Music for Grown-Ups - 01/07/2004 : Gillian Welch

01/07/2004

Gillian Welch - new tour dates

Last summer's UK Gillian Welch shows were among the strongest I've attended - my rave review of the Milton Keynes gig is reproduced below. If you love music for grown-ups, Gillian Welch is a must-see artist.

Welch is about to embark on an ambitious new tour, taking in the US East Coast, the UK, Colorado, the US Midwest, and the West Coast.

US Eastern seaboard:

July 12: Brooklyn, NY. SOLD OUT. Southpaw
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 13: New York, NY. Bowery Ballroom
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 14: New York, NY. Bowery Ballroom
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 16: Hartford, CT. Webster Theatre
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 17: Greenfield, MA. Green River Festival

July 18: Toronto, Ontario. Toronto Blues Festival

British Isles:

July 23: Cork, Ireland. City Hall
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 24: Dublin, Ireland. Vicar Street
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 26: Glasgow. Barrowlands
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 28: Manchester. Academy
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 29: London. Shepherds Bush Empire
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 30: London. Shepherds Bush Empire
w/ Old Crow Medicine Show

July 31: Cambridge. SOLD OUT. Cambridge Folk Festival

In August, Welch tours the US, as part of the Sweet Harmony Traveling Revue, with Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin and Buddy Miller. She then continues to tour the USA in September and October with Old Crow Medicine Show.

Further info: www.gillianwelch.com

Review of Gillian Welch in Milton Keynes, UK, August 2003

I'm not a massive fan of Americana, or some of its constituents, country, folk or bluegrass, but, following strong recommendations, I went to see Gillian Welch open her UK tour with a gig in Milton Keynes this week.

The show was a revelation. One of the top gigs I've seen. Welch is a charismatic performer. Her vulnerable, wistful voice is the perfect vehicle for her superior writing, and she clearly has great vocal power held in reserve. And she swings - easy, natural rhythm is her trademark. Co-writer/accompanist David Rawlings provides sinuously weaving harmonies, as well as subtle, poignant acoustic lead guitar. Rawlings is a like a coiled spring: the intensity of his extended riffs hint that he could plug in the acoustic guitar and blow the house down. Welch plays acoustic rhythm, banjo, and harmonica. The most unexpected joy, on an evening filled with them, was the duo's breathlessly good improvising, especially in Rawlings's acoustic explorations, and the use of very subtle dynamics.

This is top drawer, eclectic bluesy/hillbilly/folkie acoustic music pared down to its rootsy bone, with the dark secrets of pre-industrial communities never far below the surface. And, all night long, you heard deep musical resonances - Carter Family, early Dylan, Everly Brothers - and dozens more - echoed through the 130 minute set.

There's unlikely to be a stronger gig in Britain in the next twelve months. If you love music, and have an open mind about the packaging, this is a must-see gig.

Foreign touring must present Welch's management with a massive logistical headache - the stage set consists of three acoustic instruments, plus a tiny sowing box storing such hi-tech gizmos as spare guitar strings and plectrums.

Utterly beguiled as I was by the purity and strength of the music, I wasn't taken in by the folkie "authenticity" suggested by the visual clues - notably Welch's "Okie chic" stage costume aesthetic - gauchely dressed as if by Oxfam, as if ready for a summer market day in the Yorkshire Dales of the 1930s. And Welch's Appalachian roots are shallower than they appear - didn't I read somewhere that Gillian was raised in LA, and educated in Boston?

But Welch's bizarre Plain Jane stage garb is to be applauded. I'm automatically suspicious of women musos who try confuse matters by flashing their t*ts. If they want to be judged as serious musicians, I'd rather see their chops.

The Stables, in Milton Keynes, is a lovely venue. A studio-type venue, with a 500 capacity, it was developed by Brit jazz veteran Johnnie Dankworth and his wife, Cleo Laine. Son Alec, upright bass player, graced Van Morrison's stage in the mid-1990s; daughter Jacqui is a rising jazz vocalist.

The venue has a wonderfully eclectic programme, across the musical genres, and ranging from nostalgia acts like Tom Paxton and Lindisfarne to cult musicians like Walter Trout, highly regarded contemporary artists like Eliza Carthy and fast-rising hipsters like The Handsome Family.

Gerry Smith

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