A freezing cold, wet winter night at the Brudenell in the middle of Studentville, Leeds was the host to this pair of Nashvillians armed with acoustic guitars and a pedal steel.
Although not officially a double-header gig, I got the feeling there were as many present looking forward to seeing the support of Andrew Combs as there were for Justin Townes Earle.
In support of new, fabulous album All These Dreams released on the equally fabulous Loose label, Andrew Combs strode onstage, top to toe in denim and confidently announced himself with a “Howdy”. ‘Month of Bad Habits’ opened the set, accompanying himself with acoustic guitar alone, as did the rest of the set. The half an hour truly sped by, mainly with songs off the new album, but also containing new song ‘Silk Flowers’.
The appreciative audience said goodbye and he then manned his own merch stall, where i got to say hello. He suggested he may be back towards the end of the year with a full band, which will truly do the new album justice.
After a quick break, It was then JTE’s turn onstage, accompanied by electric guitarist Paul, who also doubled as the pedal steel player. The tour is in support of his latest releases which comprises 2 albums released in close proximity : Single Mothers and Absent Fathers. Although mid way through the set he claimed his songs were not always autobiographical, it’s not difficult to work out the theme behind these two.
Again, the set seemed to speed along at an alarming rate, helped by the stories between songs which were a mixture of general chat (the worst place he’s ever lived was on the outskirts of Brooklyn), to explaining the background to songs (his apparent obsession with the weather as a theme). With Paul alternating between electric guitar and pedal steel, the absence of a full band was hardly noticed or missed, and the beautiful acoustic guitar picking took centre stage.
Another theme running through his songs, and set, was family. Another anecdote was told about his Mother who regularly cries when she hears one of his songs (Mama’s Eyes) aimed at his absent father Steve Earle. Hardly surprising considering the sentiment. His wife, grandfather and Billie Holliday were also sound checked throughout the evening, the latter before he played the gorgeous White Gardenias.
Worried About The weather from Single Mothers was a set highlight for me, I’m a sucker for pedal steel, and then Dreams and Harlem River Blues closed the night to a fabulous ovation.
Whilst JTE also revealed that he has never listened back to one of his albums after release for fear of producing the same again and again, I would suggest he has nothing to worry about. With these two releases, I would suggest he has finally reached his peak, and live and minimally played, the songs reveal themselves even more beautifully.
Keith @kjsmith4082
