Artist:Wine Women & Song
(Gretchen Peters, Suzy Bogguss and Matraca Berg)
Venue:The Sage
Town:Gateshead
Date:30/05/09
I am going to begin by saying that this is one of those rare shows I had that strange feeling about - you know the one, where you look forward to it for ages but at the same time, you know it will be so special you don't want it to be over? How special, I couldn't quite have predicted.
Hard to believe it was two years to the week since Wine, Women and Song - better known as Matraca Berg, Suzy Bogguss and Gretchen Peters - last graced the stage of Hall 2 of The Sage together. All have had albums of their own, hit songs and tours of their own, and had countless hits songs recorded by other artists. An idea Gretchen had been working on for years, it still seems incredible to me that we should have the opportunity to see all three, longtime friends from their early days in Nashville, in this way.
As there was no opening act, they took straight to the stage and assumed their places on stage, to rapturous applause; Gretchen in the centre flanked by her "songwriting sisters," as they were named last time, with tables accommodating glasses and bottles of wine for the talented trio - anyone present two years ago will know that they take the wine part of their title very seriously!
Gretchen opened the evening with Tomorrow Morning, and proceeded to tell us how happy she was, indeed they all were, to be back at the Sage; "It's not just the Sage, it's you guys." This pretty much set the tone for the evening, as banter, stories and songs were shared, fuelled by a few comments from the audience; everyone in the room at ease with each other.
Suzy followed with Heartache, by Lowell George, which is both one of her older tunes and a song on the WWS EP, recorded recently during a cabin stay in Sewanee, TN. Accompanied by Gretchen on guitar and harmonies and Matraca's vocals, it was, without a doubt, the best version I've heard to date. (Interestingly, the original video to this song was filmed in London in 1993!)
Matraca took her turn with the great You and Tequila from her new album, South of Heaven, which has been ten years in the making. She joked that it is about "...tequila and men - bad habits!" A comment about her nails followed, which prompted a joke which resurfaced throughout the evening. The three are so at ease with each other that teasing and jokes are unavoidable, and very much a part of what makes this format so unique and informal.
For me the absolute highlight of the night came next. Gretchen told us about her recent collaboration with Tom Russell, One to the Heart, One to the Head, songs of the American West. She said at first she wasn't sure as she had never seen singing other people's songs as part of her story, but that as they collected songs she grew to love and associate with her years spent in Boulder, Colorado. Backed by the harmony vocals of the other two and Matraca playing harmonica, Guadalupe, written by Russell, was nothing short of magical, as was seeing Gretchen prove to herself as much as to us, that she is indeed very talented at interpreting other people's songs and making them her own. The way she sang the line And the mountains glow like mission wine' surely made the hairs on everyone's necks stand on end. If not then I am the least of your pilgrims here, but I am most in need of hope, must have. I loved hearing Tom Russell's live version of this, but Gretchen's by far surpassed it; the song could have been written for her, or by her. Matraca and Suzy agree, if the expressions on their faces as Gretchen sang; they were completely caught up in the moment, as were we.
A comment about Matraca's harmonica which had been dropped and left on the floor, sparked a whole series of jokes about rat poo and who was actually the blonde of the three, despite appearances, then Matraca teased Suzy that she needs her own tv show and is willing to pitch it for her; I suspect you had to be there.....
Before the break we were introduced to Matraca's Oh Cumberland, about the river through Tennessee, written about a friend who was homesick after a move to LA; I suspect several in the audience could relate to the idea that wherever you go, home will always be in your blood. Gretchen then decided to ask for a request and so we got to see her and Suzy sing their co write Waiting for the Light to turn Green, whilst Matraca added harmonies. Talk about amazing, hearing the two people who wrote a song, sing it together.
After Suzy told us a little about their cabin stay to record the EP, they played Camille, a co-write which also appears on Matraca's new CD. Made all the more poignant by Matraca's introduction that she has a friend in the pit of addiction, it was clear from the opening line, The Moon had a fight with a parking lot light.....that this is a heartbreakingly exquisite song as the three voices melded together in a devastating unison. I believe this is a classic in the making. As Matraca delivered Camille's story, she surely assuaged any doubts, and I hope her own too, that she is a born perfomer as well as a stunning songwriter. It is clear she has grown in confidence since the last tour and I hope this tour and her new CD fuel this even further.
Gretchen then made us feel very special by telling us that she felt safe enough with us after 13 years of playing in this area, to play a brand new song for us; Mother, which she was asked to write for a tribute CD to Mother Jones, who despite a personal personal tragedy, took the miners under her wing and championed workers' rights. Only Ms. Peters could conjure the lines You were the Madonna of the mines, Our Lady of the Picket Lines. Following this Suzy admonished Gretchen for not telling her she'd have to cry into her harmonica and Suzy said she felt the need for a cowboy song and we all looked as if we needed it. I think everyone was hoping....and she delivered....Night Rider's Lament, and the now signature yodel, which she even managed to get the others to join in at the end, as they sang the last chorus a capella. Wow. What a way to end the first set.
After a short break. Matraca got things going with a tongue in cheek song she wrote with Marshall Chapman, Your Husband's Cheating on Us. It went down a storm with the audience.
Speaking of her new Circus Girl.... CD Gretchen mused that she was amazed she has a best of..."I'm amazed I have an any of....it's all down to you people.." and decided on the spur of the moment to sing the title song, which she says is more autobiographical now than when she wrote it. Matraca improvised with harmonica parts which was clearly unplanned but very effective.
Spurred on by this, Suzy decided to pull out an unexpected song from the vaults. Far and Away was beautiful with the harmonies and a totally unexpected treat. Again, a look at the others' faces said it all. Matraca delivered the best version I've heard to date of Strawberry Wine, to great applause. Greater applause followed for Gretchen's Bus to St Cloud. It is amazing to think that Trisha Yearwood's version of this flopped in the USA, whilst Gretchen's version has always been her most requested song here in the UK and has taken on a life of its own. This was the most stirring rendition of this I have heard and coupled once again with Matraca's intuitive harmonica playing, was about as close to perfection as music gets. Clearly, from the applause and the expressions on the faces of the other two ladies on stage, this song holds a special place in the hearts of all present.
Suzy joked that we needed some comic relief after that, as she wiped away a tear or two, and asked Matraca if she'd join her in singing Eat at Joes, which Matraca wrote with Gary Nicholson and Suzy recorded. I have always loved the story this song tells and was delighted to hear the two of them sing it together, especially with Gretchen playing the drums - the brush on the back of her guitar. At some point, Suzy messed up the guitar chords and Matraca got the giggles; comic relief indeed as by the end of it Matraca was literally crying mascara and Gretchen teased, "Well, you all did a great job singing....."
All three came together to end the set with a stunning version of Wild Horses again recorded during their Sewanee Sessions, and after one of the biggest applauses I've ever heard in Hall 2 of the Sage, they sang us out with their version of the gospel classic, Farther Along. I suspect we were wishing we were father back in the performance so we had more still to come, but the good news is there are various Uk projects afoot for these three ladies, including Gretchen touring with Barry Walsh in November and a return of Wine Women and Song already being discussed though it may be a year or two away. Will I be there? You bet. In fact Wild horses, couldn't drag me away....
Helen Mitchell
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