Live review - Tom Russell

Artists: Tom Russell


Venue: Old Town Hall

Town: Gateshead

Date: January

Website: http://www.tomrussell.com



Having last seen Tom Russell perform at The Sage, this was my first time attending a gig at Gateshead Old Town Hall, already it seems, affectionately named the GOTH, and I have to say the main hall; an old Victorian music room, was a very pleasant venue, with incredibly high ceilings and great acoustics, helped by great sound on the night. As Tom Russell was introduced, with the quip that he has played every venue the Jumpin’ Hot Club has had, it was deemed only right he should play GOTH; Gateshead’s answer to the The Grand Ole Opry.



Tom Russell this time was minus Michael Martin (who last time provided stunning harmonies as well as guitar accompaniment), as unfortunately he had had to fly home, but was instead accompanied by Thad Beckman, an unknown name to me, who hails from Portland, Oregon.



Beginning with opener "East of Woodstock, West of Vietnam," about his time in Africa during the '60s, Tom started as he meant to go on, as he took us through most of the songs on his new release ‘Blood and Candle Smoke’ aswell as some of his most loved songs.



Telling us that next up were the Mexico songs, he told us the story of being in a back alley in San Cristobal, hearing Nina Simone’s voice oozing from a record store. He described the moment as ‘discovering someone when you thought you had them pegged.’ Thus followed the song aptly named Nina Simone. This was followed by his self proclaimed favourite of all the songs he has written – incidentally, any Gretchen Peters fans will know it is hers too – of which he told us that Gretchen Peters did an amazing version; Gaudalupe (the song from which the new CD’s title originates.) Quite simply, this song is poetry set to music and one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. Whilst Tom’s version is completely different to Gretchen’s, it is wonderful hearing it sung by the man who wrote it. Also, I thought, very telling of the man behind the song, was the observation that the song ‘..is about so much more than religion.’



We remained in Mexico for the stirring Ash Wednesday, recorded on his Love and Fear CD as a duet with Gretchen, followed and was the first song which really let Thad’s guitar prowess shine through. The pace was upped as an ‘odd metaphor for love,’ followed, in the form of Stealing Electricity, with the audience asked to participate in the da-da-da-das, at the end of which he touchingly told us, ‘That’s great, you sound like a choir.’



Noticing me writing, he told me that as long as it was review notes and not my diary, I was welcome to mention how this evening I saw an American named Russell; his lyrics were very dark, but there was some redemption. What was immediately striking, was that Tom seemed so much less reserved than he had at The Sage the last time; laughing and joking with the audience, the comment above being the start of an evening of banter aimed at me. I felt like tonight we met not just Tom Russell the songwriter, singer and storyteller, but Tom Russell himself – somehow, tonight he gave us a big part of him from that stage, which was in part entertaining and in part touching to experience.



Joking that he was switching to a higher key to appeal to younger audiences, we were told of his past in Criminology, an incredibly cleverly constructed song, whereby again, the audience had to shout back the title word of the song to him in each chorus. This was then followed by Finding You, his two minute love song to his wife, before he made all those of us who can’t partake, green with envy, as he told us about the Roots on the Rails trip in the fall, with The Flatlanders, no less, among others. With that he left us to dream about it at least, over a drink during the interval.



Returning from the break, he asked if we’d all had a drink, then launched straight into The Pugilist at 59, telling us he loves to play that song here as we understand what a pugilist is! A couple of new songs followed, in the form of Don’t Look Down, Mississippi River Running Backwards, and the gorgeous Santa Ana Wind, leading up to the moving story of the Crosses of San Carlos, all from Blood and Candle Smoke.



Blue Wing was preceeded with a reference to how wives of Liverpool sailors had blue wings, something which I need to look up as it was new to me. Tonight we Ride, he told us, is his bona fide cowboy song, as he wrote it on the back of a horse. Again the audience was encouraged to join in, although I was too distracted trying to work out how he and Thad created the Spanish Mexican sound through their guitars.



An unexpected, and very entertaining highlight followed, in the form of his half-spoken, half-sung tribute to Dave Van Ronk. Russell divulged, ‘One night in Dave Van Ronk's apartment was better than twelve years of Catholic education and safer too.’ Stealing the limelight at this point was Thad Beckman, who demonstrated during his five minutes of glory, incredible musical impressions of such blues greats as Lightnin' Hopkins and Doc Watson, so much so, that I was left thinking I could grow to enjoy blues. The story itself, Tom told us, ‘is true until it doesn’t rhyme.’



Trying to speak in a local accent, then in French, he addressed me, joking that I needed to write that Russell impressed the audience with his command of local dialect as well as the French language, and indeed, may return to lecture at the local university, on such subjects. On the subject of French, he also got onto the finer merits of wine, most notably Soave; ‘That’s S-O-A-V-E, Helen...’ then sipping Beechams as he coughed, he commented that it was the finest North East brew he had tried thus far; just a hint of sarcasm there, perhaps! His infamous phrase is ‘bastards,’ which, whether said in or out of context, is funny, with his gravelly voice. After the umpteenth time he’d said it, he caught my eye and said, ‘Helen, you can’t write that again, they’ll think I have tourettes or something; say, “Russell, in dulcet tones, exclaimed, ‘Oh Bunny Rabbits!’” I can’t speak for anyone else, although I heard giggling, but by this point I was laughing so hard my stomach hurt. The lovely thing about it was he wasn’t trying, he just was very funny.



Who’s Gonna Build Your Wall, was the encore; a thought provoking song about what would happen if the Mexicans were shut out of California, and I guess, Texas, by a wall. As he asked if anyone had any requests, I seized my moment and asked for California Snow. Someone else asked for Haley’s Comet. Looking between us, he smiled and said ‘We’ll do them both, right quick.’ Telling us that California Snow is the perfect bookend to Who’s Gonna Build Your Wall, he launched into the heartbreaking story of the patrol man on the border and what he sees, painting the picture of the man, who whilst turning people away, is actually just a sympathetic man, doing his job, to feed his family. Something in the gravelly vocal, makes the man’s sadness and regrets tangible, hanging in the air, between Russell and the audience. Another example of songwriting at its finest, it brought a tear to my eye, and I suspect, others, too. It makes you stop and wonder what all the division in the world actually achieves, other than sadness. Stepping into Michael Martin's shoes to harmonise on the chorus, Thad's bloues tinged voice added an even deeper layer to the poignant lyrics.



Bringing things back up, to end on a high, Russell and Beckman rocked into Haley’s Comet and had the audience join in, before all too soon the night came to an end. Exiting the stage to rapturous applause, Russell said he’d be back after his glass of Soave to sign CDs, and this time was true to his word, with a smile for everyone who approached him to say ‘Hi.’



I am not sure how or why, but last time I saw Tom Russell, I enjoyed hearing him sing – that was the first time I had seen him. This time, however, it went beyond that. Something truly magical happened in the GOTH, and many of us agreed, but no one could quite put their finger on it. Maybe it was simply that Russell was enjoying the night as much as we were and gave us his all; maybe he connected differently, maybe it was something else entirely. No matter, as whatever it was, that was a night that I, and I suspect everyone else present, will never forget. In fact, ‘Tonight we Ride’ home, on a musical high and already awaiting Tom Russell’s return to Gateshead, in hopes he can match, or even surpass what we experienced tonight. I now have the utmost respect for this man, and anyone who isn’t familiar with him and his music, needs to rectify that before his next tour...trust me.



Helen Mitchell





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