THROUGH THE LENS: ND Photographers’ Favorite Roots Music Gigs of 2019

As in years past, December’s Lens columns will be devoted to  the best of what we photographers saw, heard, and photographed during the year. This week 14 No Depression photographers selected some of their favorite shows of the year. From Australia to Scotland, they are as varied as roots music itself, with no two photographers choosing the same artist. Here goes:

Amythyst Kiah – Station Inn, AmericanaFest, Nashville, TN 

I knew Amythyst Kiah primarily as a member of Our Native Daughters, but was unfamiliar with her solo work. By the end of her set I walked out a true believer. There’s more than a little Rosetta Tharpe in her bold delivery, and closing out the night with OND bandmates Rhiannon Giddens and Allison Russell performing “Black Myself” and “John Henry” served as exclamation points to a riveting performance.  — Chris Griffy 

The Time Jumpers – 3rd and Lindsley, Nashville, TN

The band features no fewer than three champion fiddlers — Larry Franklin, Kenny Sears, and Joe Spivey — playing western swing and traditional country. Add legendary steel master Paul Franklin, Riders in the Sky’s Ranger Doug, session guitar master Andy Reiss, and a guy you may have heard of, superstar Vince Gill, and you have musical dynamite. Memphis-born Wendy Moten is a recent addition and her vocals stole the show. A guest appearance by rising star Mo Pitney cemented the deal for me.  — Kevin Smith 

Fatoumata Diawara – WOMADelaide, Australia 

Malian singer-songwriter and captivating performer Fatoumata Diawara was a revelation at WOMADelaide.  — Steve Ford

The Mavericks – Carolina Theater, Durham, NC

It had been a few years since I’d last seen The Mavericks, and when they came to town on their 30th anniversary tour, they gave us an outstanding set full of Mavericks classics and a few classic covers from their latest album. They always bring joy to the stage and had the crowd on their feet from the first notes.  — Todd Gunsher

Lucinda Williams – Car Wheels on a Gravel Road 20th Anniversary Tour 

Lucinda Williams not only performed this classic album in its entirety, but gave background stories on many of the songs, with a video screen behind her full photos of her younger self and some of the folks and areas she wrote about. A multiple Grammy and AmericanaFest award winner, Williams’ shows are always honest, real, and spontaneous.  — C. Elliott 

Brandi Carlile – The Mann Center, Philadelphia, PA

Brandi Carlile came on stage exclaiming how excited she was to be back in Philadelphia. While many performers mouth those words, she demonstrated that sincerity with extra special guests Mavis Staples, Tanya Tucker, Amanda Shires, and Lukas Nelson. Exciting and energetic are understatements. The audience gave back in kind, thrilled that she had made a triumphant revisit.  — Mark J. Smith 

Tyler Childers – MerleFest, North Wilkesboro, NC, and Rhythm and Blooms, Knoxville, TN

Both are here as I witnessed the self-professed Creeker from Hickman Holler tear it up twice in less than three weeks’ time. Both shows began with a stoic Tyler Childers striding onto the stage. However, his sober demeanor quickly dissolved into an embodiment of a rich, passionate, and lovable storyteller. Makes sense: Childers hails from Appalachia, the cradle of American storytelling. What dark, beautiful, irreverent, and raucous yarns did he spin. I wanted to fall in love with “Lady May.” My viscera flirted with addiction while traveling “Whitehouse Road.” And I danced with wild and unruly abandon to “I Swear (to God).” Both shows were toss-off-your-trucker-hat fun! — Kelly Shipe & Jim Gavenus  

The Pierce Brothers – St. Augustine Amphitheater, St Augustine, FL

Melbourne twins Jack and Pat Pierce signed on to support fellow Aussie Tash Sultana on her world tour in 2019 and ended up opening the eyes and ears of live music fans across the globe. Although they released Atlas Shoulders in the past year or so, very few audiences knew their music or were prepared for the energy and musicianship of this duo when they hit the stage (and their walkabout in and around the crowd) with their collection of guitars, drumsticks, and didgeridoos. Their stop in St. Augustine was no different.  — Kim Reed

The War and Treaty – Cayamo, The Caribbean 

Michael and Tanya Trotter continue to grow in stature. I saw them perform seven times this year, but the most memorable was their 10 p.m. show on Cayamo’s pool deck with the moon dancing on the water to the pulsating music. They took their music, their love for each other, and their fans to a whole other level. Michael’s soulfulness mixed with Tanya’s powerful expressiveness, and their stellar band, was greater than the sum of their parts.  — Boom Baker 

Nickel Creek – Music Hall of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY 

As I had seen Chris Thile and Sara Watkins before, I jumped at the opportunity to catch the band that got me into bluegrass. Like me, much of the audience traveled a considerable distance to see them in their first tour in four years, in such a great room. Every song was a sing-along.  — Rob Laughter 

Rhiannon Giddens – Celtic Connections, Glasgow, Scotland

Featuring a full, locally recruited orchestra conducted by Greg Lawson, a sublime rendition of the Gaelic “‘S Iomadh Rud Tha Dhìth Orm/Ciamar a Nì Mi ‘N Dannsa Dìreach,” barefoot dancing on stage, and three standing ovations, this gig was unsurpassed for the rest of the year. The multiple encores included a repeat of “Pretty Little Girl with the Blue Dress On” — “because we really haven’t rehearsed anything else” — summed up this informal, joyous, awe-inspiring event.  — Carol Graham 

Brass Against – The Moonshiner’s Ball, Livingston, KY

In October, the hills came alive when these nine artists, collectively known as Brass Against, took the main stage like a raging storm, and the crowd couldn’t get enough. Easily one of the most powerful performances of the year. They describe themselves as “exceptional music with a political edge,” and I couldn’t agree more!  — Steve Mack 

Kacey Musgraves – Seattle, WA

When Kacey Musgraves hit the stage, just after winning the Grammy for Album of the Year, her fans erupted in euphoria. This was an artist at the height of her success, and the resulting performance was something that you don’t really experience very often. It was truly special.  — Peter Dervin 

Tedeschi Trucks Band – The Paramount Theater,  Seattle, WA

They lay it out on the line, night after night, hard-hitting, severely felt blues from the depth of the oceans to the heights of the stratosphere. What more does the best touring band in the land have to do to take home the AmericanaFest band award?  —photos by Kirk Stauffer, text by Amos Perrine

Now, those thrilling photos.