So, I was talking about dilemmas.
Last night, I found myself in the middle of a large crowd gathering in the Dazzles bar to catch the end of a set by Lissie. She noted she came on this boat expecting nobody to know who she was, that she figured she’d just get a free cruise. Word spreads fast on this ship, though, and Lissie’s sets have scared up considerable buzz. Enough so that, though she was nearly out of time, the sound guy told her to play as long as she’d like. She tacked on six more songs. I couldn’t complain.
This was followed closely by an hourlong set from Samantha Crain and the Midnight Shivers, with whom I’m familiar from several years at Pickathon. I was thrilled to see they came equipped with several new tunes – many of which steer more clearly toward the indie end of the “indie roots” spectrum.
The dilemma part of this comes here – an announcement came over the PA just before Crain started, stating that Sara and Sean Watkins would be presenting a special Watkins Family Hour show in the movie theater (a very, very small room compared to most of the other listening rooms here). The same 90-minute window also held a chocolate buffet and a headlining set from Steve Earle.
Now, it goes without saying that one can grab a fistful of chocolate anytime. These music options only come now and then. It was a tough decision, but I had to skip Watkins Family Hour to watch the rest of Crain and the entirety of Steve Earle. I’d caught a rousing and captivating set from WPA earlier in the evening, which I’ll just pop into my list of the top five sets I’ve seen all week. It’s hard to expect less from a troupe as close to a supergroup as this one. Glenn Phillips’ vocals were the focal point, but Greg Leisz and both Watkins siblings delivered outstanding instrumental breaks.
Back to Steve Earle, though… I told my seatmates the only song I cared about this evening was “Christmas in Washington.” Earle must have heard me, because he started strongly there. He also delivered an exquisite version of “Pancho and Lefty” and “Fort Worth Blues” – easily the highlights of that particular set for me.
It ended the night perfectly, as it had been a long day (check yesterday’s post regarding Belize). Now, I run at the top of my heels (is that a thing?) to catch the end of Sara Watkins’ one and only solo set. Later, Robert Earle Keen, a headlining set from Lyle Lovett, and so much more. Tomorrow it’s back to being all about the music, so I’ll have plenty more to share then.
