CONCERT OVERLOAD: Concert #808 - Loudon Wainwright III at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 9, 2017)

October 1, 2017

Concert #808 - Loudon Wainwright III at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 9, 2017)

This was my nineteenth time to see Loudon in concert, but only the first time since 2009. Even though quite a few years have passed since then, Loudon appeared to be pretty much the same as he was then. OK, so maybe he's not kicking out his legs as often as before and his face contortions are a bit less frequent, but the voice remained unmistakably his and so did his act, with that unique mix of humor, seriousness and the occasional touch of darkness. His energy level appeared to be high, even though he may have been holding back a bit for the evening's late show. I caught the early show, and by the way, both were sell-outs. At one point during his first set, when he mentioned his second show, Loudon quipped "I don't do anything twice a night anymore, except maybe go to the bathroom".

In addition to his own songs, Loudon's set included a few covers, which were all duly credited to their respective authors. As he always does, he augmented the musical part with a few funny stories, such as the one about his childhood encounter with Liza Minnelli. And anyone who has ever seen Loudon in concert knows that family members are often talked and sung about and this show was no exception. Particularly funny was his latest jingle, "Meet The Wainwrights", a song Loudon wrote for "The Wainwright Family Adventure" Alaskan tour.

Overall, I had a heck of a good time reconnecting with Loudon and I can't wait for his return to McCabe's.

Set List (nearly complete)
(all songs by Loudon Wainwright III, unless noted)

Natural Disaster

Dilated To Meet You

Meet The Wainwrights

The Picture

Ever Since The World Ended (Mose Allison)

It's Love And I Hate It

Westchester County

Between (Loudon Wainwright II)

Grey In LA

Primrose Hill

I Knew Your Mother

Half Fist

Daughter (Peter Blegvad)

April Fool's Day Morn

Oedipus Rex (Tom Lehrer)

Loudon Wainwright at McCabe's

The following photos, titled "The Many Faces Of Loudon Wainwright", are taken from "Meet The Wainwrights", the YouTube video recently posted by Wayne Griffith, the long-serving Sound Engineer at McCabe's.