Well, it's taken me some time to get back to you on the Elizabeth Cook show at the Sportsmen's Tavern in Buffalo, New York about 3 weeks ago. I do apologize. I have to confess, Elizabeth Cook's show is well worth it.
The Sportsmen's Tavern in Buffalo is Western New York's hotbed for Americana, roots and alt-country music. The venue itself is quite small, which makes for wonderful interaction between artist and audience. The packed house for this Sunday afternoon's entertainment had roughly 100 people in it, but given the size of the place, the room was packed. It is a great little place, which brings in national touring acts on a regular basis. If you're in the Buffalo/Western New York/Southern Ontario region, by all means check this place out. It's a great time with great people.
Anyway, back to Elizabeth Cook. Elizabeth Cook has just recently wrapped up her tour of the Northeast United States, with tour stops in Cleveland, the Boston area, New York City, with the final tour stop in Virginia. Performing in Buffalo with her husband Tim Carroll on guitar and accompanied by a gentleman on stand-up bass, Elizabeth essentially split the show with songs from her most recent project Welder, (which by the way, is an excellent piece of work) and her previous album Balls.
Once Elizabeth Cook hits the stage and begins that first note, you can tell you are in the presence of one of the finest country singers of our time. Highly personable, Cook rolled through such Welder gems as All the Time and El Camino, and led the crowd with a rousing rendition of the title cut to Balls. There were two very poignant moments in the afternoon. The first moment was delivered when Cook, with strong guitar playing from husband Tim Carroll, performed a wonderful version of Merle Haggard's classic Today I Started Loving You Again. This song has been recorded hundred's of times by artists the world over. Elizabeth Cook gave this song a brand new life with her refreshing version. It is hoped that she puts this cover version on an upcoming album, as it deserves to be heard by the masses.
The second moment came from a personal story. Cook provided some back story to one of the cuts from her album. The youngest child with nine half-brothers and half-sisters, Elizabeth admittedly had much material to draw from, given the large number of siblings. This story set up the beautifully-performed track from Welder, Heroin Addict Sister. This song was performed with a kind of raw honesty that could only be performed by someone who has lived through such family tragedy and strife.
It never gets old saying that someone deserves your time, as you've seen through these reviews. Elizabeth Cook is at the top of the list. She is a country/Americana singer of the highest order, who brings an honesty to the stage that is not often replicated. This young lady has more talent in her pinky finger than most big-name entertainers out there today. The next time she passes through your area, do take the time to check her out. She travels extensively, with frequent tours to Europe and recently completing a tour of Japan for the first time.
And if you're one of the 20 million or so who have Sirius/XM Satellite Radio, be sure to check out Elizabeth Cook's weekday morning show Apron Strings from 6 to 10am, Eastern time, on Outlaw Country, Sirius 62, XM 12.
For more information on Elizabeth Cook, you can check her out at:
www.elizabeth-cook.com
For more information and upcoming shows at the Sportsmen's Tavern in Buffalo, New York, log on to:
www.sportsmenstavern.net
No comments:
Post a Comment