The Kennedys ~ 2017 September 30 ~ Sandywoods ~ Tiverton, RI
Maura Kennedy, vocals, guitar; Pete Kennedy, vocals, guitar
Set List
Life Is Large - Dharma Café - Chimes of Freedom {Dylan} - Riot In Bushwick - Fireflies - Day In & Day Out - Umbrella - Pearl's Eye View - Big Star Song - Williamsburg Bridge - Day in the Life {Beatles} ... intermission ... Half a Million Miles - Trouble In the Fields {Nanci Griffith} - Common Bond - 9th Street Billy - She Worked Her Magic On Me - Bicycles With Broken Spokes - I'll Come Over - Travel Day Blues - medley: instrumental/8 Miles High/Mr. Tambourine Man - Don't Talk To Strangers ... encore ... Cayenne in My Coffee - Stand
Scroll down past the videos for review of the show.
Videos
Big Star Song
Travel Day Blues {missing the first few seconds}
Review
The musical weekend continued, with a show by my favorite American folk duo sandwiched between two performances by my favorite English folkie.
Maura and Pete Kennedy often ask for requests from the audience, but tonight they basically did an all request show. They went on stage with no set list and no idea of what they were going to play. "What should we start with?" was followed by "what's next?" Knowledgeable Kennedys fans got them started with two songs they might have picked themselves, but then veered off into lesser known territory. Some Pete solo numbers got the nod. I particularly liked "Riot In Bushwick," in which Maura motioned to me and my concert going partner to do the "This is a raid!" line, but then quipped that we didn't sound very scary!
Some deep album cuts were called out from the audience ("Day In and Day Out," "Pearl's Eye View") while other fans wanted to hear Dylan and Beatles covers. Pete and Maura tossed in a couple of songs that they themselves "requested" (including a new song, "Umbrella," reflecting on the twenty-five years since they met one another).
During intermission we were invited to write down our requests so Pete could shuffle the songs into a set list that flowed, although in my opinion we Kennedys fans did a fine job of constructing a perfect set during the first half. It was a lot of fun! The second half featured a few songs from Maura's solo catalog, some fan favorites, a signature Pete Kennedy mash-up featuring some of his own compositions along with some '60s classics, and a new song that I have heard three times now, "Don't Talk To Strangers," based in Maura's experience and also the experience of immigrants to this country.
The encore set consisted of the goofy "Cayenne In My Coffee," in which Maura explains that that's a thing, and the anthemic "Stand." These two musicians balance each other perfectly and every show of theirs gives the audience fodder for thought along with smiles and a tear or two along the way.
More Kennedys
Here is a page with a handy list of links to all pages on this website with content relating to Maura and Pete Kennedy.
Click for 2017 Concert Page with links to all 2017 concerts ... Click for Main Concert Page with links to all years