PoP, A Quickie Edition 6

nHere's a brief review of the concert and Gossip in the Grain. Unfortunately that's it for PoP this week, because I honestly don't know where my time goes.

Gossip in the Grain is the third full-length album from Ray LaMontagne. The opening track "You Are The Best Thing" is uptempo and bright, which is a bit of a departure for Ray. The rest of the songs fit in more with his style, although the overall tone is cheerier than Trouble, his first cd. Leona Naess provides a strong vocal backing for three of the tracks. His roots in blues and jazz are evident and he uses that knowledge to make each of his songs better. It's not an album that you can listen to all the time, but it's perfect for when you're in the mood for some reflection and a return to the simple things in life.

Leona Naess also happened to be the opening act for Ray tonight. She fit in somewhere between Feist, Sara Bareilles, and Brandi Carlile. She's got more personality than Ray, but was lacking a certain je ne sais quois when it came to her music.

Finally, the scruffy LaMontagne got on stage and started the show with no preamble. I've been in love with him ever since I heard "I Will Hold You In My Arms" on the soundtrack for The Last Kiss. His signature rasp is slow and soulful, more like molasses than honey. As an added bonus for Carla and I, he's got this very sexy Paul Bunyan-thing going for him. There was much swooning from all the ladies in attendance.

You got the impression that he was very shy, but he still made an effort to talk to the crowd. We didn't care, because we were there for the music. Songs that sound very mellow on the cd were energized and gritty live, while still retaining their inherent tranquility. Does that even make sense? It's late and I think it makes sense, but I'm not sure. In the realm of folk rock, Ray is one of the greats.

Anyhow, he didn't play "Hannah," which was number one on my list of songs for him to play. He did finish his encore with "Jolene," so that almost made up for the omission.


For your listening pleasure, here's "Hannah"...





...and "You Are The Best Thing"