't get our encore!   I've never been to a show where this happened, and it was a bit of a disappointment, but I guess it made for a longer meet and greet, which is where we all headed. 

It was a great show in a beautiful venue, and well worth the drive.  Sang, I'm sorry I thought you were going to make us late – obviously I should have trusted you!  We were there in plenty of time and didn't miss a note. For everyone else, hope to see you next time Suzy appears at the DixiePac!!!!

Janelle

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