The Jayhawks at the Electric Ballroom

The Jayhawks

Dave Fidler

Electric Ballroom, 16 September 2016

It's been over ten years since I last saw The Jayhawks live but this year they are celebrating the 40th anniversary of their debut album as well as releasing their twelfth record, Sanctuary Park, so I knew I had to go to this special show at the Electric Ballroom, probably the smallest venue I've seen the band since their Camden Dingwalls show in 2003!

I arrived early to get a good spot but really I probably could have got there a lot later as the queue didn't really start forming until close to the opening time, still it was worth it to get a nice central spot. The support act was a British singer-songwriter I hadn't heard of before called Dave Fidler. He seems pretty close with Gary Louris of The Jayhawks though as he has supported him on previous tours as well as all the dates on this UK tour. On top of this he was also working the merch desk before and after his set, not just selling his own stuff but The Jayhawks' merch too, which was interesting.

He arrived on stage with two acoustic guitars and a selection of harmonicas, so we pretty much knew we would be getting a folky set, and that was essentially it: acoustic singer-songwriter fare with storytelling-style lyrics. It was pleasant enough but honestly I don't remember much about the songs at all, aside from the final one that purposely channeled Bob Dylan who his son who had just left for university was just getting into.

I remember the stories inbetween the songs more I must admit. One was about performing in a cave on a boat somewhere in Europe and then playing the song he sang there, although it didn't sound particularly nautical. Another was about the fact that his 1966 Gibson acoustic guitar was stolen the last time he played with Gary Louris, from his van outisde the show but he just had word that it had been found in a guitar shop and he was getting it back in a few days. The moral of the story, he said, was that if you're playing with Louris you may get your guitar stolen but if you play with him again, you'll get it back again.

He thanked The Jayhawks for letting him open for them on this tour and said something along the lines that they were an important band for him and he ended on the aforementioned Dylan-tribute song, which was admittedly the best one. 

But I was here to see The Jayhawks and listening to their new album had made me remember how much I loved their harmonies and sweet melodies. I really think they are one of the most important alt-country bands but it often feels like they are a little forgotten or overlooked. The last time I saw them in 2014 at Shepherd's Bush Empire it was the most poorly attended shows of theirs I had ever been to and I had actually won tickets to it. It was still a great show, and, even though I do love the Mark Olson era the best, it was great to hear a lot of the best post-Olson material.

While I haven't seen the band live in a while I have kept up with their albums and I must say they have continued to release really solid, enjoyable records, including their new one Sanctuary Park. What I didn't realise though was the fact that the band is now just a four piece having lost guitarist Kraig Johnson a few years back, so Louris is now handling all guitar duties. 

When they emerged on stage they looked older but still as cool as ever, Louris wearing a leather jacket and jeans, while keyboardist Karen Grotberg in a spotty white shirt with that instantly recognisable combination of blonde bob and glasses. I couldn't see drummer Tim O'Reagan as well behind his drums but it was good to see he is still part of the band (and an integral one too) but bassist Marc Perlman was strangely hidden away at the back of the stage. I couldn't remember if this has always been the case but it seemed a shame since they are now a four-piece that he wasn't at the front with Louris and Grotberg.

Even though the tour was mainly being promoted as celebrating the band's 40th anniversary, they began the set with two songs from the new album, Keeping Our Heads Above Water and American Midnight.  Both songs sounded great live and fit in well with the older classic material but during these songs in particular I found it hard to look at the stage as I was pretty much blinded by the flashing lights at the back of the stage. 

I've been to the Electric Ballroom many times over the years including seeing Snail Mail recently, and I've never had this problem with the lighting before, so I can only assume it was something The Jayhawks had wanted, but it was painful and didn't fit the music at all. 

I was relieved when it finally settled down but it seemed to take a while and would pop up again at various times throughout the night. Given the audience was very much middle-aged and older, and the music was country rock, it was completely unnecessary and weird. Sadly it impacted on my enjoyment of the show, which is such a shame and I know others felt the same way from what I read on social media.

Louris, I must say seemed in a really good mood, and quickly launched into some Jayhawks classics starting with The Man Who Loved Life from Sound Of Lies following it with Angelyne from Rainy Day Music (probably the two greatest post-Olson albums, although The Man Who Loved Life was the sole track we got from Sound Of Lies disappointingly, Big Star or Trouble would have been warmly welcomed).

The only drawback was that Louris' guitar was seriously loud in the mix, maybe because we were so close to him, but again this isn't something I've experienced before at the Ballroom. I don't know if Louris' guitar was louder because the band no longer had a second guitarist but I do think they lost something without the rhythm guitar balancing their sound, particularly the mixture of acoustic and electric on some songs. 

Despite this I was absolutely thrilled to hear Settled Down Like Rain, one of my favourite Jayhawks songs, and the beautifully melodic I'd Run Away with its fantastic Tom Petty-esque jangling guitar intro (although I'm sure they may not like the Petty comparison since it's said that Petty copied the guitar riff from Waiting For The Sun for Mary Jane's Last Dance after the band toured with Petty & The Heartbreakers in the early 90s).

It was good to hear Tim O'Reagan sing lead vocals on Tampa To Tulsa, the singalong Wichita and later in the set the new song Mr. Lincoln, plus it's always amazing to see such a good singing drummer. He also sang the lead on the song Gonna Be A Darkness, which Louris prefaced with a story about how he was lucky enough to write it with his friend Jacob Dylan of The Wallflowers and the fact that Dylan rarely collaborated with anyone. 

Louris told us that the title track of the new record, Sanctuary Park, was inspired by his wife's fascinating childhood in Canada. He then brought out a special guest for another new tune, Leap Of Faith, with Sid Griffin of The Long Ryders emerging with a smile on his face and a mandolin in hand. They have been friends for a long time it seems and it was clear that the band and particularly Louris got a kick out of playing with Griffin and it definitely sounded wonderful.  

Along with about seven tracks from the new record, they did give us a good slice of the band's back catalogue, with songs from just about every album aside from the first two which, in my experience, they do tend to generally avoid (maybe because the majority of the songs were written by Olson). 

They also gave us nothing from Mockingbird Time, the album that they made when they briefly got back together with Mark Olson. I actually love that album but I don't think Louris does given that the last time I saw The Jayhawks live in 2014, someone in the audience shouted "where's the new album" and Louris responded "we have to make up for the last stinker of a record first." Ouch. So, yes, no surprise that Mockingbird Time was excluded. 

Another curious thing was that they put Waiting For The Sun about halfway through the set. I mean, it sounded great but it seemed badly placed and would have fitted better as final song. I don't know if it was things like this that made the crowd strangely muted. I looked around a few times and barely anyone was moving. Was it because they were all middle-aged and tired? Was it because there wasn't that much energy from the stage either? 

Maybe it was a mutual thing, as the band often reflects back the energy from the audience but Louris at one point did note that it was strange to look out at such a "perfectly still" audience. And then, as if afraid it appeared he was criticising, thanked us all for all our support over the years but he was definitely right about the stillness. It was without doubt a strange vibe.

Near the end things did pick up though: people actually sang along to the ballad All The Right Reasons (written for Louris' wife Stephanie he told us), and the fantastic Tailspin seemed to get a good response. Then finally they brought out Dave Fidler to play and sing harmony vocals on, arguably their greatest song ever, Blue. I actually think Blue is one of the best songs ever written so it's always a joy to hear it but I can't deny I missed those incredible Olson/Louris harmonies. Still it was a beautiful way to end the show before the inevitable encore.

Because they had played a career spanning set of 22 songs so far it was now edging dangerously close to 11pm which slightly worried me but it was definitely worth waiting for the final two songs as people seemed to have finally perked up. They sang along to Save It For A Rainy Day, which was lovely, but it didn't prepare me for the way everyone almost took over the vocals of Bad Time. 

It felt like a huge choir of people singing, almost drowning out Louris (who had now taken off his leather jacket and was wearing just his white t-shirt) and at times he just let the crowd do its thing. I think he was almost taken aback by the power of the singing, maybe because the crowd had been so subdued before this.

It was a glorious moment but also felt strange that it took a cover version (of the Grand Funk Railroad classic), which of course appeared on the 1995 classic album Tomorrow The Green Grass (so they have been playing it a long time), to finally get everyone moving and singing. Still it definitely ended the show on a high.

The Jayhawks have been so special to me over the years and I get a warm rush of nostalgia when I hear their songs, so I think I was looking forward to hearing and feeling that magic again tonight but for some reason it didn't quite have that spark that I was expecting. There was something missing for me, whether it was that extra guitar, a general lack of energy or just an odd atmosphere but whatever it was, this didn't match previous times I have seen them live.

One nice moment though was when someone in the crowd shouted "We love you Karen!" and it totally took her by surprise, I think she was probably used to people shouting that to Louris instead. She looked visibly shocked and then delighted and responded "I love you too!" If nothing else, it was nice to see the woman in the band get her moment and she definitely deserved it.