Charley Crockett - The Man From Waco Tour
Charley Crockett - The Man From Waco Tour
Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort, Hot Springs, AR, April 21, 2023
"Gulf and Western Music" is what Charley Crockett calls his brand of melody-making that has evolved in real-time in 13 releases over the past 8 years - an unheard-of output by 21st-century standards. It is not so novel that Crockett blends blues, country, western swing, Bakersfield vibe, Honky Tonk, and Cajun, but what is groundbreaking is the dirt-level organic sound he achieves with one of the most unique voices and deliveries in recent memory. Crockett's baritone is as immediately identifiable as those of Willie Nelson, George Jones, John Prine, and Ray Charles. It is a signature and a distinctive one.
Crockett recently appeared at the Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort in Hot Springs, AR, on Friday, April 21st with the Blue Drifters for a nearly 2-hour performance supporting his most recent recording The Man From Waco (Son of Davy/Thirty Tigers, 2022). The show was programmed similarly to recent setlists with a couple of surprises thrown in. Crockett and his band make up a sextet whose sole purpose sounds on a mission to raze the house that Hank Williams built, recreating it in a more earthy and fecund form, a throwback to less production and more honesty.
The performance included almost all of the songs released on The Man From Waco, the majority of which were concentrated at the beginning of the show. Following an opening theme from the album, Crockett and his band presented the songs in order as if derived from the first side of an LP, with "I'm Just A Clown" extracted and moved to the show's encore. Crockett's cover choices were conservatively inspired. Crockett performed George Jones' "The Race Is On," which he had covered on his 2018 Lil G.L's Blue Bonanza (Son of Davy), and, during the banjo portion of the show, played "Nine Pound Hammer" to great effect. His blues homage is T-Bone Walker's "Travelin' Blues." Also addressed were Willie Nelson's "Yesterday's Wine" and "Blackjack Country Chain," Tanya Tucker's "The Jamestown Ferry," and Jerry Reed's "I Feel For You." A James Hand devotee, Crockett covered "Midnight Run / Lesson in Depression" and "Don't Tell Me That" from his 10 For Slim: Charley Crockett sings James Hand (Son of Davy, 2021).
Crockett cherishes the three-minute song, a story compressed into a small space. He is a throwback to country music before Countrypolitian Nashville. He is a Texas Troubodor in the purest sense of the term. Charley Crockett is as unique and fresh a voice to country music as Cassandra Wilson is to jazz. His impact and influence will be great and he is just getting started.
Set List: The Man From Waco Theme; Cowboy Candy; Time Of The Cottonwood Trees; Just Like Honey; Black Sedan; The Man From Waco; The Race Is On; Odessa; The Valley; Jukebox Charley; Music City USA; Midnight Run / Lesson In Depression; Don't Tell Me That; Tom Turkey; Welcome To Hard Times; Yesterday's Wine; Name On A Billboard; The Jamestown Ferry; Almost To Tulsa; I Feel For You; Travelin' Blues; The Man From Waco Finale; Nine Pound Hammer; Round This World; Trinity River; Run Horse Run / 5 More Miles; In The Night. Encore: July Jackson; Blackjack County Chain; Silver Dagger; I'm Just A Clown.
Musicians: Charley Crockett: vocals, guitar, banjo; Kullen Fox: keyboards, trumpet; Colin Clark Colby: bass, music director; Alexis Sanchez: guitar; Nathan Fleming: pedal steel guitar; Mario Valdez: drums.