Mary Chapin Carpenter
Hall 1
The Sage, Gateshead, UK

2018-05-07

Can't say I'm particularly familiar with Mary Chapin Carpenter's work but, whilst I'm primarily here to see Emily Barker, I'm quite keen to see what all the fuss is about.
The tour is to mark 30 years as a recording artist and this is the first night. This time around she's on the road with a fairly pared down (largely) acoustic band.
It didn't take long to find out what the fuss was about. She's a wealth of great material to pick from, supported by a classy set of musicians who know when to play - and when not. Taste, tone & tenacity.
Mary also augments the set with the odd anecdote & observation. She's at that point in her career where she can conduct things the way she wants, and that ease of approach connects well with the audience.
The set is largely drawn from her latest album, which in itself is mostly "revisited" songs from throughout her career.
It may be the opening night of the tour but there's a good feel to tonight's show. Augers well for, what looks set to be, a fairly lengthy tour, heading in to the USA with Emily in tow.
Emily was invited back for a couple if numbers, something she appeared genuinely thrilled about.
All in all, this is a cracking night's entertainment. Catch them if you can.

Set

01 Hero In Your OWn Hometown
02 Why Walk When You Can Fly
03 Stones In The Road
04 Banter
05 The Moon And St Christopher
06 Naked To The Eye
07 Banter
08 This Shirt
09 What Does It Mean To Travel
10 Superman
11 I Feel Lucky
12 I Take My CHances
13 Band Intros
14 This Is Love
15 He Thinks He'll Keep Her*
16 Banter
17 Sometimes Just The Sky
18 Encore Break
19 The Hard Way*
20 I Have A Need For Solitude

Mary Chapin Carpenter - Vocals, Guitar
Johnny Duke - Guitars, Mandolin
Nate Barnes - Percussion
John Carroll - Piano, Keyboards

* Emily Barker - Backing Vocals

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