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Jayhawks |
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Central Park SummerStage
New York, NY
08.19.00 |
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review
The music business is indeed a fickle one. There we were at Central Park SummerStage on a gorgeous Saturday evening, with The Jayhawks providing the perfect musical accompaniment. Except they were opening for college faves Guster, so almost no one in the young crowd was listening. Sigh. Then, some bozo threw a bottle at lead singer Gary Louris, which is strange because Guster later proved to have the most mild-mannered sound you could ever hear. Go figure.
The Jayhawks were named one of the most influential bands of the last decade by both Rolling Stone and Spin magazines, and having seen them live it's hard to disagree. The Minneapolis quintet's sound is a singular distillation of Americana: elements of folk, country, grunge, psychedelia, and pop-soul find their way into the mix, and are always at the band's beck and call. Their sixth album, and Columbia Records debut, Smile, confirms their gift yet again. As the show progressed, The Jayhawks introduced three potential crowd-pleasers (if the crowd had been willing to be pleased) from that latest release: "Smile," "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me," and "Queen of the World."
Gary Louris was dressed all in white like some kind of musical holy man, and from the moment he led the band into its opener, "Settled Down Like Rain," from the breakthrough record Hollywood Town Hall, the performance was a religious experience. The Jayhawks' songs are instantly recognizable, but they are not rip-offs. They posess the chords and lyrics your heart told you long ago it needed to hear, but no one has ever put together until now. Louris' beautiful, world-weary tenor only deepens the connection—a holy man indeed.
"Waiting for the Sun" and "Smile" were featured back-to-back early on, and despite an eight-year gap between the songs, they both sounded as if they were written yesterday. "Drivin' Wheel" showcased drummer Tim O'Reagan's vocal talents; after which the group reeled off newies "Somewhere in Ohio" and "Queen of the World." These tunes were played in rollicking fashion on either side of "Trouble," from 1997's Sound of Lies. But the set's highlight was a truly awesome version of "Sister Cry," another one from Town Hall. At one point, the song turned into a Crazy Horse-inspired jam, where the guitar playing of Louris and Kraig Johnson seemed to toy with Neil Young's "Down By The River." It was their throwdown to the bottle-thrower. They emerged from an extended jam into the triumphant final chorus. New single, "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" followed, and sounded like a hit. The Jayhawks ended the night with "Blue" and "Bad Time" (a Grand Funk Railroad cover), from Tomorrow The Green Grass.
And that finished a gig where, at one point or another, nearly every member of the band took a turn at vocals, either lead or harmony. How many bands can do that? And how many do it as well as The Jayhawks? It remains to be seen whether Guster will go from strength to strength, but fifteen years into their career, The Jayhawks just keep getting better.
by by Andrew Montgomery
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