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Lovett shows he's still an original
Even his own musicians don't understand why Lyle Lovett gets called a country singer.
During a wry back-and-forth between songs at Overture Hall on Sunday night, Lovett and one of his backup singers, Sweet Pea Atkinson (and, incidentally, every band should immediately get a backup singer named "Sweet Pea"), the conversation turned to genre, and a possible collaboration with Atkinson's main band, Was (Not Was).
"You do blues, you do funk," Atkinson said. "I don't know why they call you country. You're from Texas, but that don't mean nothing."
That's right, he is from Texas. But Lovett's embrace of American music encompasses nearly all its homegrown genres, from country to jazz to rock to blues to gospel. Somehow the entire American songbook gets channeled through the wry, thoughtful and utterly sincere sensibilities of one odd-looking fellow with a great voice, and the result is consistently terrific and utterly original.
Lovett was sporting a slightly smaller version of his Large Band at Overture Hall on Sunday night. The horn section stayed home this summer, so instead the 10-piece band featured a second lead guitarist, Ray Herndon. Add in the three backup singers and some phenomenal support from seven members of Madison's Fountain of Life Church gospel choir, and nobody could say the band felt understaffed.
The absence of a horn section meant some Lovett favorites, such as "Here I Am," were left off the set list for once. "Penguins" did make the cut, with cellist John Hagen approximating the punctuating horn blast of the original.
As a result, the set (which topped 150 minutes but felt like it flew by in half the time) had a slightly twangier feel than usual for the Large Band. Country-rockers like "Private Conversation" or the Texas swing of "That's Right (You're Not From Texas)" were given rollicking, full-bodied treatments that had heads bobbing and toes tapping throughout the hall.
Nattily attired in elegant suits, with the oldest members likely into their 60s, the musicians in the Large Band may look collectively like a photo of the 1956 Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce. But underneath those tailored suit jackets beat the hearts of some swinging cats.
The Fountain of Life choir joined the band for four songs, including the delightful clap-along "Church" and the harrowing "I Will Rise Up." They fit in so seamlessly with the touring band, adding emotional power without overriding the rest of the arrangement, that it was amazing to realize they had just met the band earlier that day.
In the center of it all was the dapper Lovett, his voice still having that irresistible lived-in quality, his face always looking like the idea of a smile was forming behind it as he sang "South Texas Girl" or "All Downhill" off his latest album, "It's Not Big, It's Large." If he's not having the time of his life on stage, he's displaying extremely good manners by faking it.
Always a funny and engaging talker, Lovett seemed even chattier than usual Sunday, talking at length about the backstories behind his songs, such as the long car trips his family took around Texas when he was a kid, or his tenure as a student at Texas A&M. ("At the very least, they impressed upon you the importance of social skills at Texas A&M.")
Lovett said he and his girlfriend April also got into town early enough that they were able to hit Art Fair on the Square, where he discovered a new quirk about a city that he seems particularly fond of. "I just took off in a natural clockwise direction around the square," he said. "I met a lot of nice folks. Everyone seemed to be walking toward me."
Associated Press
Lyle Lovett, shown here at the University of Texas-Tyler on Oct. 12, 2007, played Overture Hall Sunday night.
