The Jayhawks
Smile
On Sale Now
For $9.28

It may have been a "logistical nightmare" as Jayhawks leader Gary Louris termed it, but the Jayhawks and Marah on the Rams Head stage was also one heck of rock and roll show.

That stage is not particularly long or deep which contributed to the logistical problems. About half the stage was taken up by Jayhawks keyboard player Jen Gunderman’s Hammond organ and other keyboards. The band also had a couple of racks full of guitars which had to be put off to the side of the stage. During Marah’s opening set, four of the five band members were crowded stage right in an area about the size of a postage stamp. Nevertheless, both bands persevered in the cramped conditions.

The Jayhawks opened with "Life Floats By," one of the more rocking tracks on their latest album Smile, produced by Bob Ezrin (Kiss, Lou Reed, Alice Cooper). The record finds the band experimenting with drum programming and other technology behind their alt-country and pop songs. When the band performed "Queen of the World" early in the set, Louris used an earpiece to hear the manufactured beat that drives the song, which sounds like an MTV hit from 1983 or so. It was a flawless performance of the track but a bit "canned" sounding. The band was looser and better when they stuck to what they do best, as on the easygoing "A Break in the Clouds," with Gunderman providing the Emmylou to Louris’ Gram Parsons. During the encore the band threw in a cover of "You Don’t Miss Your Water," the William Bell soul song that the Parsons-era Byrds recorded for Sweetheart of the Rodeo. Also impressive was a full-sounding version of Smile’s gentle, uplifting title track and the techno folk song "Somewhere in Ohio," which seemed to rock a bit more live than on record. Perhaps the highlight of the new tunes though was the album’s first single, "I’m Gonna Make You Love Me," an undeniably catchy sing-along slice of Americana (despite some corny lyrics) with ringing Rickenbacker guitar.

But the Jayhawks also frequently reached back into their catalogue for songs like "Take Me With You (When You Go)," "Settled Down Like Rain" and "Sister Cry" from 1992’s Hollywood Town Hall and "Two Hearts," "I’d Run Away," and "Nothing Left to Borrow" from 1995’s Tomorrow the Green Grass. Drummer Tim O’Reagan did an admirable job filling the harmony vocals on these songs, which were originally sung by Mark Olson, who left the band in late 1995 to spend more time with his wife, singer-songwriter Victoria Williams. O’Reagan also got a couple of vocal showcases of his own as on "Bottomless Cup" from 1997’s Sound of Lies.

Louris broke a guitar string during the classic "Waiting for the Sun" but of course there were plenty more guitars where that one came from. His guitar work was consistently impressive but he still seems to be adjusting to the role of frontman. Several times he got tongue-tied trying to introduce the songs and finally told the crowd "I’m just gonna shut up." Fortunately music this terrific needs little explanation.

The band ended their main set with the twin acoustic guitar sound of "Blue" from Tomorrow the Green Grass. The song drew one of the biggest audience responses of the evening. The familiar opening riff was used as the theme song for VH-1’s "Crossroads" program a few years ago.

The encore was highlighted by the band’s cover of the Grand Funk Railroad chestnut "Bad Time," with Louris’ choir boy vocals and bassist Marc Perlman’s solid lead guitar work. And by a nicely harmonized "Ain’t No End," from 1989’s Blue Earth.

Openers Marah turned in a terrific set drawn mostly from their latest record, Kids in Philly. At times the stage seemed hardly big enough to contain the band’s energy. Lead singer David Bielanko joked about the supper club atmosphere of the club and apologized for blowing the "sea bass off the table" or some such. The band gave a nod to one of their big influences, throwing a verse of Springsteen’s "She’s the One" into their own "Catfisherman." The two guitar, lap steel, bass and drums lineup sounded great on songs like "Christian St." and the album’s first single, "Point Breeze." Bielanko’s brother Serge nailed the raunchy harmonica solo on the Stones-y "History of Where Someone Has Been Killed" and provided raspy chain-smoking harmonies throughout the set. A couple of unreleased new songs made it sound as if these guys will be worth watching for some time to come. But the band really seemed to rock when David Bielanko picked up a banjo on songs like "Round Eye Blues" and the set-closing "Faraway You."

Check out the bands website at www.thejayhawks.com

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