Concert Review : Graham Weber and Friends

Sep 23, 2010 Concert Reviews

This review is coming a little late, but better late than never, right?

A couple of weeks ago, I got the chance to spend a couple days taking in the Graham Weber Returns to Ohio Tour (Okay, I made the tour name up).

The first night was a Wednesday and my cousin and I made the three plus hour trip up to Kent, Ohio to see three of my favorite Ohio raised songwriters on the famed Kent Stage. It was my first ever trip to the venue and I must say it is as good as what everyone told me it was. Located right in the campus area in a brick strip mall, it was formally a theater. The sound was great and they had a well stocked bar to go along with a great atmosphere.

A good crowd of about a hundred people showed up to see Graham, Randy Horvath and Roger Hoover play on Graham’s first night back in Kent (where he started playing live) in almost five years. The crowd was very familiar with all of three performers which gave the venue a living room feel with great acoustics.

Taking the stage first was Randy Horvath. Horvath, who has not made any records yet, but possesses a voice that could stop any crowd dead in its tracks and he did not fail to deliver that kind of performance on this night. It was quite a treat for me to see him in a place that was not a bar atmosphere and a venue where that voice could really travel. He played for about 35 minutes and the set was filled mostly with unnamed originals. Highlights of his set included his opener, a song about headliner, Weber and his leaving Ohio to move to Austin a few years ago. This song is always good, but even more meaningful when Weber is present. Later in the set Horvath invited Graham’s wife, Michelle to the stage to duet on a Shawn Mullins song that I do not recall the name of. Towards the end of his brief set, Randy played two half songs about the relationship between a hooker and her pimp who eventually fall in love, along with the pre-song and mid-song banter explaining the story and the reasons why he was playing unfinished songs they were quite amusing.

Horvath left the stage and ten minutes later Roger Hoover moved in. Hoover who was the first person to give Graham the opportunity to play professionally has led the great Ohio bands, The Whiskeyhounds and the Magpies for the last decade or so. An amazing guitarist, songwriter and performer he always puts on a great show. Roger played a few songs I did not recognize and then went into one of my favorite tunes of his “Please Pick, I’m Calling” which chronicles his longing for his family while on the road. About midway into his portion of the show he played a version of  “Furry Lewis’ Blues” which really showcased his ability to play the guitar. He also had a “Pretty Lady” as he called Adam Simms, come on to the stage to join him. They did a great rendition of the traditional song, “Moonshiner”.

After another short break, the house system began playing the theme to Welcome Back Kotter, as Graham Weber took the stage. Donning a coat and tie for the special occasion, Weber immediately began to show that it was going to be a great performance. Leaning heavily on new material, he worked the crowd perfectly throughout the hour and a half set.

Early on in the performance he played songs from his upcoming album, Women, included a killer number co-written with Slaid Cleaves. One song that will be on the new album that stuck out to me was, “All About You” where the narrator tells a lost love that all of the songs, both happy and sad were always all about her.

A second album that was drawn heavily from was his latest live release, The Cactus Sessions. From that album he played, “The Way That I feel” and “Baltimore” both of which are personal favorites of mine. Early in the set he also played my request, “Tight Rope Walking” from his first album, Naive Melodies which he doesn’t play all that often. At one point he told an amusing story about some college hipsters he was playing for in a bar in Austin when he decided to start covering Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone” which he promptly launched into. He did a damn good version of it only flubbing a couple of lines which is amazing for anyone attempting to play one of Dylan’s novel like tunes.

The absolute highlight of the set for me was when Weber’s wife, Michelle returned to the stage to perform two songs with him. I have to say they sound damn good together. It is not a situation that you see so many times in the folk world where a spouse is brought out as a vanity show. Their voices blend perfectly together and the emotions between them could have been seen from a mile away. They began with, “Starving Days” from Beggar’s Blues and then did a show stopping version of Tom Waits’ “Hold On”.

The entire night was amazing with all three performers delivering A plus sets.

The following evening, I flew solo to Worthington, Ohio to see just Weber at a wine bar, aptly named, House Wine. The venue was nice and the atmosphere was good, but it was obvious they are early on in their show promoting. I do however hope they continue because it definitely has a the potential to be a cool place to see acoustic shows in the Columbus area which is sorely needed and the owner was extremely nice.

The set was very similar to the previous night, with a few nice additions. “Love and Money” was played, which has always been one of my favorites in Weber’s catalog along with a great version of “Brisket”. Once again, Michelle took the stage for the songs played the night before. The biggest standout for me was the story and song about Linda Ronstadt. The song appropriately titled, “Young Linda” is about Graham’s crush he developed on Linda circa early 70′s after watching a dvd of a performance of hers with Johnny Cash. If you do not own The Cactus Sessions this song alone is enough to order a copy.

After two nights of taking in Weber shows for the first time in two years, I came away with a few things. First of all he continues to grow and develop as both a songwriter and performer, getting even better each time I see him. Second it is only a matter of time before his career takes off in one way or  another. And finally I need to moved Texas because he and so many other people that I love to see play there every night.

The Pictures in this article are from the second night of the two and also we recorded a podcast with Graham before the Columbus show in the studio that should be posted any day now.

Tags: bob dylan, Graham Weber, Randy Horvath, Roger Hoover, Tom Waits

Artist of the Month, August 2010 : Graham Weber

Aug 1, 2010 Artist of the Month

I have read or heard Weber compared to the likes of John Prine, a young Bob Dylan, Todd Snider, and an early Wilco era Jeff Tweedy. All of those comparisons are fair enough but they really fall short of accurately describing Weber. All that needs to be said about Graham is that he is a great songwriter who has digested the catalogs of all the greats and came through with a voice and a sound all of his own.

Weber began his musical journey in his native Ohio early in this decade. Starting out a little later in life than some, he cut his teeth in various bands in the area before embarking on his solo career. After recording and releasing the mostly acoustic, Naive Melodies in 2003, Graham decided to make a bold move and departed Ohio for the overcrowded songwriting scene of Austin, Texas.

When I asked him a few years later why he decided to make this move at a time when he had begun to develop quite the following in Ohio, Weber replied, “I could have stayed and made enough money in Ohio as a medium sized fish in a small pond (I would argue that most of Ohio’s music scene is just a mud puddle, unfortunately), but I wanted to see if I could make an impact in the ocean that is Austin.” Quite the undertaking indeed, it did not take long for Austin to begin noticing that this guy was not just another wanna be Prine.

The Texas community seems to have embraced Weber and rightfully so. Long time Austin resident, Slaid Cleaves almost immediately took Graham under his wing and has served as a mentor since his arrival . Graham quickly made his move up to playing all of the best venues in the Austin area both as an opener for greats like, Snider, Guy Clark, Ellis Paul etc. and as a headliner.

I personally got turned on to Weber’s music on accident. I received a song swap that Graham had played shortly after the move to Texas with Adam Carroll and was completely floored by the depth of the songwriting that was coming from this unknown artist. After a little research, I was disappointed that he had come from Ohio and that I had never had the chance to see him here. At the time Naive Melodies was his only release so I bought it to see if this one live recording was a fluke or if this was the real deal.

I got the disc in the mail and put it in my car stereo that day, there it stayed for a solid two weeks. Although Weber himself is now disappointed in his debut, I to this day feel that it is one of my favorite records perhaps of all time. The emotional honesty that flows out of all the songs on this record serves as a great introduction to the seemingly complex simplicity that Weber has a way of portraying in almost all of his works.

Naive Melodies displays the heartache that Weber was feeling after a failed relationship, the insecurities of starting a new relationship and his biting sense of humor.This ability to channel such contrasting emotions is the thing that makes Weber stand out among his peers and makes a live show a must see appointment.

“Tight Rope Walking” is still one of my favorite songs in his catalog. “I know your nose caught the smell of whiskey, and I know I came in seven hours late, I can’t believe that you even missed me, tight rope walking that thin line between love and hate”, he sings in this song chronicling the difficulty of finding balance in a relationship.

Inspired by the late Johnny Cash and rapper Snoop Dogg (trust me it works just listen), “Late Show Someday” captures that animosity towards someone who has scorned you and infuses the anger with a sensational amount of humor. This song is completely over the top and that is exactly where it should reside.

I don’t think you can talk about this album and not mention “Oh Roberta” the song that so impressed Slaid Cleaves that he included it on his Unsung release, an album of covers written by his favorite unknown writers. Weber’s song holds its own against a collection of songs from really great songwriters. “Do you still see my silhouette when your lashes start to close, I’d like to know oh Roberta where have you gone?” is my favorite line in this song, sang to the one who got away.

Shortly after settling in Austin, Graham set out to record his first Texas album. With a lot more instrumentation, a great studio band and some impressive guest musicians the result was Beggar’s Blues. Hitting the streets in 2006, this release shows the growth Weber’s song crafting had undergone in just a short time and further established his ability to conduct the emotional roller coaster that is his albums.

Starting off the album is the fast paced, lyric filled “After All”. This song really represents Weber’s mastery of word play. “Self proclaimed soothsayers say they know what no one else knows” , it’s lines like that make this song memorable.

“Love and Money” once again shows Weber’s sense of humor in this song about the impossibility of mixing the two things we need most in life. Along with Weber’s strumming on the acoustic this song features a killer horn section almost giving it a Vaudeville feel. It’s a departure from what he normally does and man does it work.

Inspired by his first Texas Independence Day, Weber wrote the amusing tale of trying to make it in the music business, “Stars and Circles”. While the narrator may not have what it takes to “make it” he is happy enough eking by in the Texas sun.

Perhaps my favorite track on the album is “Avenue A”. The story of a road weary musician trying to find a drink on a Sunday morning in Lower Manhattan. Weber’s vocals in this one really give the lyrics their depth and meaning. He almost sounds like this was recorded after a day like which is described in the song. “They won’t serve Bloody Mary’s til twelve hours til Monday, so I’m shaking and waiting on Avenue A” , the chorus pretty much sums up the song.

2008 saw the release of Weber’s most recent album release, with his most ambitious recording project yet, Door to the Morning. The production value on this one really ratcheted up the quality of the record. Employing more of a pop sensibility and a little bit of Rock n Roll feel, this album is Weber’s best yet. It’s always nice when a great songwriter begins to really find his way in the studio without losing what made him great in the first place and that is what Door to the Morning accomplished for Graham.

The opening track, “Snow in July” is the prime example of the improvement in the recording. Backed by a full band with great piano and organ parts, Weber is able to maintain the lyrical mastery while really delivering an upbeat rockin’ number. “Sometimes your friends turn to foes and it snows in the dead of  July” is just one of the great lines that Weber drapes over the musical backdrop the studio band lays down.

Following the upbeat feel of the opener, comes the piano and slide guitar ballad, “Candle So Close”. Included in this song are very good backing vocals by Graham’s wife, Michelle Keffer. You can tell those two have spent many a night singing together, because her voice beautifully compliments his tired drawl in this one.

My favorite song on this one is the acoustic and pedal steel based, “Bite Your Tongue”. This one finds Weber at his lyrical best in a song of a lover leaving.

In addition to the three studio albums I have discussed, Weber has released two live samplers that feature unreleased material and the in between song banter that makes his live performances so much more than just a guy with an acoustic guitar.

What amazes me about seeing Graham live is that he is constantly writing songs. Some writer’s see the process of writing a song as work and with Weber they just seem to fall out on the paper. He is consistently writing better stuff that he has already released. He is one of those guys you wish lived in the studio, because he forgets so many of the great songs he has written. One of my favorite things to do is request a song I have heard him play prior and see if he remembers it. If you go see him anytime in the future ask him to play “The Hooker and the Hitman” , an eight minute song of an unlikely love, and tell him Adam told you to do it.

Perhaps the most telling thing I can say about how great I think Weber is, is that I have had to purchase all of his records at least twice each because I have given them away to share them with others.  I found out that he is currently working on the follow up to Door to the Morning. Tentatively titled, Women, it is going to feature a mostly female backing band and harmony vocals in addition to a co-write with Slaid Cleaves. I know I am looking forward to this release which will hopefully come later this year.

Weber will making his first trip back to Ohio in two years in a couple months and I hope to catch a show or two and have him on the podcast. In the meantime you can visit his website www.grahamweber.com and find links to buy his records and such. Later this week I will post a live Weber show to download.

Here is a video of Weber playing “I’ll Take Texas” an ode to his adopted home:

Tags: adam carroll, Artist of the Month, bob dylan, Graham Weber, john prine, slaid cleaves, todd snider

Concert Review : Peter Cooper and Eric Brace

Jun 11, 2010 Concert Reviews

I spent my entire weekend last week enjoying the music of Eric Brace and Peter Cooper. I attended two shows and in between recorded the second episode of the Broken Jukebox podcast (which should be posted this weekend) with them. The weekend was great, I got to hear some amazing songs, spend time with my wife and friends, meet some new people, and catch shows at two venues I had never been to before.

On Friday the wife and I dropped off the kids and began the four hour drive to Louisville, Kentucky. Despite the heat and the traffic, the drive down was a blast. We listened to some fun tunes all the way down as we cruised the highway. We arrived at The Rudyard Kipling with about ten minutes to spare.

The venue was interesting looking from the street, it looked almost like something you would see in a film about the Alamo. It was a large brick wall with an opening that led around the building on a nice wooden deck to the side where you went inside. Once inside the place was divided nicely. You walked in and to the right to the bar which was open and pretty large. If you were going the show you took an immediate left to a closed off room with quite a few tables and a small stage. On a busier night this set up would have been great for separating those wanting to hear the music and those who were only there to drink. It also allowed for the venue not to lose bar patrons because of the cover charge.

The show opened with a local kid, Sam Hadfield, solo on an acoustic guitar. He played an entertaining set, considering that the crowd was very small and he was there to open. His originals were good, and he covered “Tom Ames Prayer” and “Stack-O-Lee” which is always a good thing in my book. The highlight of his set was the songs he finger picked on the guitar, which he was very talented at. I think the set was about twenty minutes.

After a very short break Cooper and Brace took the stage. I had never seen Eric Brace before, having only been introduced to him recently through their joint record, You Don’t Have to Like Them Both, that was released in 2008. I was however very familiar with Peter Cooper.

I was immediately enthralled with the show, they started out with “Wait a Minute” and the harmony vocals were completely mind blowing. If I took nothing else away from my weekend spent with these two it would be that they may have been put here to sing with one another. The set was filled with tracks off of their album, a few older Cooper tunes, Last Train Home (Brace’s band) songs, and some very good new material from them both. Unfortunately the venue had another show going on and their whole set was over in an hour.

Highlights musically from the Louisville show were, the new Cooper tune, which I think is entitled “Champion of the World”. It is an autobiographical story of him becoming a singer and his daddy being a preacher. Another highlight was the Eric Brace penned “Tranquility Base”, a song full of questions for astronaut, Neil Armstrong. The lyrics and the harmony vocals during the chorus of this songs gave me and my wife goosebumps. They ended the set with their version of a song Cooper co-wrote with Todd Snider, “The Last Laugh” from his album The Excitement Plan. I am a huge Snider fan, but I have to say I think I like their version of the song a little better.

We left Louisville immediately after the show for a drive that seemed much longer the second time around. Although the show was short, it was a great time for the wife and I to get out for the night and the music more than made up for the long drive.

On Saturday afternoon, Mr. Brace and Mr. Cooper made their way to my hometown to do the podcast ( I promise it will be up soon). We all had a great time doing that and I learned quite a few things about exciting topics such as the best lima beans in the world and the best surviving 80′s metal band.

In the evening, my cousin and I headed up to Columbus (only 30 minute drive) to catch the second show of the weekend run. We arrived at The Red Door Tavern about an hour prior to showtime. A much larger crowd turned out for this show than the previous night and the venue was once again great. The place has a great restaurant and Guinness on tap. What more could you ask for? Like the night before the show was held in separate room from the main eating area, but this time there was a bar in the room where we were. The show is hosted by a couple friends of mine, Bob Teague and Chip Kobe who modeled it after the listening rooms you find all over the country. This made for a great house concert feeling in a public place.

There was no opener on this night and we were treated to two outstanding sets of songs from Cooper and Brace. With no time limit the show seemed to be more relaxed, with the in between song banter getting stretched out and the set list very much expanded.

I think they played damn near everything on their album and delved deeper into their respective catalogs as well as breaking  out some other killer covers. There were so many highlights to this show that it would really make this column ten times longer ( I know I’m smashing 1000 words already). We were treated to a few more new ones that will be included on Cooper’s upcoming release, The Llyod Green Sessions. Also included in the set were new tracks from the yet untitled new album from the two of them.

Specific songs that stood out were a song about a famous door man in Nashville that Cooper wrote with Don Schlitz, “Hendersonville”, Brace’s song about Johnny and June Carter Cash, Last Train Home’s “Anywhere But Here”, and their covers of Bob Dylan’s “Tonight I’ll be Staying Here With You” and Tom T. Hall’s “I Flew Over Our House Last Night”.

All I can say is that if you get a chance to see these two together live drop everything and do it. I was totally blown away by their on stage chemistry, their song choices and most importantly the amazing harmonies that they delivered. Their album is great, but it really doesn’t do them justice when compared the live environment. Both these shows were like invitations to sit in their living room and listen in on an intimate guitar playing, song singing, whiskey drinking night of fun.

You can find them both on Brace’s record label Red Beet Records . Go to a show, buy them a drink and sit back and enjoy.

Tags: bob dylan, concert review, don schlitz, eric brace, johnny cash, peter cooper, red door tavern, todd snider, tom t. hall