From: owner-believers-digest@smoe.org (believers-digest) To: believers-digest@smoe.org Subject: believers-digest V2 #5 Reply-To: believers@smoe.org Sender: owner-believers-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-believers-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk believers-digest Tuesday, January 20 1998 Volume 02 : Number 005 In Today's believer's digest: ----------------- Susan Werner at McCabe's in Santa Monica, CA [Marc E* Zorn ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 19 Jan 1998 15:53:13 -0800 From: Marc E* Zorn Subject: Susan Werner at McCabe's in Santa Monica, CA I'm new to this list. I usually don't subscribe to fan lists, but the folks here seem to be pretty well-behaved. Someone asked for a review of a west coast show. I thought I'd oblige. - ------------- 1/19/98 -- MZ I live in Los Angeles, so it isn't often that I get the chance to see and hear Susan Werner, unless I travel. Luckily, this weekend was different. Many things were different about her concert; a new venue, lots of new songs, a new hairstyle, and even a new guitar (or two?). McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica is primarily a music store, but the large back room has been fashioned to be an intimate setting for concerts. The place isn't polished or plush. It's more like a converted garage than a club. The acoustics aren't that great. The house lights looked like they could have been hanging over someone's dinette set in a previous life. Most of the seats look like they were pulled from an abandoned movie theater, the rest borrowed from a church bingo call. The carpet was well warn. Wires and amplifiers hung from the ceiling, and guitars for sale hung on the side walls. These all add to the charm of the place. McCabe's also oozed with history. The place has been around for a long time, and has hosted many talented and (now) famous musicians. I've been there many times. This seemed like an excellent setting to hear Susan Werner. For the same reasons, Los Angeles can be a rather intimidating place for an entertainer. It took a few songs before Susan settled in, partly because the house lights were off, and she couldn't see us. She said we clapped really loudly in LA, but I think the acoustics and the darkness added to that. It definitely separated us a little. After calling for the lights to be turned up a bit, she began to feel more at ease. Susan had great way of handling that initial nervous energy. She seemed to start into a song, but was just playing a familiar riff and singing in a stream of thought about what she'd been doing for the last few days. She talked about the drive, the other venues, San Bernardino, the hotel, the smog, the traffic, etc. Her quick wit and improvisational style were wonderful to hear. Even if she hadn't sung any of her prepared songs, this stuff could have held us for the evening. But, just like appetizers could hold you, the main course was the primary reason for coming. Susan sang mostly new songs, and a few of her previously known ones. As with many of her other songs, the new ones often evoked powerful emotions. Susan's particular talent for blending angst and pain with wit and irony allowed us all relate to some of the lyrics, even though some of them made us wish we couldn't. She portrayed hurt and vulnerability with a touch of comedy that seemed to say "it is difficult sometimes, but I'm ok". Still, once in a while she looked like she could use a hug. Despite this, though, Susan was notably upbeat from some of her earlier work. Overall, she seems much more comfortable and confident with herself. Somehow, the occasional emotional lament couldn't prevent her from celebrating at other times. Some songs had us feeling fortunate to have so much available to us to help enjoy life. Susan also played this really striking electric guitar. It was wearable avant garde sculpture. This was a side to Susan we'd not yet seen. It was quite angular with a ruby red body and charcoal neck. At first, it looked out of place on someone so down-to-earth, yet... As soon as she played it, it was obviously natural. Some of her new songs required a little less acoustical sound, and she might as well have a cool-looking guitar for some mild shock value. One of the highlights of the concert was after a tune with a latin beat (played on this ruby guitar). She jokingly asked if we thought she could make lots of money on the Cha-cha-cha circuit, while she did a couple of mock steps with the mic stand. A man in the audience said it made him want to dance to it. (Uh-oh.) Susan smiled brightly and said to show her. He said, "no", but she wouldn't let him off the hook. She said she'd play it again, if he'd dance. The audience showed obvious approval with applause and a couple of hoots. The man and his wife took up the challenge and did the Cha-cha-cha while Susan played the tune again. (Wild.) They certainly knew how to dance. Susan was overjoyed, as were the rest of us. The set was all too short. She was the second on the bill, and the previous guy ran long. It was getting late, and it was time. I was happy to experience what I did. We chatted with her briefly afterward. Susan mentioned that she'd be in the studio in April. I can't wait to get recordings of her new stuff. It was a great show, albeit slightly abbreviated. It was wonderful to see Susan again. Marc - -************************************************************************************* - -This has been a posting from the Susan Werner "believers" list - -To unsubscribe send mail to Majordomo@smoe.org with "unsubscribe believers"in the body of the message. - -To post to the list send mail to believers@smoe.org - -To reach a human, send to charlies@voicenet.com - -Susan's CD's are available on your desktop at songs.com - -************************************************************************************* ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jan 1998 02:39:13 +0000 From: "Charlie Sweeney" Subject: Review from Folk_Music Hi folks, Thought I would pass along this review from the Folk_Music list. FOLK_MUSIC digest Monday, January 19 1998 Volume 01 : Number 2308 In this issue: 1) Susan Werner by HARD-BOILED Topic No. 1 Date: Sun, 18 Jan 1998 14:23:54 -0500 (EST) From: HARD-BOILED Subject: Susan Werner On Sun, 18 Jan 1998, tony lombardi wrote: > Would love to see more form Iris Dement, Susan Werner, MArtin Sexton, > Ellis Paul, Vance Gilbert. Just wanted to say I saw Susan Werner last night at McCabes in Los Angeles and she's better than ever, played a lot of new material, her humor and poignancy, her presence, style and dramatic ability all in top form. Don't miss her. She also said she's in the process of finally doing a new album so that's something to look forward to. I just wish she'd perform more in the Southern California area than she does. Hopefully that will change. And my last thought is that with her voice and her incredible songs, it makes one wonder why we don't hear her on soundtracks, she's perfect for them. - ------------------------------ Charlie Sweeney (=}===# Virtual Guitarist-Something Black http://www.voicenet.com/~charlies "Passion's always half impossibility" Join the Susan Werner E-mail list at: http://www.voicenet.com/~charlies/swmail.htm - -************************************************************************************* - -This has been a posting from the Susan Werner "believers" list - -To unsubscribe send mail to Majordomo@smoe.org with "unsubscribe believers"in the body of the message. - -To post to the list send mail to believers@smoe.org - -To reach a human, send to charlies@voicenet.com - -Susan's CD's are available on your desktop at songs.com - -************************************************************************************* ------------------------------ End of believers-digest V2 #5 ***************************** -************************************************************************************* -This has been a posting from the Susan Werner "believers" list -To unsubscribe send mail to Majordomo@smoe.org with "unsubscribe believers-digest" in the body of the -message. -To post to the list send mail to believers@smoe.org -To reach a human, send to charlies@voicenet.com -Susan's CD's are available on your desktop at songs.com -*************************************************************************************