Diane and I saw Mary Chapin Carpenter in concert at Melody Fair (in the round) in the 1990s. We own and listen to Mary Chapin Carpenter’s CDs frequently. We never saw Shawn Colvin live before tonight, but we have listened to her CDs, too.
When you read the concert poster and see “Together On Stage” that is exactly what you’re getting: two singers with their guitars on the stage. No backup band or singers.
Mary Chapin Carpenter and Shawn Colvin chattered between songs. Some people like that.
The less than sold-out audience applauded each song. Some of the ardent fans screamed, “We love you!” I was mildly entertained, but tomorrow I’ll have to listen to Mary Chapin Carpenter’s CDs and Shawn Colvin’s CDs to get the full musical experience. GRADE: B
SET LIST:
- The End of the Innocence(Don Henley cover)Play Video
- Catch the Wind(Donovan cover)Play Video
- Someday(Steve Earle cover)Play Video
- Chasing What’s Already Gone(Mary Chapin Carpenter cover)Play Video
- Passionate Kisses(Lucinda Williams cover)Play Video
- Shotgun Down the Avalanche(Shawn Colvin cover)Play Video
- This Shirt(Mary Chapin Carpenter cover)Play Video
- Sunny Came Home(Shawn Colvin cover)Play Video
- Twilight(Robbie Robertson cover)Play Video
- The Hard Way(Mary Chapin Carpenter cover)Play Video
- Girl And Her Dog Play Video
- One Cool Remove(Greg Brown cover)Play Video
- Cry Like an Angel(Shawn Colvin cover)Play Video
- I Feel Lucky(Mary Chapin Carpenter cover)Play Video
- I Want It That Way(Backstreet Boys cover)Play Video
ENCORE:
“GUILTY PLEASURES:
- I Want It That Way(Backstreet Boys cover)Play Video
- I’ll Be Back(The Beatles cover)Play Video
- Close to You (The Carpenters cover)
I like their choice of songs for the most part. I don’t mind chatting between numbers, as long as it doesn’t go too long. Bob Dylan never says a word. Stevie Wonder talks as much as he sings, maybe more. His stories go on and on. Others seem to get the balance right – John Fogerty for one. Jackson Browne talks a fair amount.
We’ve never seen Carpenter and I am not that familiar with her songs. We have seen Colvin in 2016, along with Graham Nash at a Steve Earle benefit for his son’s school, and we’ve probably seen her in group concerts like that at least one other time.
Jeff, I like both Mary Chapin Carpenter’s music and Shawn Colvin’s songs. Both singers had fun with the covers of their “Guilty Pleasures.” The song that got a lot of laughs from the audience was their rendition of “I Want It That Way”–The Backstreet Boys hit.
I don’t mind their talking either. Otherwise you might just as well listen to the CD. We saw Dylan once and he didn’t say one word. Phil liked MCC a lot. I have never heard Colvin. I will go listen on you tube.
Patti, my favorite Shawn Colvin CD is COVER GIRL from 1994.
We do have a CD of Steve Earle with Shawn Colvin called COLVIN & EARLE. They do nice covers of “Ruby Tuesday” and “You Were On My Mind.”
Jeff, I’ll have to track down a copy of COLVIN & EARLE. Shawn Colvin mentioned that Steve Earle has been married EIGHT TIMES!
I think twice to the same woman.
Carpenter was (and perhaps still is) a fixture of the DC folk/country scene, and i was happy to catch her in a festival or two, possibly once at Wolf Trap.
Todd, I listen to Mary Chapin Carpenter CDs monthly. I like her voice and I like her songs.
All I know of these two is that Colvin did a duet with Alison Krauss of “The Boxer” that was quite good!
Bob, I’m a fan of Alison Krauss and Shawn Colvin!