Rams Head & Birchmere

October 31 & Nov 1

Annapolis, MD & Alexandria, VA

Review By: Stephen Fales

Washington D C may be the nation's capital, but the center of the musical universe is wherever Patty Loveless takes to the stage. Over the Halloween weekend this year, that locale was the two nearby satellite cities of Annapolis, Md and Alexandria Va. the legendary concert halls Ram's Head Tavern,and the Birchmere.

Legendary venues for a legendary artist. Such a perfect match. And at each concert Loveless demonstrated once again why she is the most perfect combination of artist and entertainer on the planet.

The beauty of back to back Patty Loveless concerts is waking up after the first night's show, savoring the memory then realizing you get to experience it all again when evening comes! And this weekend was all the more special because Patty provided a captivating, drumless and mostly acoustic concert set, a prefect showcase for her pure mountain-country vocals. And it was a treat I'll never forget to celebrate Patty's latest album masterpiece in the company of our PLN family of fans.

The stage setup for all of Patty's acoustic concerts this Fall is designed with the intention of making her listeners feel right at home. What Patty and Emory came up with for this tour is both tasteful and inspired. It seems everything they do is touched by artistry, creativtiy and good taste. And the stage setting itself is a conceptual masterpiece., and truly brings home Patty's warm and inviting brand of music making and presentation. A home jam session for 500 plus guests. Carpets,, chairs, and lamps. Also, a big ole vintage vacume tubed radio in a nice wooden cabinet. The radio played Patsy Cline, and Flatt and Scruggs, then the radio anouncer said it was time for a little Patty Loveless...it is a brilliant setting and a brilliant and fitting introduction to a truly timeless artist, a living legend who deserves to be ranked with the artists that preceded her on that ole timey radio.

Patty's rich and resonant Mountain alto is perfectly mated to Appalachian acoustics, and her artistry completely infused her 23 song lineup. She excecuted her set list with passion and precision, and at an easy, even pace that allowed her to sing the whole time without faltering, even once. The acoustics at both shows were just right, with no loud distortion...every nuance and subltle inflection could be easily apprehended, allowing the listener to experience the oceans of emotional depth that emanated from the heart and soul of this remarkable artist. If one listens carefully to Patty Loveless though repeat performances, one can discern how she experiments with subtle changes in phrasing and inflection, giving each performance a new freshness, while never sacrificing the melodic line and always maintaining the song's truth, identity and essence.

It's always amazing to witness first hand this gifted music maker recreating her songs on stage. It's like watching a grandmaster paint a mastepiece before one's very eyes. Or a shakespearean actor seamlessly living out a role. Loveless inhabits the heart of a song and makes it her own, every single time. She has a natural and deep emotional connection to her material, which in turn finds it's resonant mark in the hearts of her listeners.

The highlights included her performance of opener The Night's Too Long, and then soon after On Down the Line...real songs about real people and real life situations. On Down the Line especially always reminds me of Patty's empathy for all who struggle economically, and of her determination to give us her all in music, to help sustain us through hardships. It is great medicine for the soul, and is much appreciated . And on this song, Guthrie and Pete did some geat dueling with guitar and steel to perfectly complement Patty's souful Honky Tonk stirrings.

Nothing But the Wheel is always incredible, but Patty charted even deeper emotional waters than I have ever heard on this song before,.there was something about these performances of "Wheel" that I just cannot put my finger on or put into words, but she took it to an even higher level of forlorn beauty on both nights.

Crazy Arms,..Loveless trumpets out that first lyrical BLUE note and one can almost feel the walls of Jerico come tumbling down...but this ain't no destructive wail, rather it is a shattering of the high defensive walls of the human heart, her own as well as her listeners.. Healing vulnerability ensues from both sides and hearts are mended in carthartic or vicarious release. There is nothing so poignantly beautiful and theraputic as the music of Patty Loveless.

Working on a Building works incredibly well as a rousing concert song. Matt McKenzie and Garry Murray filled in for the Del McCoury part in an inspired and accomplished manner. Patty was on fire, and Guthrie's mandolin shot out riveting, rustic, rapid fire tones. As brilliant and virtuosic as Mr.Trapp may be on guitar, he sounds even better on mandolin, at least for Bluegrass. Guthrie's perfromance sounded even warmer and richer than Ronnie McCoury's album interlude, with Mr. Trapp making full use of the lower registers of the instrument.

Deanie and protege Sydni Perry treated us to a brilliant, extended dual fiddle intro to The Boys are Back in Town...again, warm rich full fiddle tones, There's nothing better than twin fiddles. Patty looked on with complete admiration, and enjoyment, as did we all.. A real Country barn dance of a song, then Patty stepped up to that ole timey mic and led the celebration.

Loveless brought the house to the verge of tears, both nights, with her heartwarming and heartwrenching introduction to and perfomance of her signature song, You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive...She told us how she was happy that her Mom was together with her Dad now, reunited in the hereafter, and that they always have the best seats in the house. Patty told us that she feels their loving presence at every show, and through her loving heartfelt words, we could almost sense their presence as well. Patty told us what great parents they were, and how her Dad would be so happy after each day of work to be safe in the arms of his family after risking his life in the mines each day. And she asked us to keep all coalminers in our prayers.

Patty then proceeded to tear our hearts out with the most profoundly beautiful and poignant rendition of Harlan,. She unleashed a torrent of emotion as she sang to the Heavens, but all the while kept it together. She brilliantly channeled all that soul searing emotion, enriching every lyrical note with profound pathos. I doubt very much there was a dry eye in the house. From our front row vantage points, we could easily see the emotion in Patty's eyes, and all could hear it in her voice. And heartfelt appreciation too, as each performance was met with sustained and thunderous standing ovations which Patty recieved with sweet humility and deep gratitude. She was clearly overwhelmed, as were we. Patty, your fans absolutely adore you, we love you dearly, like family.

Country Weekly calls Patty's recorded version of Harlan one of the greatest songs of the new century. After both the Ram's Head and the Birchmere shows, it is very easy to imagine that Patty's live renditions of Harlan rank as some of the all time greatest vocal performances by any artist, of any era, in any genre in the history of popular music. I drove over a thousand miles round trip (and some of our fellow fans drove even further) to join our PLN brothers and sisters in celebration of the long awaited follow up to Mountain Soul, and to witness Patty sing her legendary signature song. And I believe we are all in agreement that even if Harlan were the only song in her set, it would have been well worth the trip and then some.

Patty's chart topping hits from the eighties and nineties have been the solid core of her concerts for years now....And her Mountain soul set from early this century is legendary.. More recently her Sleepless Nights mini set of classic country covers have added yet another timeless dimension to her concerts. Now, with the addition of Patty's new Mountain Soul material her set list combines the best of all facets or her artistry. Patty's song lineup has become truly representative, and actually symbolic of her incomparable and ongoing career.,. 23 spectacular songs for 23 remarkable years as a recording artist and counting.

Patty's artistic credentials are impeccable. She is one hundered percent the consumate artist, but she is also one hundered percent entertainer. No one walks this line with more finesse. Patty's country charismatic personality and stage presence is at once professional, and also disarming, playful, and flirtateous. She has a great sense of humor, and she is always open and responsive to audience interaction, Patty radiates warmth, providing plenty of eye contact and heart warming smiles for her audience. It is clear that this is an artist who loves what she does, and truly loves and appreciates her fans. One great moment came at Ram's Head when Patty asked us if "we were all hanging in there with her" during the long show, at which point Richard said "we'll never grow tired of you Patty"...a dual purpose statement.of appreciation as well as a request for the song of the similar name. The hint was not lost on Patty, as she replied something to the effect of "all in good time". That time would come the following night at the Birchmere. (Richard, why do I get the feeling that this was not the first time you made your request this way?

We had the honor of signing a group card for Patty and Emory that Nicole had provided for us before the Birchmere show. It was to congratulate her for four weeks at # 1 on the Bluegrass charts for Mountain Soul II. Well, Nicole used the opportunity to add yet another request that Patty perform her's and Richard's favorite missing-from- the-set-list song...and sure enough, Patty departed from the set script and sang out without warning.."It's been a long time since you drifted away, now there's nothing to live for it seems"...:and a few more verses from I'll Never Grow Tired of You. She then leaned over to Richard and Nicole and said in all good humor, "There, are you happy now?!" It was awesome...

Patty got us all on our feet for Blame it on Your Heart...100 % pure entertainment now, and we had a blast singing the tounge twister chorus with our hero. Wanda put it beautifully, be sure to check out her post.

Patty closed with a song that I never really fully appreciated, on record,.Stephen Bruton's Too Many Memories, Patty gave a touching tribute to her friend, the song's deceased composer, and as she lived the lyrics out on stage I was completely captivated., Emmylou Harris once said that Patty has a great ear for the poetic in her lyrics. And this song is one of many fine examples of that. I will always hear this song with new ears from this point on. Patty thanked us for the memories, and exited the stage.

Another thunderous standing ovation, but I think Nicole (and Wanda's?) joyous shouts would have been more than enough to bring Patty back, even if she were not inclined to give us an encore.

Patty returned with My Old Friend the Blues, something we fans can relate to as well, sometimes in our lives and in our travels, and the exquisite Diamond in My Crown.

Diamond is a worthy sucessor to Cold Cold Heart as a closer...Breathtaking and haunting, hymnlike in it's majesty, it is a chill inducing song with slaying power, turning Patty's listeners into mush. The substitution of the droning twin fiddles and the bass with a bow, for Patty and Emory's antique family pump organ was stroke of genius...Kudos to the arranger for such a creative solution..(Emory?).

A third sustained standing ovation, and the band filed out, with Patty the last to leave...she turned out the remaining living room lamp as she left us with sweet memories and sweet dreams.

Patty Loveless is by far the best concert performer I have ever heard, and these two Patty concerts were the best of the best. They happened on Halloween and All Souls weekend, but every Patty Loveless concert night should be celebrated as a holiday.