The Birchmere

Alexandria, VA

October 2, 2008

Review By: Richard


There is nothing better to prevent "Post-Patty Depression" than a show on consecutive nights. Dennis was the early morning line keeper, which made our small group (Dennis, Jackie, Chris, Patti, and me) first into the venue. To be honest, I hope that this is my last general admission show for a long time. But the one upside of waiting hours in line for front seating is hanging out with hardcore Patty fans. It sure makes the time pass fast.

I know that I mentioned that there was abundant positive energy at the Birchmere last night, but tonight's show kicked it into overdrive. The crowd was larger (it looked like it was sold out) with more loud screaming than last night. It seems that Patty and the band responded with increased positive energy of their own. In a word, they rocked. After having the pleasure of seeing 3 shows this week, it is apparent that her voice is getting stronger with each one. After her three year absence from the road, I only realize this in hindsight. That is, I thought her voice was killer on Sunday night in Lancaster, but it became more and more powerful with each show at the Birchmere. Not unlike an athlete coming back from a long absence from the game, Patty has worked herself into game shape.

The set list is changing a bit each night. Tonight, she replaced "Chains" with "On Down the Line". She also added one more song off of "Sleepless Nights": "Color of the Blues". Another great one from the new record. And her performance of this George Jones song was stellar. By the time the tour is full swing, my hope is that she performs the entire record.

I know that I mentioned the exceptional background vocals from Marcia and Garry, which continued tonight, but Garry fills in seamlessly for George Jones on "You Don't Seem To Miss Me", for Gram Parsons on "That's All It Took" and for Vince Gill on "Sleepless Nights". Marcia's keyboard playing is pure honky tonk even when she is playing in her bare feet. Patty gave her a well deserved plug for her new solo album, "Life Goes On", which you can get from marciaramirez.com. You can also find her previous stellar CD, "The Barefoot Sessions" (hmmm) at her site.

The rest of the band continues to hit the mark. Pete's steel work is heavenly, Jimmy and Martin drive the rhythm section, and Tom is adding licks each night. Deanie continues to be the heart and soul of the band. In my view, she is the finest fiddle player I've heard since Byron Berline was in his prime. I can't wait to hear them again at Sellersville on October 17. No doubt, the progression will continue.

I can't say enough about the spirit and power of Patty's voice. I know that I have said this before, but to my wife, Patti and me, who are not religious in a traditional sense, Patty Loveless's singing provides us our spirituality. If I try to say more about this, it loses its meaning because it's all about feeling, not descriptive words. Plus, I would be preaching to the choir on this site.

The new t-shirts are awesome. But I could not resist getting Patty a "Gram Parsons, Sleepless Nights" t-shirt. Gram's posthumously released second solo record, "Grievous Angel" was supposed to have been called "Sleepless Nights", but after his death, his widow changed the title. Years later, a Gram compilation CD, called "Sleepless Nights" was released. Premier t-shirt creator, Peggy Hanson from Seattle, made a beautiful t-shirt from that album cover. She asked Patti and me to come backstage to thank us for the shirt. That was quite an honor.

Today, I will suffer from "Post-Patty Depression", but I know that I will be cured on October 17 in Sellersville, Pennsylvania.