Richard Hawley @ Cafe du Nord
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Artist:
Richard Hawley (w/ Ferraby Lionheart)
(Cafe du Nord, San Francisco CA, 12/12/07)
Just. So. Beautiful.
I could easily believe Nicki that seeing Richard Hawley is, in a word, lovely. As I'm more verbose, I need three words.
Even though it means that Richard Hawley isn't exactly a star in the US, I was glad that his show was scheduled for Cafe du Nord, a 250-capacity (?) low-ceilinged basement venue best characterized as "intimate" (at least if you get close to the stage, since the room is long and narrow; the snap below is four layers out). I arrive in time for the opening set of the Los Angeleno Ferraby Lionheart backed by a three-man band whom I note especially for some lovely pedal steel guitar parts. Lionheart's really very nice voice makes you look past the obvious Elliot Smith and Jon Brion comparisons and his light indie folk fare is a good appetizer.
The voice of the night is of course Richard Hawley. His gorgeously deep and velvety baritone is in obviously fine form from the start. The musicianship of his band (four old mates who also record with him) is first-rate, the arrangements convincing despite the fact that the strings come from a synthesizer, and the overall mood unabashedly retro and free of hipster wankery. The ghost of Roy Orbison is presiding over the room. In a set list drawn entirely (with the sole exception of "Something Is...!") from Coles Corner and Lady's Bridge, we get the soft lullabies, we get the tender rockabilly, we get some mean guitaring that makes evident why Hawley was much in demand as a session guitarist throughout the 90's, we get some dryly witty stage banter, and we get gorgeous versions especially of "Born Under A Bad Sign," "I'm Looking For Someone To Find Me," and "Dark Road." The upshot of all this is concrete evidence for the graffiti captured in a photo you can find in the sleeve insert to Lady's Bridge: "Macho music is stupid." It warms my heart that the audience is extremely appreciative of the fine performance - so much so that when the band climb back on stage for the encore, Hawley reports that they were just agreeing on backstage that this is their favorite of their US gigs. The encore comprises a superb rendition of "Hotel Room" and an extended and turned-up version of "The Ocean." Having felt transported through most of the set, I leave Cafe du Nord a happy and smiling man. Like I said:
Just. So. Beautiful.
Set list:
Valentine
Roll River Roll
Just Like The Rain
Lady's Bridge
Serious
Dark Road
Coles Corner
Tonight The Streets Are Ours
Born Under A Bad Sign
Our Darkness
Something Is...!
I'm Looking For Someone To Find Me
Encore:
Hotel Room
The Ocean
(Cafe du Nord, San Francisco CA, 12/12/07)
Just. So. Beautiful.
I could easily believe Nicki that seeing Richard Hawley is, in a word, lovely. As I'm more verbose, I need three words.
Even though it means that Richard Hawley isn't exactly a star in the US, I was glad that his show was scheduled for Cafe du Nord, a 250-capacity (?) low-ceilinged basement venue best characterized as "intimate" (at least if you get close to the stage, since the room is long and narrow; the snap below is four layers out). I arrive in time for the opening set of the Los Angeleno Ferraby Lionheart backed by a three-man band whom I note especially for some lovely pedal steel guitar parts. Lionheart's really very nice voice makes you look past the obvious Elliot Smith and Jon Brion comparisons and his light indie folk fare is a good appetizer.
The voice of the night is of course Richard Hawley. His gorgeously deep and velvety baritone is in obviously fine form from the start. The musicianship of his band (four old mates who also record with him) is first-rate, the arrangements convincing despite the fact that the strings come from a synthesizer, and the overall mood unabashedly retro and free of hipster wankery. The ghost of Roy Orbison is presiding over the room. In a set list drawn entirely (with the sole exception of "Something Is...!") from Coles Corner and Lady's Bridge, we get the soft lullabies, we get the tender rockabilly, we get some mean guitaring that makes evident why Hawley was much in demand as a session guitarist throughout the 90's, we get some dryly witty stage banter, and we get gorgeous versions especially of "Born Under A Bad Sign," "I'm Looking For Someone To Find Me," and "Dark Road." The upshot of all this is concrete evidence for the graffiti captured in a photo you can find in the sleeve insert to Lady's Bridge: "Macho music is stupid." It warms my heart that the audience is extremely appreciative of the fine performance - so much so that when the band climb back on stage for the encore, Hawley reports that they were just agreeing on backstage that this is their favorite of their US gigs. The encore comprises a superb rendition of "Hotel Room" and an extended and turned-up version of "The Ocean." Having felt transported through most of the set, I leave Cafe du Nord a happy and smiling man. Like I said:
Just. So. Beautiful.
Set list:
Valentine
Roll River Roll
Just Like The Rain
Lady's Bridge
Serious
Dark Road
Coles Corner
Tonight The Streets Are Ours
Born Under A Bad Sign
Our Darkness
Something Is...!
I'm Looking For Someone To Find Me
Encore:
Hotel Room
The Ocean
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