Lake Tahoe Action August 2008 – If Rock, Blues, Pop and Country got together and had a beautiful baby, they’d name her Sheryl Crow. This past Saturday, the famed singer-songwriter, along with James Blunt, plus Toots & the Maytals, entertained maximum crowds at Harvey’s Outdoor Concert Arena.
The Grammy-award winning Maytals started the night with their long-standing irie blend of reggae, ska and rock. When James Blunt took over, the growing audience delighted not just in his hit songs, but also when the British singer charged through the arena aisles, high-fiving the crowd, then reappearing onstage to hang ten atop his exhausted piano. Naturally, Blunt’s set included his breakthrough hit, “You’re Beautiful,” and although known for mellower tunes, his show rocked enough to amp the crowd up for the stellar main act.
When Sheryl Crow first appeared, she stood alone onstage – fit, tan and lovely – with a huge peace sign graphic behind her as she soulfully sang “God Bless This Mess,” with only her acoustic guitar for company. Then the curtain dropped, to reveal her two backup singers and six-man band, and they all ripped into “Shine On, Babylon.” Next, they notched down the volume with a throaty, sincere offering of “Strong Enough.” – one of Crow’s many #1 hits performed through the night.
They kept ‘em coming, with “Can’t Cry Anymore” merging into a brilliant belting cover of “I Can See Clearly Now,” an old Johnny Nash tune done originally in 1972, before Jimmy Cliff recorded it in ‘93. The crowd loved it, even as the band roamed their way back to the main song.
Through the evening, Crow switched deftly between her acoustic and electric guitars, blending in with her band’s multi-instrument playing. She introduced each artist with tongue-in-cheek sass and obvious affection. Peter Stroud on electric guitar, Jon Button on bass, Jeremy Stacey playing a mean drum set, Mike Rowe with keyboards, Tim Smith on mandolin and guitar and Wally Ingram with congas and percussion shared the stage with the beautiful voices of Nayanna Holley and Stephanie Alexander.
Ms. Crow at one point shouted out to the audience, “Can I just call you Lake Tahoe? Where you from?” At which point, the singer proceeded to name every tiny outpost of our area, once again delighting the highly regional crowd.
Crow introduced a new song, titled, “Motivation,” which she called “a song about people who are famous for no reason, like Paris Hilton.” With the pop backbeat and sly lyrics, the already multi-Grammy star has another hit on her hands. This tune rolled right into the opening riffs of “You’re My Favorite Mistake,” which Crow sang sans guitar.
A conga backbeat lead a murky tone to Crow’s diatribe about “gas prices pissing me off.”
In “Gasoline,” her voice is able to find some soft under-layers not always apparent on her pop-style hits. Then the song went right into a rousing cover of the Stones, “Gimme Shelter,” which finished off with the entire band strongly chiming in on vocals.
Besides her justifiable harshness on gas prices, Crow makes a more subtle political and environmental point with her donation of $1 of every concert ticket sold going to the United Nations World Food Program. And that catchy Buddy Holly tune Crow covers in televised Revlon ads? There, the singer donates her earnings to breast cancer research – homage to the disease the Missouri native successfully battled in 2006.
And Sheryl Crow isn’t immune to gossip – on her next song, she started by asking, ”Do any of you read tabloids? Stop it! But if you have, you’ll know I’m cancer free, I have a baby and it’s the detours that help you figure out where you want to be.” Then the band laid into the song, “Detours,” with Crow’s low, husky rendition a charming pairing with Tim Smith’s mandolin playing.
Crow’s voice is loveliest when she stays with a soulful, earthy sultriness she’s developed well over the years. In her mid-forties now, her vocals are more modulated, bringing a sexy undertone to her singing. Add some strong guitar licks and a connection to her audience, and Sheryl Crow’s original and cover material is delightful.
As the night became late, the audience got all jacked up for “Soak Up the Sun,” which Crow accompanied with a cherry-red electric guitar – which was a perfect visual accessory to her faded jeans and pristine white top. A yellow and orange light show completed the sun theme, before Crow reminded everyone to “Rock the Vote” and remember to register at the nearby booth.
After much ruckus and shouting from the still-hungry crowd after the band went off stage, they came back for a romp through “All I Wanna Do,” with Crow saying quite plainly, “I’ve got a feeling there’s a party going on here tonight!”
Then she finished the night by covering Led Zeppelin’s “Rock n Roll” – complete with a Bonham-inspired drum solo. Although younger and prettier, Crow belted out the song like she was Robert Plant’s blond offspring. Blues, country, pop and definitely rock – not a bad heritage…and a great finish to a perfect night.