CONCERT OVERLOAD: Concert #761 - Suzy Bogguss at McCabe's Guitar Shop (November 14, 2015)

November 22, 2015

Concert #761 - Suzy Bogguss at McCabe's Guitar Shop (November 14, 2015)

Suzy Bogguss at McCabe's? Now that's something that was inconceivable in the 80s and 90s, when she was playing much larger venues, while selling millions of albums. Things have changed a bit since then, but in some respects, they remained the same: Suzy still records new music and she's quite often on the road.

Accompanied by my Better Half and two good friends, Joe and Deborah, I went to McCabe's last week with high expectations, that - as it turned out - were fully met. Suzy Bogguss delighted us with an exceptionally well-paced show that included some of her older hits as well as a good handful of numbers culled from her most recent albums, "American Folk Songbook" (2011) and "Lucky", her 2014 tribute to Merle Haggard's songwriting.

Suzy Bogguss at McCabe's

The Set List

Drive South (John Hiatt)

Shenandoah

Today I Started Loving You Again (Merle Haggard)

Someday Soon (Ian Tyson)

Outbound Plane

Letting Go

Hey Cinderella

Wayfaring Stranger

I Want To Be A Cowboy Sweetheart (Patsy Montana)

Let's Chase Each Other Around The Room (Merle Haggard)

Eat At Joe's (Matraca Berg)

I Always Get Lucky With You (Merle Haggard)

Just Like The Weather

Aces (Cheryl Wheeler)

Night Rider's Lament (Garth Brooks)

The Running Kind (Merle Haggard)

Red River Valley

Suzy came out with guitarist Craig Smith and bassist Charlie Chadwick, who accompanied her throughout the show. Both were outstanding, especially Craig Smith whose tasteful guitar solos were very well received by the crowd and I absolutely adored his delightfully thick Scottish accent.

Suzy Bogguss, with Charlie Chadwick and Craig Smith

Suzy Bogguss and Craig Smith at McCabe's

Overall, it was a fabulous evening. It was obvious to all that Suzy enjoyed herself and so did we. I liked her voice, her yodeling was top-notch and I don't think I could have come up with a better set list.

While the show was consistently good from start to finish, I'd say the most moving moment was Suzy's encore, her heartfelt rendition of "Red River Valley", the traditional song I first heard decades ago as "Red River Rock", an uptempo instrumental performed by Johnny & The Hurricanes.