The Jayhawks at Shepherd's Bush Empire

The Jayhawks
Shepherd's Bush Empire, 18 July 2014

I got a cool surprise today when I found out that not only had I won signed copies of the new reissues of The Jayhawks' albums Sound Of Lies, Smile and Rainy Day Music, but I had also won two tickets for their show tonight. I wasn't planning on going to this gig and even though it is officially the hottest day of the year (so far), I couldn't turn down seeing The Jayhawks for free and as you can imagine it was worth suffering the heat for.

This gig (sadly one of the more poorly attended Jayhawks shows I've ever been to - the place was barely filled) was in support of the newly released reissues which are basically the post-Mark Olson years of the band (until Olson briefly rejoined for 2011's Mockingbird Time) and featured the line-up with Olson's replacement, Kraig Johnson, on guitar, which makes sense since the band and Olson have yet again parted ways. I'm not sure if it was amicable or not but I have a feeling it wasn't. A response by band leader Gary Louris to an audience member, who called out asking when there would be a new album, was very telling when he told us: "New album? We have to make up for the last stinker of a record we released. This is the apology tour." Ouch. I wonder how Olson feels about that assessment. It may have just been a joke but it didn't feel like it. It was a strange response given that Mockingbird Time was pretty warmly received: I know I really liked it.

Anyway, this really was a celebration of those three reissued albums, in particular the superior of the three, Sound Of Lies. There were seven songs in all from that record alone starting off with the trio of tracks that opened the album: The Man Who Loved Life, Think About It and Trouble. I was actually surprised just how good they all sounded and I think they actually stand up with anything from their two most renowned albums, Hollywood Town Hall and Tomorrow The Green Grass. In fact throughout the show the Sound Of Lies tracks always brightened up the set from Haywire to Dying On The Vine and the fantastic Big Star, which was so feel-good and such a great singalong it made you wonder just why it wasn't a big hit back in 1997.

The Rainy Day Music songs also held up well, in particular Angelyne and Stumbling Through The Dark were a treat to hear again and although Smile on the whole is probably their most disappointing release they did manage to pull out some of its best songs including the title track, Somewhere In Ohio and easily their poppiest song, I'm Gonna Make You Love Me, which actually turned out to be a fun, sunny opening number (perfect for the day in fact). I must admit I felt drummer Tim O'Reagan's songs, Bottomless Cup and Tampa To Tulsa, dragged the show down a little and while I actually enjoy his solo album his few contributations to The Jayhawks' albums were never my favourites. 

The Olson-era songs were kept to a minimum. I guess this isn't a surprise since he's not in the band now and they probably worked those songs to death during the last tour but I can't deny it was still a thrill to hear the few they did play, although both Waiting For The Sun and Blue, which I'd say are their most famous songs, were actually played mid-set, as if making a point that tonight wasn't about those years. They did end the main set with I'd Run Away from Hollywood Town Hall though, so maybe they know they can't hide from that era completely and, despite their efforts to highlight their best songs from the later years, it was still one of the best moments of the night.

Probably the biggest surprise was the inclusion of two Golden Smog songs, If I Only Had A Car and Jennifer Save Me. Louris even explained to the audience that Golden Smog was the supergroup that he, Johnson and bassist Marc Perlman are part of (Jeff Tweedy of Wilco, Jody Stephens of Big Star and Dan Murphy of Soul Asylum were also members) that gets together every few years or so. I don't think there were many in the crowd that didn't know that fact though as both songs were warmly received, especially Jennifer Save Me which sounded wonderful.
Ending with a spirited version of Tailspin (from Rainy Day Music) that saw Louris jump down from the stage and into the audience (always fun to see), it was, without a doubt, nice to revisit those neglected Jayhawks years and hear some of the best songs from those albums live once again. That said I can't deny that I missed Olson tremendously. I missed the contrast between Louris and Olson (Louris the polished rock star and Olson the almost shambolic folkster) and that tension and chemistry that made them so exciting to watch. I missed so many of the beautiful songs they wrote together but most of all I missed that gorgeous blend of their voices, those harmonies that touch my heart still when I hear them. I hate to put down this show because it was definitely a good one but for me The Jayhawks with Mark Olson will always be that little bit more special. 

The lovely signed Jayhawks CDs I won