Review of Concert by the Peter Rowan & Tony Rice Quartet at the Lucy Opry on May 5, 2007

Review of Concert by the Peter Rowan & Tony Rice Quartet at the Lucy Opry on May 5, 2007

by Betty Westmoreland

No sooner was it announced in 2006 about the artists for the grand finale of the 2007 Pickin’ Picnic, than bluegrass fans put it on their calendars and made arrangements to get tickets for May 5, 2007. The Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) and the Lucy Opry combine forces each year to provide two days of free picking and performances by local bluegrass bands. The highlight of the picnic is the act which is booked to close the event. BPACC and the Lucy Opry completely outdid themselves this year with the incredible talents of the Peter Rowan & Tony Rice Quartet. The Memphis bluegrass music community owes a debt of gratitude to BPACC’s Ron Jewell and the Lucy Opry’s Will and Beth Mays.

Each of the performers has a deep background of family music and performance in legendary bands dating back to the 1960s and earlier. In fact, both men come out of family bands: The Rowan Brothers and the Rice Brothers. When two stellar musicians come together, as Peter Rowan and Tony Rice did in 2004 for their first duo release, the results are not merely “one plus one equals two.” Oh, no. It’s more like “one plus one equals a thousand!” You Were There for Me coupled Peter Rowan’s incredible vocal styling and songwriting skills with the fleet fingers of Tony Rice in his unique flat-picking style. There is only one Peter Rowan, and certainly there is but one Tony Rice!

With the release of their second album, Quartet, the two artists set about to showcase Rowan’s original songs and to reach beyond the bounds of strictly bluegrass material. Each performer stretched to explore his own musical soul—Rowan, with a range of compositions; Rice, with his incredible ability to do things on a guitar that just do not seem possible. When Peter Rowan begins to sing, the listener knows immediately who it is. The same is true of Tony Rice—with the first note, the listener knows. Tony Rice has vocal problems which have left him unable to sing and to speak only in a low, rather gravelly whisper. Listeners who have earlier recordings of Rice with Ricky Skaggs and with the Bluegrass Album Band know perfectly well what a loss that is.

Audiences who have followed Peter Rowan know of his feel for the Native Americans of the Southwest. His vocal arrangements transport the listener to a time when bison roamed the Great Plains and the Navajo and other tribes had a better time of it than they do in the present day. The emotion in Rowan’s voice comes through in a haunting manner, reminding one of the spirits of the American West.

Tony Rice pays tribute to one of his favorite artists, the late Clarence White, through his ownership and performance on the guitar once owned by Clarence White. Make no mistake—the 1935 Martin D-28 is NOT “Clarence White’s guitar,” as some have referred to the instrument with its famous enlarged sound hole. Tony Rice acquired the guitar in 1975, two years after White’s death in an accident caused by a drunk driver. It is Tony Rice’s guitar, and what a sound it has! While ‘the’ mandolin may have belonged to Bill Monroe, ‘the’ guitar in bluegrass music today belongs to Tony Rice. The instrument is in the right hands.

Completing the quartet for the performance at the Pickin’ Picnic were vocalist/bassist Katherine Popper and vocalist/mandolin player Sharon Gilchrist. The usual bass player in the Quartet is Bryn Bright, who did not appear at the BPACC/Lucy Opry performance. Popper and Gilchrist also have rich backgrounds in musical training and band experience. The reader may wish to read about each performer’s experience at her MySpace site. Sharon Gilchrist is from Texas and began her career with Blue Night Express. She has also performed with Martie and Emily Erwin. Peter Rowan first heard her in Colorado, jamming with the all-girl group, Uncle Earl. Gilchrist and Popper added the necessary spark and vocal richness to the program. They know their craft.

Set 1

Dust Bowl Children (Rowan featured on guitar, his now-legendary tune)
To Live Is to Fly (songwriter, Townes Van Zandt)
Panama Red (another song for which Rowan is known)
Just an Old Hobo (Rowan and Gilchrist featured)
Walls of Time (Rowan featured)
Shady Grove (Rice featured on this instrumental)
Land of the Navajo (Rowan and Gilchrist featured)

Set 2

1. What Do You Really Want (Rowan with kerchief around neck with silver concho, comments that he started to play Free Mexican Air Force but changed his mind)

2. Sunny Side of the Mountain (Carter Family song in tribute to the legendary Jimmy Martin)

3. Free Mexican Air Force (Rowan featured, free-wheeling style)

4. In the Pines (featured Rowan and Gilchrist)

5. Salt Creek (instrumental, featured Sharon Gilchrist on mandolin)

6. Let the Harvest Go to Seed

7. I’m Knockin’ on Your Door Again My Darlin’ (Rowan broke a string)

Encore: Jimmy Brown the Newsboy (a Kodak moment occurred when Tony Rice brought out ‘the’ guitar for Rowan to play; Rice then went offstage to restring Rowan’s guitar)

Second Encore: Midnight Moonlight (featured Rowan and Gilchrist in another tune which Rowan made famous)

This writer and the other members of the sold-out audience were completely smitten with the Peter Rowan & Tony Rice Quartet. Rowan tickled our funny bones with stories about being a Blue Grass Boy out on the road with Bill Monroe. He took the time to weave the tale of Elvis Presley’s version of Blue Moon of Kentucky. When asked if he minded about Presley’s version of the song, Bill replied, “Them were powerful checks!” Most audience members never knew that when Bill and Charlie Monroe parted ways, they divided up the country, with Charlie taking the money, along with the Eastern sector to perform in, and Bill taking the car and the Western portion. Bill even went so far as to camp out in Memphis at a state park, where he did his auditioning and hiring of potential Blue Grass Boys.

Any time a concert-goer wishes that the concert would never end, it’s a good concert. When he or she is treated to the music of some of the finest musicians in bluegrass music, it’s an even better concert. The concert by the Peter Rowan & Tony Rice Quartet was one of the finest ever in these parts. It was worth the wait!