The venue was sold out for this special gig. Shane Nicholson’s album has been out for a few weeks, but this was one of the official launches. The crowd were attentive. Josh Rennie Hynes was a wonderful entree before the main course.
Josh is that interesting blend of folk and country, with a dash of youth which makes him sound more “hip” than us old folkies. Shane produces his albums and it is clear that he has had a guiding hand with Josh’s works.
Shane put together a band of guys who produce, including his guitarist, Matt Fell, who produced this album “Hell Breaks Loose”. A very sick Glenn Hannah battled on through the gig too.
The album is a beauty. (see review) Shane is always good LIVE as well as on record. The Basement is very appropriate for Shane’s easy going style and his country folk sound. He mixed it up by singing some of his classics as well as most of the songs from the new album. He even threw in a Stevie Nicks /Tom Petty duet with Melody Poole.
Katie Brianna and Fanny Lumsden sang songs with Shane as well as Josh.
Shane Nicholson is a very humble man, on the couple of occasions that I have met him, he is very quietly spoken and not aware of how talented he is. He seems very much at home with his guitar and his close friends, but you get the feeling that he would like to be sitting in a hut singing songs to a log fire. Strangely enough, he mentioned that very thought after I pondered it during the concert. He is probably in the top 5 of the best singer/songwriters in this country in any genre.
I love what he does with words. I often feel after I have listened to one of his songs for the first time: “That is exactly how I feel about something but I would have never thought to put it down that way.”
Shane’s songs have many layers and are open to interpretation on one hand, on the other hand they are just about the simple things in life.
Shane mainly lets his music do the talking and his songs do reveal a fair bit about him and his life, but he also added a few stories and there were a few laughs.
Shane Nicholson is a genuine guy and his songs are the real deal. In an ever changing world, it is great to have a few constants. Shane is consistently good.
He’ll always be a first hand man to me.
A Country Hattitude 