This was one of those deals where, upon reading of the event, you just can't believe it and think, boy, am I lucky to be living in Austin. Better late than never. Four singer/songwriters at a TexMex restaurant a few miles from the house and a $5 cover charge. Crazy, I know.
First up was Troy Campbell. This is my first time seeing him solo. The guy reinvents himself on a daily basis, I think. Creativity. It always intrigues me because I have none of it, I guess. Musically, he's all over the map. What a great thing. On this night, solo, it was the introspective, mood songs. I enjoyed it and look forward to becoming more familiar with his music.
Up next was BettySoo. We all know she is a favorite of mine. What was really cool about tonight was Gurf Morlix playing the entire set with her! He produced her great record of this year, "Heat Sin Water Skin" and played lead guitar on it. Hearing him tonight on his acoustic guitar with her, well, it was killer. Made me think, who needs an electric guitar, anyway? What a rich, full sound this guy has.
Next up was a fellow named Grant Peeples. Honestly, I didn't have a clue who he was. Had never heard the name before. He was great. Writes lyrics about the dark side of America. Needless to say, he has much to draw from. But he also injects some humor into these songs. He reminded me of Bruce Springsteen on "Nebraska" but with some funny lines thrown in. I'd guess that's pretty hard to do and make it work but he sure does. Now that I think about it, similar to Todd Snider.
Lastly, Gurf Morlix closed it out with probably an 1 1/2 set. Dang, he is good. Just sits on stage with his 2 acoustics and blows you away. There is something about his stage presence. It's mesmerizing and I think for me, it's about watching him play guitar and his lyrics, which really make you sit up and listen. He told some funny and warm Austin stories, talked about Blaze Foley and played one of his songs, also.
I have a couple of pretty good videos of Gurf:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypDvp11TMZA
and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKk1xa7mi0M
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