Simon RushworthLittle Big Town @Newcastle O2 City Hall, September 14 2024
Little Big Town made Newcastle their town as the Grammy Award-winning country supergroup sprinkled some long overdue Nashville stardust over Tyneside.
Requiring no ornate backdrop, choosing a subtle light show over dazzling lasers and keeping the mid-set chat to a bare minimum, the classy quartet focused on the music.
And with vocal harmonies to die for this was a heartfelt masterclass in affecting melodies and intuitive performance.
Alongside band mates Kimberly Schlapman and Philip Sweet, husband-and-wife Jimi Westbrook and Karen Fairchild held a rapt Saturday night O2 City Hall crowd in the palms of their hands.
Fusing a powerful production — Little Big Town are synonymous with packed arenas and stadia Stateside — with an intimate touch, this often felt like a midweek jam at the Bluebird Café.
But then there were frequent bursts of booming Music City pzazz as the beaming Schlapman and co. brought the Broadway party.
Going 21 songs deep this was as good as it gets from a band celebrating the release of a ‘does what it says on the tin’ Greatest Hits package.
Pontoon made its usual splash, Girl Crush gushed and the red hot bluegrass of Evangeline brought a blazing live band to the fore.
Taylor Swift cover Better Man never sounded better and then there was Day Drinking, Hell Yeah and Stay All Night — given the chance, we would have done.
But as Little Big Town blew through Newcastle like a breath of fresh Tennessee air, it was the brooding Tornado — anchored by the fabulous Fairchild — that comfortably stole the show.
Country music has never been a broader church but when it comes to classic songwriting welded to peerless harmonies nobody does it better.
Even after all these years, watching Little Big Town Bring It On Home is a truly special experience.
Opener Ashley Monroe — winner of Rushonrock’s 2021 Country Album Of The Year with the quite brilliant Rosegold — is due a break.
Managing — as she puts it — a rare form of blood cancer, the Knoxville native jumped at the chance to join some of her best mates on the Friends Of Mine tour.
And although a frustratingly brief seven-song set left the City Hall faithful craving more, it’s clear the sometime Pistol Annie is ready to launch a fresh offensive for the hearts and minds of her loyal UK fans.
Miranda Lambert co-write Heart Of Mine was spine tingling in its execution while love song Weed Instead Of Roses — requiring Monroe to remove her wedding ring to prevent any fretboard jarring — injected a welcome burst of humour.
With a new album incoming and plans to write with the Annies this autumn, could one of country music’s most exciting talents be on a Winning Streak? Watch this space.