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November 10, 2008
J.D. Souther at FTC
After seeing J.D. Souther at the Fairfield Theatre Company’s StageOne Friday night, I ventured out to my favorite local watering hole to see who was around. I ran into a few friends and, after telling them how I spent most of my night, they turned very curious about the show.
Was it fun? Did he sound as good as he used to? Did he sing [insert ’70s hit song here]? It wasn’t all new stuff, was it?
That’s a lot of questions about a man who had just one hit single, “You’re Only Lonely,” and is better known for writing songs made into hits by his Southern California compadres Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt and, most notably, The Eagles.
So, here are the answers: It was fun, sort of.
No, he didn’t sound as good as he did as a young man.
He did play a few of the songs that other artists made famous
And, yes, there were a few selections from his new record, “If the World Was You,” which is quite good.
Initially, Souther seemed to be a bit aloof, as he opened with the new “I’ll Be Here at Closing Time,” followed by an oldie, “White Rhythm and Blues.” He didn’t really address the audience until soneone’s cell phone started ringing. Though bothered, he let it slide with a little joke.
However, a woman’s constant yapping caused Souther to stop in the middle of “The Border Guard,” a new song, and give her a talking to.
“He Chatty Cathy, shhh,” he said, without raising his voice. “Actually, there’s another show in the parking lot, why don’t you go check it out.”
Those in the audience obviously agreed with Souther, as they gave Souther an ovation for silencing the annoying background noise.
Souther also got louder ovations for his ’70s songs, some (“Jesus in 3/4 Time,” “Prisoner in Disguise”) I was not familiar with. You go for what you know and I had been listening to “If the World Was You” a lot lately, so I was more interested in the new material.
Naturally, Souther received the most applause when he sang two of the megahits he co-wrote for The Eagles — “New Kid in Town” and “Best of My Love.” It was great to him him reminisce about those songs, especially the story of how The Eagles’ record label didn’t want to release “Best of My Love” as a single. Good thing for the band and Souther that they didn’t listen.
I’m not one that demands technical perfection from musicians. Quite the opposite, in fact. I feel that a missed note here and there humanizes the songs. If I wanted to hear the songs exactly as they were recorded, I’d stay home and listen to the record. But Souther, I must admit, tried my patience.
His guitar playing was shaky at times and his piano playing was often amateurish. It might have just been a bad night, but even he admitted, after a rough turn: “That’s why I usually hire really good piano players.” He certainly could have used one Friday.
Souther’s singing was solid, if unspectacular. There were quite a few moments when, if you closed your eyes, he sounded as smooth as he did in his heyday. But he’s in his early 60s now, so to expect anything other than flashes of his old voice is to expect too much.
Still, all things considered, it was a fun night . . . sort of.
Here’s a partial set list from Friday night. There are three songs I couldn’t figure out and I couldn’t even track down on the Internet. Sorry.
I’ll Be Here at Closing Time/White Rhythm and Blues/Jesus in 3/4 Time/(Unknown)/A Chorus of Your Own/Silver Blue/The Border Guard/Baby Come Home/Rain/Faithless Love/New Kid in Town/In My Arms Tonight/Journey Down the Nile/Talking to the Moon/(Unknown)/Last in Love/All I Want/You’re Only Lonely/Best of My Love
Encore: The Secret Handshake of Fate/Prisoner in Disguise/(Unknown)
Posted by Sean on November 10, 2008 6:05 PM
