Stoller Hall, Manchester
Friday, 30th August 2024
Rickie Lee Jones became an overnight sensation following the release of her debut, eponymous, album in 1979. Chuck E’s in Love, her jazz-influenced, toe-tapping, joyful first single, became an immediate hit and soon she was appearing on ‘Saturday Night Live’ and on the cover of Time magazine. The inspiration for her songs is her acute observations of the characters and situations that she finds herself in and she sings the life out of them making amazing use of her extraordinary vocal range. The jazz influences of her chosen bandmates ensured that her unique singing style was always to the fore whilst providing complementary and inventive musical settings for her lyrics.
The patronage of her contemporaries, including Tom Waits, Dr John, Lowell George and Randy Newman was reflective of the esteem in which she was held in the music community. Following up the first album with the superb and widely acclaimed Pirates seemed to put the ‘Duchess of Coolsville’ on the path to super-stardom. However, for various reasons, some personal and some professional, her journey in the music business turned out to be durable rather than stratospheric. By nature, she is experimental and her discography explores a wide range of artistic interests and influences, and her career continued largely out of the limelight with the exception of some memorable movie song moments and the occasional Australian number 1.
I, for one, lost track of her career after Pirates but those first two albums have always been brought out regularly and are still, after all these years, immensely enjoyable. A few years ago my interest was re-kindled when I got hold of the Duchess of Coolsville retrospective collection and realised that she had continued to release some great songs in her traditional style over the years. When I saw that she was appearing in Manchester I was absolutely bowled over for this once in a lifetime opportunity. It’s at this point I really should have done some homework, as it turns out that the Rickie Lee Jones that I knew then has grown into something just a little bit different. The clues were there, I know now, in 1995’s Naked Songs: Live and Acoustic, and even more up to date, in her Grammy award winning 2023 covers album Pieces of Treasure. Her chosen style now is as stripped back, and as laid back as can be, and her voice has aged in a way that only a chain smokers can.
On the night, the venue was full and expectations high when she walked onto the stage, to rapturous applause, with her two accompanists, Mike Dillon on percussion and Ben Rosenblum on piano and accordion. Unfortunately, she is also accompanied by a heavy cold and some technical issues with feedback that she will struggle with through the all too brief 60 minute-ish set. Whether it’s the cold, or a more general malaise bought on by a lifetime in rock’n’roll, the first couple of songs are a bit deflating.
Her guitar playing is exquisite but her voice barely registers and Mike and Ben have to dial down their contributions to provide some much-needed space. The pace at which the songs are delivered is painstaking and the effect is quite disorientating as I try to sing along, the original revved up versions of songs still playing in my mind. At the earliest opportunity she acknowledges the impact the cold is having but spreads some cheer with some self-deprecating humour. Chuck E’s in Love is third on the setlist and gets a great reception. It’s slightly more perky, but this is not what great memories are made from. There will be some extraordinary moments in the performance but they haven’t come yet. So far, a vibraphone solo and the marvellous sound of the grand piano have been the most notable aspects.
There is a half-hearted attempt to get some audience participation going in Love Is Gonna Bring Us Back Alive, from the 1989 Flying Cowboys album, but not many oblige. The atmosphere is actually not bad considering all the challenges, and thankfully after another amusing anecdote she introduces Altar Boy. Her voice appears to have warmed up and as soon as she delivers the iconic opening line ‘A monk with a hard on in a lavender robe’ we all, the audience and the band, realise why we are here.
Cry me a River is probably a step too far given the fragility of her voice this evening but a string of exceptional performances follows, starting with Last Chance Texaco. It notable now that the Ben, who was providing backing vocals, is now quiet, and Rickie Lee Jones is at last in her element. She moves over to the piano to give a wonderful rendition of Living it Up and a cover of Lowell George’s Long Distance Love. This is followed by Easy Money and Danny’s All Star Joint with Rickie back on guitar and so obviously loving being in the moment with songs that mean so much to her.
What turns out to be the last song is another cover, Hi-Lili Hi-Lo, a rather downbeat lament for which Ben Rosenblum provides an extraordinary accordion accompaniment. The three band members sidle off the stage without any fuss but within a few seconds the house lights come up and it is clear there won’t be a second half, or even an encore. The evening didn’t turn out as I hoped it would, but I was there, in the company of an icon, experiencing her kind of recital, on her terms, and I am truly grateful for that.
[Our thanks to Andrew Poutney – Shot In The Dark Photography for the live images used in this article. The photos originally shot for Louder Than War]
SETLIST
Weasel And The White Boys Cool
It Must Be Love
Chuck E’s In Love
Love Is Gonna Bring Us Back Alive
Altar Boy
The Last Chance Texaco
Cry Me A River (Julie London cover)
Living It Up
Long Distance Love (Lowell George cover)
Easy Money
Danny’s All Star Joint
Hi-Lili, Hi-Lo (Dinah Shore cover)
MUSICIANS
Rickie Lee Jones – Vocals, Guitar, Piano
Ben Rosenblum – Accordion, Piano, Backing Vocals
Mike Dillon – Drums, Percussion
LINKS
Rickie Lee Jones – Website | Facebook | YouTube | X | Instagram