P.D. Kelley   

On April 17^th, the night was clear, Spring was in the air and the Rogue Theatre was sold out.  Home Free was in the house and if you haven’t seen this country vocal band, save up your pennies and get to one of their concerts the next time they’re within a couple hundred miles of wherever you are.  I watched these guys win Season Four of The Sing-Off, an a capella group competition, in 2013.  They were and are simply superb.  Tim Foust is the bass (his low notes rumble right through you) and the front man, charming the audience with his sly humor.  Austin Brown as the lead tenor shares these duties and has a superlative voice with great range and projection.  Rob Lundquist is the harmony tenor and hits the way high notes somewhere in dog whistle range.  He is clear and clean.  Adam Chance fills in the middle providing baritone harmony, mellow and delicious.  Adam Rupp (who co-founded the group with his brother Chris in 2000) is the percussionist and a complete wonder.  He can produce any sound he wants just with his mouth, and it is his contribution that makes this band sound like they are accompanied by musical instruments.  He did a solo mid concert that was pretty much how any great drummer with a full kit would sound.  The light show was slick and these five are seasoned performers.  They never missed their marks and each one is a soloist in his own right.  They are also shameless self-promoters and a bit full of themselves.  But as someone said, “It ain’t bragging if you can do it.”

Still, they haven’t lost that down home feel and appear to love what they do.  They sang mostly country with some pop and gospel thrown in.  Their covers always had their unique signature and they performed some original work as well.  Look for their latest album Timeless and, of course, they’re all over You Tube.  They said next time they come back to the Rogue they might have to do two shows.  Don’t tease us, boys.  We’ll hold y’all to it.

Catch you on the flip side. . .

P.D. Kelley

It was 4-20, and another sold out show at the Rogue.  The crowd was ready to celebrate and warmly welcomed The Dawg Trio featuring David Grisman, aka “Dawg”.  This was an acoustic performance and the stage was simply set.  Grisman, his white hair flowing, came out with his fabled mandolin followed by his son Samson on the upright bass fiddle and Danny Barnes who alternated between banjo and guitar.   And the pickin’ began in fine fashion with a rousing ration of blue grass, country, and what Grisman called “old timey music.”  Grisman is somewhat of a legend in the business having played on at least one Grateful Dead album as well as with numerous other musicians.   He has founded several bands and I would guess there haven’t been many days in his adult life when he wasn’t playing something with somebody somewhere.   His longtime friendship with Jerry Garcia provided grist for some wonderful stories that the audience just loved.  Grisman’s delivery is laidback and his wit is dry.  Not so when playing the mandolin.  This is a master at his craft.  Son Sam on the bass showed that DNA, as they say, doesn’t lie and his chops were smooth and nimble.  He and his dad hugged and patted each other frequently and the pride and love showed clearly.  Grisman had high praise for Danny Barnes on the banjo and guitar and it was certainly deserved.  Barnes made it look effortless and he also sang a few numbers, at least one an original of his.  All three were true pros even though Grisman gave off a vibe of “Hey, it’s just me and the boys gonna play a few tunes for ya.”  When they gave their final bow following the encore (You didn’t need to do all that,” Grisman deadpanned, “We were gonna come back out anyways”) it was just sweet to watch.  

Catch you on the flip side. . .