Jill Sobule ~ 2018 July 12 ~ The Kate ~ Old Saybrook, CT
Jill Sobule accompanying herself on guitar; Grace Morrison, opening set.
Set List
America Back - Strawberry Gloss - What Do I Do - Forbidden Thoughts - Cinnamon Park - John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt - Karen By Night - Jetpack - Unplug Me - A Good Life - I Kissed a Girl - Thank Misery - Underdog Victorious ... encore ... San Francisco - The Island of Lost Things
This set list is also posted on setlist.fm. Since some of the songs are new, corrections to song titles are welcome.
Set List (Grace Morrison)
First Mistake - Lorraine - Another Reason - To Be Weird - song for her dad (title unknown) - Taking Johnny Home
Song title corrections are welcome.
Review
My first experience of Jill Sobule was in the year 2000 when she opened for Warren Zevon. Her witty, melodic, and touching songs made me a fan at that time. Over the years I got to see her in concert a few times at venues varying from Club Passim in Cambridge to the Iron Horse in Northampton. But for the past five years or so she's been living on the west coast, and her live appearances in New England have been relatively few, so I was thrilled to have the chance to see her perform at this wonderful venue in coastal Connecticut.
Imagine my surprise (and delight) when we got to the show and discovered that the opening act was Grace Morrison, whom we had just seen at the New Bedford Folk Festival last weekend. Grace lives near us in southeastern Massachusetts, and it was a pleasure to get to see her in a location somewhat out of the usual geographical range.
Grace was full of good news tonight, besides the simple delight of her opening for Jill. Last weekend she was wearing a walking boot to help her recover from a leg injury, and had to sit; but tonight the boot was off, and she stood at the mike for her 30 minute set. And she's expecting a baby singer/songwriter! We got to meet her husband, Rick, who was selling the merch.
The concert itself was pure joy. These two singer/songwriters complimented each other very well. Grace's songs were largely drawn from her new album, focusing on her love of family and feelings of being connected to others. When Jill came on, the tone shifted to the more universal. Jill's songs really run the gamut from very serious to very funny, and so does her banter. She's an old hand at this, and although I used to think she has stage fright, it's only that she has a nervous twitch in her hands that makes it look that way. Jill plays a diminutive travel guitar that despite its small size, makes a mighty sound. Jill said the same thing about the audience, calling us "small but mighty." (The room was probably about half full.)
Jill played several songs from her new album coming out later this year. These included a couple of songs about being in seventh grade, which Jill said is the worst year in anyone's life, and they focused on the new adolescent feelings being awoken at that point in life. "What Do I Do" is about not having any idea how to kiss; "Forbidden Thoughts" is about a first crush, but what if that crush is a girl? She ended the show with a contemplative new ballad, "The Island of Lost Things."
The funniest moment of the evening came with Jill's "hit" -- "I Kissed a Girl." Jill's song is a good natured, almost innocent ode to a same-sex encounter; nothing at all like the steamy, unsubtle Katy Perry opus that stole the name. Jill said that after her initial resentment that Ms. Perry had stolen her song title, she decided she was really glad not to have to be the "I Kissed a Girl girl" any more. When she played the song tonight, she used the names of a couple who were sitting directly in front of her in the front row to liven up the narrative in a somewhat naughty kind of a way.
Jill asked for requests, and played some of her best known tunes in response, including "Karen By Night" and "Jetpack." The acoustics are so good in the Kate that Jill spent some of the show at the front of the stage, off mike, and her sweet, sometimes girlish and vulnerable voice carried well throughout the hall.
Welcome back to the East Coast, Jill Sobule! It was such a pleasure to hear you perform, and I hope I will have more chances soon to hear you.
More Jill
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