T Bone Burnett - Old Town School of Folk Music, Chicago, 19/11/2024

by Lisa Torem

published: 19 / 12 / 2024

T Bone Burnett - Old Town School of Folk Music, Chicago, 19/11/2024

Lisa Torem watches T Bone Burnett’s Old Town School concert inspire two standing ovations

Article

As if dropping ‘The Other Side,’ his first solo album in twenty years, and contributing nine original songs to Ringo Starr’s upcoming project, Look Up (“it set me up on this writing spree”) weren’t enough, T Bone Burnett is embarking on a rare U.S. tour. You’ve likely heard albums with which this producer’s been aligned, by violinist Alison Kraus and former Led Zeppelin Robert Plant (‘Raising Sand’) or recognize that he resurrected Roy Orbison’s career, but moreover, Burnett has enjoyed a multi-decade vocation as a prolific songwriter. At the ambient OId Town School of Folk Music, one of the oldest, most beloved “teaching” venues in the nation, the Grammy-winning, silver-haired professional looked right at home. He expressed his excitement at sharing space with a school that throughout the years has heavily promoted major hometown luminaries (Chicagoans may be well-acquainted with the trajectories of John Prine and Steve Goodman). “I’d like this to be a dusk and dawn event. Let’s just all be friends tonight,” he mused, recalling that the human race originally used singing as a primal form of communication. Burnett created a sense of calm from the moment he began his generous set. Staying in sotto voce, he requested the audience to hide away phones and enjoy being in the moment. I was glad he did--his poignant lyrics deserve ample time for deep reflection. I was impressed with, not only the other talented musicians, but the way that T Bone brought them onstage. Rather than have a pedestrian parade, he introduced each one individually, which allowed for ample opportunity to shine. The evening fare was plentiful. For part one, the band did a dozen songs. After the intermission, they played another 15, including encores. ‘He Came Down’ featured Colin Linden’s rootsy resonator guitar. While he did pull out several magnificent slide solos along the course of the night, I favored the simplicity and sincerity of this hymnal-styled opener. ‘Come Back (When You Go Away’), a unique album cut, ushered in Dennis Crouch, “the best rockabilly slap, bass player,” according to Burnett. Crouch didn’t disappoint, with consistently energizing basslines and an impeccable sense of timing. Moments later, David Mansfield, last man standing, finessed the dreamy intro. of ‘Waiting for You’ on his mandolin, but progressed to boast skill on guitar and fiddle. Mansfield and Burnett are old friends, having worked in the trio, the Alpha Band, back in the 1970s. Their comfort at collaboration was palpable. Emotions ran high when the band doubled down on ‘The Pain of Love.’ Another sobering number, ‘The Race is Won’ captured Burnett’s reaction to racial injustices and underscored Mansfield’s provocative fiddle arrangement. ‘Sometimes I Wonder,’ on the other hand, came across as a ballad based more on feel, than philosophy. ‘Hawaiian Blue Song’ from Burnett’s new album left a sterling, lyrical imprint. The rich detail regarding landscape and character stirred up, for me, multiple emotions, especially with this image: “The waves from the radio broke off that silhouette.” ‘The Town That Time Forgot’ sparked warmth from Linden’s resonator and Mansfield’s strings, but all things being equal, ‘Little Darling’ was an engaging feel-good song, rife with positivity about all-things love. The simply constructed and relatable rhyme schemes foreshadowed a rousing instrumental. Post intermission, they regrouped with ‘Humans from Earth,’ reignited by Linden’s slow-burn and followed up by other-worldly percussion and impressive mandolin runs. ‘It’s Not Too Late,’ repetitive in all the right spots, moved from the concrete phrase, “the night is closing” to surreal images, like, “all lies in ashes,” with the catchy title at the vortex. ‘Annabelle Lee,’ another co-write namechecking Bobby Neuwirth (of Janis Joplin’s ‘Mercedes Benz’ fame, and a mainstay with Dylan on the Rolling Thunder Revue) swung especially hard with the addition of Mansfield’s country fiddle. Burnett’s songs have graced multiple films. The anthemic ‘Like a Songbird That Has Fallen’ enriched 2004’s Cold Mountain. ‘The Scarlet Tide’ also relies on lovely, poetic devices. ‘No Love at All,’ however, sustains its beauty through plain speak and whispery, subtle phrasing. We learned a lot about T Bone Burnett tonight. Judging from asides about the late Jerry Lee Lewis, and “all tone and all true” Roy Orbison, for whom he composed “never heard” songs, he reels from occasional regret--‘Shake Yourself Loose’ captured a 1950s zeitgeist. In a night of polar contrasts, ‘Kill Switch’ from 1992’s ‘The Criminal Under My Own Hat,’ triggered by “Desert Storm” gave way to a distinctive consciousness. ‘River of Love,’ widely covered since the late 1980s, hasn’t lost any of its magnetic grip. As such, Burnett’s version felt as genuine as those archival covers. Spoken word encore, ‘Hefner and Disney,’ Leonard Cohen’s illuminating ‘Tower of Song,’ a response invite to ‘Long Tall Texan,’ replete with zestful fiddle, and sing-along ‘He Came Down’ reprise iced the cake, after the intimacy of two powerhouse sets. Photos by Jim Summaria