Lyle Lovett Lyrics

Concert Review: Lovin' Lovett: Long, tall Texan swoons intimate Bluestem crowd

MOORHEAD – Though he’s more of a cowboy than most of the hat acts Nashville turns out these days, Lyle Lovett would never fit in at WE Fest. But he was right at home Wednesday night at Bluestem Center for the Arts in Moorhead.

The long, tall Texan and His Large Band brought his Lone Star mix of country, blues and jazz to the Imagine Amphitheatre for the venue’s best sounding show so far.

Too bad there were only 1,145 there to appreciate the intimate-sounding show.

While the crowd left lots of open seats, the view was all right by Lovett.

“Y’all look better to us, though we’ll look better when it gets dark,” the singer/guitarist joked shortly after taking the stage at 7:40.

After the instrumental “Blues Walk,” Lovett took the stage, said he was excited to play Moorhead for the first time, then dedicated “Farther Down the Line,” “for your neighbors across the way.” The crowd cheered affectionately at the Fargo reference in the rodeo song.

With a band featuring two guitarists, drummer, pianist, cellist, pedal steel player, fiddler, mandolin player, percussionist and five back-up singers (large, indeed, but without brass, definitely not a “big” band), the music flowed easily from country swing, to acoustic folk and soul.

The heavy spiritual “I Will Rise Up” rocked almost as hard as some of Alice Cooper’s tunes did Sunday night on the same stage. Testimonials by Sweet Pea Atkinson and the other singers added extra emotional weight.

Later, members peeled down to just mandolin, bass and fiddle for a stripped-down, bluegrass version of Walter Hyatt’s “I’ll Come Knockin’ ” and the wry “Pantry.” Lovett again drew cheers for inserting Moorhead into the lyrics, in a non-suggestive way.

And of course the crowd erupted on the spare, solemn “North Dakota.”

Lovett doesn’t need to namedrop to win the crowd, he had them waiting on every understated aside.

After dreamy anthem “If I had a Boat,” his droll “She’s no Lady, She’s my Wife” even had a couple dancing in the aisle.

His thin voice was no match for Francine Reed who sang counterpoint on “An Acceptable Level of Ecstasy/ The Glory of Love.” Reed burned it down solo with “Wild Women Don’t Get the Blues.”

Lovett came back for the swinging “That’s Right, You’re not From Texas,” and got the Midwestern crowd standing and clapping for the rousing “Church.

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