Up On The Mountain Stage
Add one more to your list of Bands You Should See Very Soon: Guster. As I mentioned previously, Sarah H., Gerritt, and I drove up to Charleston Sunday night for a taping of West Virginia Public Radio's Mountain Stage program. We got the tickets based on Guster's appearance, but as it turns out, the other four acts that preceded them were mostly very entertaining, as well, including the huge blues jam that ended the show, when they brought everyone that had played that night back onstage.
First off, I couldn't believe that I'd grown up in West Virginia being such a music fan without hearing of or listening to Mountain Stage before. I mean, the program's been on almost as long as I've been living, and they've had dozens of guests that have went on to become hugely famous. They book acts who are on their way up like Guster, along with lesser-known folksy/bluesy artists who get a chance to shine.
The lineup for Sunday's show included Charlie Musselwhite, a bona fide blues harpist (that's a harmonica for all ya'll not down with the blues). His guitar player had just gotten back from a tour with Bob Dylan. We were also treated to Blue Mother Tupelo, a blues-country-rock duo whose main vocalist had an amazing, strong, southern-gospel voice. She could boogie down on the piano, too. Another highlight was Robert Lockwood, Jr., an 86+ year old blues guitarist taught by one of the very first pioneers of the instrument and genre, Robert Johnson. I liked his style: he'd play a song, say "thank you," wait for the applause to die down, and go right into the next song. No funny business, just straight-up playing. It was a real treat to see him in person. Talk about a living legend.
The fourth act, the Damn Lovelys, were just about average. I couldn't put my finger on what wasn't flowing with them. Their drummer was excellent; their songs were okay, but I just wasn't feeling a vibe from them. It happens. It could be that they played right before Guster, and I was just itching to get to the goods, as it were. You could tell most of the younger members of the audience were waiting for them to play, too, since the small, 500 seat theater got noticably louder when Guster took the stage.
They performed a nice, five-or-six song acoustic set, "to keep with the spirit of where we are," they said. The key thing to remember about Guster is that they have a crazy sense of humor and are known for often pulling all kinds of weird onstage antics. Even though they hadn't planned any for this show, the goofiness followed them to West Virginia when their guest guitarist/banjo picker Joe Pisapia broke a string during "Jesus On The Radio," the first song. That left 5 or 6 minutes to fill while the banjo got restrung, so the three Guster guys started noodling around, apologizing and moderating some corny banjo jokes from the announcers. Funny times. After the banjo was back, they continued their set seamlessly. I must comment that Guster is one of those bands who really live up to and exceed the expectations you get from listening to their studio work. Their voices are clear, their harmonies spotless, and their songs are simple but well-crafted. To quote Sarah, "they're just so good!" What a nice trip for my first big concert of 2004.
So, who is that in the picture? The first time I looked at it I thought it was Gerritt, but now I'm not so sure... :)
That's Ryan Miller of Guster, singing away. I can kind've see the resemblance to Gerritt, though! Maybe that can be his next Halloween costume. Hmm...