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| Nicole Atkins |
Goodnight Rhonda Lee
I stuck my earplugs into my ears and stood there in my sort of muffled isolation. It was warm, too. As usual, I'd arrived at Wonder Bar just as the doors opened; so, at this point, I'd been standing in my picture-taking spot for over an hour.
"What am I even doing?" I thought.
I have those thoughts sometimes as I stand there with my doofy camera bag, alone, sweating even though I'm not doing anything, having arrived super-nerdily early, waiting for the show to get started. On Saturday, things were exacerbated by the fact that my back had been giving me problems all day, and I wasn't even sure if I was going to make it out. I'd thrown back a probably ill-advised amount of ibuprofen, though, and decided to fight my way through it.
Then, at around 8:30, Philly's Low Cut Connie took the stage. For forty-five mintues or so, I forgot everything that was making me cranky. I snapped pictures with a big, stupid grin on my face as the band barreled through their set. Frontman Adam Weiner banged the keys on Shondra, his upright piano. At times, he delivered sermons while standing on his piano bench or after having made his way to Shondra's highest point.
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| Low Cut Connie |
"If you stick with Low Cut Connie... If we all stick together... We can't looooooooooooooose!"
Soulful, boozy, breakneck, barroom rock and roll. That's what Low Cut Connie do so well. Weiner is a wild emcee, sometimes making his way into the audience to hug everyone in his path while the rest of the band go wild on stage.
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| Low Cut Connie |
There were plenty of people in Nicole Atkins's hometown crowd who sang along with "Back In School," "Boozophilia," "Shake It Little Tina," and "Revolution Rock N Roll." Even those who may have never experienced Low Cut Connie before seemed to get caught up in Weiner's whirlwind -- playing piano while standing up on the bench, throwing his sweat into the crowd, grinding Tillie. By the time it was all over, I didn't even notice my back. The cure for what ails ya, I guess.
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| Low Cut Connie |
Amped and ready to go, I waited for Nicole Atkins. I've followed her career since before starting CoolDad Music. I still remember taking CoolDaughter #1 to brunch one Sunday where Atkins signed the top of my girl's takeout box. CD1 still has that in her room. Atkins relocated from Asbury Park to Nashville a couple of years ago, and this was a holiday homecoming show for her.
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| Nicole Atkins |
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| Nicole Atkins |
This summer, Atkins released her fourth studio album, Goodnight Rhonda Lee; and, after three extremely solid efforts, she's really found herself, I think. The album is soulful with hints of country and rock. It places the focus squarely on Atkins's formidable voice, where it should be. Album standouts like "Listen Up!," "A Little Crazy," and "Sleepwalking" translated beautifully live, especially the Roy Orbison-influenced "A Little Crazy" which Atkins co-wrote with Chris Isaak.
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| Nicole Atkins |
Atkins peppered the set with old favorites like "Maybe Tonight," "The Way It Is," and "Cry Cry Cry." She bookended the evening with covers, opening with Can's "Vitamin C" (which Atkins released as a b-side to "Vultures" back in 2010. I somehow acquired a signed copy of the single and can't remember how I got it.) and closing with her rendition of David Bowie's "Heroes." As usual, her voice was mesmerizing; and friends, family, and strangers alike seemed to get pretty caught up in it. I did anyway.
"What am I even doing?"
On Saturday, I was spending the evening with two great artists -- one of whom, you could say, was an early inspiration for CoolDad Music. I felt about 1000 times better walking out of the Wonder Bar than I did walking in; and, really, what more can you ask from a show.
Pictures from both sets are in the Flickr galleries and on the Facebook page.
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