Concerts #832 & 833 - Eilen Jewell at McCabe's Guitar Shop (June 15, 2018)

I discovered Eilen Jewell nine or ten years ago, while opening random music videos on YouTube and it took her no time to make a huge fan out of me. This brief review covers her two McCabe's shows on June 15, 2018.

Needless to say, I just had to be there not only for her sold-out 8 PM concert, but also for the late show. I left the venue after midnight, but it was well worth the effort. The concert was exceptionally good, but one small negative kept it from being 100% perfect: the drums were a bit too loud for the intimate listening room of my favorite venue.

The unmistakable highlights of the show were Eilen's voice and the quality of her repertoire. All of her songs, whether covers or self-penned, were top-notch. Her band was good, too - I was particularly impressed with Jerry Miller, an ace guitarist of the highest caliber.

SET LIST

It's Your Voodoo Working

Rich Man's World

Dusty Boxcar Wall

Rio Grande

Don't Leave Poor Me (Big Maybelle)

Reckless

You Wanna Give Me A Lift (Loretta Lynn)

High Shelf Booze

Mess Around

Santa Fe

Boundary County

You Gonna Miss Me

You'll Be Mine (Howlin' Wolf)

Another Night To Cry

Where They Never Say Your Name

Sea Of Tears

Fading Memory

Bang Bang Bang

Down-Hearted Blues

Head Over Heals

You Know My Love

Toward the end of her late show, Eilen told the audience "I think we have found our LA home", a clear recognition of the quality of the venue as well as the audience. I can't wait to see her again.

The 8 PM show had an opening act, singer-songwriter Amanda Anne Platt. Her short set did not grab me. The late show had no opening act.

Eilen Jewell at McCabe's

Eilen Jewell at McCabe's

Jerry Miller & Eilen Jewell at McCabe's

Eilen Jewell with husband Jason Beek at McCabe's

Eilen Jewell mingling with fans between shows

Guitarist Jerry Miller chatting with fans

Amanda Anne Platt at McCabe's

The merch table

The stage

McCabe's Guitar Shop - The listening room