What can one write about a Lyle Lovett concert that hasn’t been said a thousand times before? This four-time Grammy-winning singer/composer/actor brought his Large Band, about halfway through their summer tour, to St. Louis on Friday night at The Factory for an evening filled with his eclectic mix of country, gospel, and folky-blues sound.
Seated fans, who were mostly getting along in years, were treated to a lush, well-measured concert that included a treasure-trove of fantastic songs that spanned his career with fan-favorites such as the dry wit of “Here I Am” to the sweet ballad of “12th of June” (from his most recent album) to the playful, whimsical “If I Had a Boat.”
Lovett took the time to personalize the evening by peppering in anecdotes, including how it was their second time performing at The Factory and that he loved having soft serve ice cream in the green room, “those things you remember.”
At one point, the now silver-haired storyteller shared how he had grown up in the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod and that the current president of the Missouri Synod, Rev. Dr. Matthew Harrison, was in the audience. With his signature dry wit, Lovett proclaimed, “Please do not consider this next song a reflection on any of your services,” before launching into the gospel-flavored, humorous “Church.”
Other newer songs, that have a distinctive change due to his later-life fatherhood, included the bluesy “Pig Meat Man” and the soft, gentle, crooning “Are We Dancing.”
Appropriately, the simple “Closing Time” also made the mix.
“The night’s all that’s left behind
You take your part and I’ll take mine
And go on home
It’s closing time.”
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