Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks – Ligonier Theater (Ligonier, PA)
Ligonier, a rural hamlet 48 miles east of Pittsburgh surrounded by old-money country estates, might seem an odd venue for Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks a night after performing at the Bob Dylan Tribute in New York. Arranged by a local businessman and longtime Hicks fan on short notice, the concert drew less than 100, but they applauded the second the band hit the stage. Hicks, looking younger than his 66 years, offered a typical deadpan response: “You guys are pretty sophisticated, huh? Bitchin’, bitchin’.”
A warm-up instrumental medley of Django Reinhardt’s “Swing 42” and “Topsy” showcased violinist Richard Chon, guitarist Dave Bell and bassist Paul Smith. Hicks and Lickette vocalists Roberta Donnay and Daria (no last name) then kicked off with “Canned Music” and “Evening Breeze”.
A “Salute The Folk Years” segment honoring folk-revival acts who inspired him began in quintessential Hicks form. While longtime fans were amused as he and Daria read dry introductions from spiral-bound notebooks, the uninitiated didn’t catch on until she mentioned Nicole Richie alongside Jean Ritchie. Jokes over, Elizabeth Cotten’s “Oh Babe, It Ain’t No Lie” received a classy treatment. After noting the inspiration he drew from Kingston Trio’s jazzy “Scotch & Soda”, Hicks delivered a sublime interpretation that left no doubt of its influence on his own music. A light, swinging “If I Had A Hammer” was followed by Hicks’ foreboding “I Scare Myself”, featuring Chon’s eerie, intense violin, to close the first set.
After opening the second set with a swinging “Pennies From Heaven” and a surprisingly low-keyed “I Feel Like Singing”, Hicks honored a request with a powerful and moving “Song For My Father”, singing the eloquent lyrics someone added to jazz pianist Horace Silver’s classic instrumental. A second folk interlude began with an odd, reggae-tinged “Subterranean Homesick Blues”, Jim Kweskin’s “Jug Band Music” and the Carter Family’s “Jimmy Brown The Newsboy”. Hicks closed with his own “The Buzzard Was Their Friend” and the encore: “How Can I Miss You (When You Won’t Go Away)”.
Hicks had more time to stretch out at a 2006 Ligonier concert, yet this audience seemed amply satisfied, as does Hicks himself. Now celebrated after decades of neglect, he’s retained the integrity of a musical vision four decades old and sustained the high standards the Hot Licks’ Djangoesque acoustic swing demands. That explains why he remains a true American original.