Several days ago I wrote a partial review of the new Slaid Cleaves live double album, Sorrow & Smoke: Live At the Horseshoe Lounge. Â Since then the album has come out, I’ve overcome the technical issue with getting both discs, and I got a chance to see Slaid live at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz. Â So I think it’s appropriate to add some additional material and see if I can get to a more complete picture of the new album versus the 50%’er from the first time.
One of the things I noted last time was how the album captures the atmosphere of a Slaid Cleaves show. Â I’ll double down on that comment now. Â While the show last night in Santa Cruz was certainly a different experience than what you’d have heard in South Austin, it’s cut from the same cloth. Â If you like the album, you’ll want to see him live, and vice versa.
Something that didn’t come on the road with Slaid is the trumpet accompaniment of Oliver Steck. Â The extra texture he adds, particularly to Wishbones, Cry, and One Good Year, is at once both sublime and compelling. Â Those songs are at a new level on the album. Â Having said that, the support of Chojo Jacques for the tour is a fine replacement. Â He adds a lot to Slaid’s lone guitar. Â I have to give a shout-out to the Vassar Clements number he did while Slaid was recovering from a yodeling incident. Â And that’s maybe the most compelling reason I can give you to go out and see Cleaves when he comes around: a good yodeler is a freak of nature. Â You almost can’t believe what you hear his voice do, even when you’re looking at him doing it.
On a final note, the commentary you get about the songs, both in the album and live, paint a rich picture on where one of the most compelling songwriters in Americana today gets his material. Â I can’t wait for the follow up song to Horses, about Willy Junior’s daughter. Â Especially if he keeps the line about brie and hard cheddar. Â But I guess you had to be there to get that story….
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.