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Artists Worth Checking Out Live Concerts Reviews

Shooter Jennings packs them in at Missoula’s Top Hat Lounge

As you can imagine, after being part of the music industry for the past 30 years, we’ve made quite a few friends along the way.  One of those special friends is Ted Russell Kamp, who was one of our performers at last year’s LA Music Critic Award Winners Showcase.  Besides his indie activities, Kamp is also the bassist for Shooter Jennings, who recently brought his tour to Missoula, Montana for a show at The Top Hat Lounge on February 20.

Kamp invited us to come see and review the show, and to hang with him before, so we gladly accepted his invitation.  We had a great time catching up and having dinner together before the show.  When we arrived for sound check, we were also pleasantly surprised to discover that another of our friends, Aubrey Richmond, was playing fiddle at the show.  Besides occasionally playing for Jennings, Richmond is also a member of Blue Élan Records recording artist Mustangs of the West.

photo by Chelle-S Imaging

The opening band was Texas-based Quaker City Night Hawks, and they brought their country rock sound to provide the perfect wake-up call for Jennings.  The band combines elements of ZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynryd to create their own brand of southern rock  The two guitarists traded lead vocal duties, while the drummer and bassist laid down the perfect foundation for the jamming indie rock sound.  The crowd was whipped into a frenzy and totally enjoyed this opening act, which lasted about 45 mins  We really loved their funky guitars which are also highlighted on their recently released self-titled album, which came out on March 1.

After a brief intermission, the lights came up on Jennings on the piano, Kamp on bass, Jamie on drums, John on guitar and Richmond on fiddle.    The show started with a rousing honky-tonk blues number called “Bound ta Git Down,” which was the first single from his most recent album, Shooter.

The standing room only crowd loved every minute of the show, as Jennings played songs from all of his previous releases with an emphasis on his latest offering.  He showed his musicality by moving from piano to guitar and back again numerous time throughout his set.  He also showed how proud he is of his roots, with tributes to some of the country greats like George Jones and his father, the late Waylon Jennings.

Photo by Chelle-S Imaging.
Photo by Chelle-S Imaging.

Among the amazing songs he performed were new ones “D.R.U.N.K.,” the perfect country song, “Rhinestone Eyes,” “Denim & Diamonds,” and the classic “Steady at the Wheel.”  Truth be told, every song was solid country gold and kept the audience joyfully singing along and dancing.

Another thing that we appreciated was that Jennings was not afraid to share the spotlight, as he highlighted the contributions of each member of his band, especially Richmond and Kamp.

We will definitely be back to see Jennings again soon.  This was a wonderful night that we will never forget.

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Artists Worth Checking Out Reviews Women in Entertainment

Suzanne Santo at the Top Hat – live performance review

Last night we attended the solo show for Suzanne Santo of honeyhoney, who performed to a packed house at the Top Hat Lounge in Missoula, Montana.  Mapache opened the night for her.  They are a duo of acoustic musicians on guitar and dobro who possess some of the best harmonies we have ever heard.  They just released their debut album in October, and we will be reviewing it next week.  These guys were so good that Santo brought them up during her set to do a trio with them that was breathtaking as they did a cover of “Helplessly Hoping” by Crosby, Stills & Nash.  We highly recommend you check them out.

Santo took the stage about 10:35 p.m., along with Blaine on rhythm guitar and foot bass and Paul on drums.  Santo used three different guitars and her fiddle during her nearly 90 min set, which included a two-song encore.

Santo previously released her debut solo album Ruby Red back in August, and we reviewed it here on our blog on August 23.  She released a music video for the lead single, “Ghost in my Bed,” which garnered a nomination for the LA Music Critic Awards for Best Video Official (Female), while Santo was nominated for Best Roots/Americana Artist (Female).

Santo and her band played nearly all of the songs on her album, as well as an amazing cover of Johnny Cash’s “Give my Love to Rose,” and a medley of honeyhoney songs, including “I Don’t Want to Fight,” “All on You,” and “Burned me Out,” which she performed solo.

She apologized for her late start, and explained that they had played the Tractor Tavern in Seattle on Thursday night and had a hard commute over, arriving after their scheduled sound check.

Among the highlights were performances of “Ghost in my Bed” (featuring some outstanding fiddle), “Blood on Your Knees,” “Bullets,” and “Yours or Mine.”  Blaine was also amazing on guitar and playing bass with his footboard.

Santo talked about her performances last year with honeyhoney, including stops at the Top Hat Lounge and a performance at the Bob Marshall Festival in Seeley Lake.  In fact, there was a large group from Seeley Lake at the show that had gotten hooked on her sound when she performed there.

Santo also informed the crowd that Ben Jaffe, her partner in honeyhoney, would be releasing his solo project soon, and encouraged everyone to check it out.

It was an amazing evening of music.  We strongly encourage you to check out both Santo and Mapache the next time they stop in Missoula.