Concert #588 - Tish Hinojosa at McCabe's Guitar Shop (April 8, 2011)

Now that she is happily married in Hamburg, Germany, Tish Hinojosa is seldom seen in Southern California ... our loss, Germany's gain. About 125 folks showed up at McCabe's to reconnect with Tish, who had not played in the area for quite some time. I sat in the first row, directly in front of her.

As always, her bilingual show was nothing short of heartwarming. Most of the songs she sang were self-penned and when they were not, Tish never failed to announce and even talk about the respective authors, a very nice touch. Although I don't speak Spanish, I found her Spanish songs to be as moving as the English ones, go figure.

The stage, a few minutes before show time

Tish came out by herself with an acoustic guitar and played four songs: "Tu Que Puedes, Vuélvete", James McMurtry's "Crazy Wind And Flashing Yellows", her own "Las Marias" and an old Mexican song by Augustin Lara, titled "Farolito". Interestingly enough, these were not exactly the songs appearing on Tish's own set list, which I managed to photograph during the intermission. After the fourth solo song, she was joined on stage by the ubiquitous Greg Leisz and Nelson Bragg, a member of Brian Wilson's studio and touring band. Together, they went on to sing the songs number 5 through 10 of the set list, from "Destiny's Gate" to "God's Open Road". Greg Leisz, who was in top form, played an acoustic guitar as well as his often-seen pedal steel guitar, while Nelson Bragg played the drums quite tastefully, without ever over-powering his fellow musicians. An intermission followed.

Tish Hinojosa's set list

After the break, Tish came out once again by herself and played three more of her own songs: "Donde Voy", "Something In The Rain" and "Noches Sin Estrellas". Once again, the songs she actually sang did not match her set list, which was pretty much in line with the relaxed and informal feel of the entire evening. After the return of Greg and Nelson, Tish did a much better job of sticking to the set list. At one point, she invited singer-songwriter Anny Chelsi to join her on stage and together they delivered one of Anny's songs, whose title sadly I don't have. For her encore, Tish played "Estrellita" and "By The Rio Grande".

Tish Hinojosa and Nelson Bragg at McCabe's

Late in the show, Tish acknowledged the presence of her husband, Andreas, who along with Tish, sold merchandise and chatted with the crowd after the show.

Tish Hinojosa signing autographs (husband Andreas in the background)

Overall, it was an exceptionally pleasant evening, and once again Tish reaffirmed herself to be one of my most-beloved female singer-songwriters, whom I will continue to follow for years to come.