Review: Todd Snider

 

It takes a lot for one guy with nothing but a guitar to command a big room, especially when he's not wearing shoes. But that's what Todd Snider did Wednesday night, inside a casino no less.

About 400 people showed up at the VooDoo Lounge to sit and listen to Snider deliver about 90-minutes of material that, technically, is songwriting but comes off more as commentary and storytelling set to blues rhythms or folk melodies or both.

A large majority of the crowd was male, but a signficant minority were ladies, who turned out to be the kinds of ladies who wouldn't be caught incognito at a Jewel concert. Instead, they'd rather jive with the barefoot man with a thousand cunning, clever and comedic turns of phrases and three dozen points of view. And the dancing blond in the front row wasn't the only lady in the place singing along to his sometimes-complicated lyrics.

Snider spent the night busking, except he wasn't playing for pocket change; all the paying customers had dropped $25 before they took their seats. They got their money's worth.

His lyrics are his forte. Snider can be as sharp, bright, funny and poetic as anyone: John Prine, Robert Earl Keene, Lyle Lovett, Kris Kristofferson, even, at times, Dylan. And it's hard not to wonder why he isn't as well-known as some of those guys. I bet he wonders the same thing.

Snider is not merely a populist poet nor a novel comic nor a political commentator or a folkie on a soap box. He writes in parody and irony, usually with subtley but sometimes with force. "Ballad of the Kingsmen," for example, is a humorous take on "Louie, Louie" and Marilyn Manson but it's also one of the best songs ever written about how music doesn't incite violence or bigotry or even a wayward kid's bad grades. It was a highlight Wednesday night.

And "Talkin' Seattle Grunge Rock Blues" is a rambling, amusing story about a band that became a raging fad by not performing --  they were silent, "music's original alternative" -- only to be rendered obsolete by a band that was never together. But it's also pointed commentary on fleeting fame and fortune in our fad-chasing pop culture. It was a highlight, too. This crowd knew both of those but it got craziest for "Beer Run" and "Alright Guy."

He ended with his slow-burning cover of John Fogerty's "Fortunate Son," then with one of his own: "Looking For a Job." That one's about a guy who's in no mood to take any shit from his boss because he knows his labor is worth more than the job itself: "I don't need the work like you need the job done."

Snider wrote that one three years ago, which is why it sounds outdated today, considering the economy. His opener was a more appropriate closer: "We’re all lost in space, racing the moon / Climbin’ the walls of this hurricane / Still overall, I guess I can’t complain ..."

That was the mood in the VooDoo on Wednesday, thanks to the man in the hat but no shoes.

| Timothy Finn, The Star 
 

Setlist: Can't Complain; D.B. Cooper; Ballad of the Kingsmen; Stuck on the Corner (Prelude to a Heart Attack); America's Favorite Pasttime; Tillamook County Jail; Talkin' Seattle Rock Grunge Blues; Beer Run; Hey, Hey; Ballad of the Devil's Backbone Tavern; Easy Money; Alright Guy; Play A Train Song; Missing You; Tension; (Tony Bennett song); Incarcerated; ... American Males. Encore: Fortunate Son; Looking For A Job.

Comments

[Mike A]

Did the Royals folks give him a jersey?

[kcmom]

I thought I saw you at the show, Tim! Glad you could make it and thanks for the great review! It was my first time seeing Todd and it was a very interesting evening! He's a very unique entertainer (as your review captured so well).

And for Mike A...I was sitting fairly close to the front, left side of the floor, and at one point, before the show started, I saw a group of people walk past the bar on my left and through a door--one of them was carrying a blue Royals jersey with "Snider" on the back. So I assume he got it; I was kind of hoping for an onstage "presentation" but maybe Todd's not an onstage-presentation kind of guy.

[Nivek9]

Not much to add to that. Great show, great crowd. Can't wait to see him again. That was really fun.

[Tim Finn]

It was the best "evening with / solo acoustic" show I've ever seen. That story about Slash was hilarious.

[Nivek9]

That's high praise indeed Tim. And it was that good! Thanks for reminding us about that story. :-)

"take it easy man..."

[pellboy]

Didn't make it last night but love Todd. Nice setlist and thanks for the review, TF.

[DF]

Did anyone take photos from the show? We'd like to use them in Saturday's paper if so. Send pictures to showtime@kcstar.com.

Thanks.

David Frese
Deputy Features Editor

[VinceM]

Great review. Definitely one of the finest nights of music I can remember. It was even better than his Granada show last Feb. If there's a better songwriter around, I haven't seen him yet.

[BB]

The show was really, really good.
I wish the asshole in the audience did not yell out, "quit talking and sing." The stories along with the music are brilliant. And he looked so handsome in his tie and cardigan. I wonder what pin he was wearing?

[onthemark]

For those fans who appreciate the traveling troubador, singer/song writer, I recommend you check out Tom Russell next he comes through town. Very talented writer, and he sets stories to music. Not as comedic as Todd, but impressive nonetheless.

[Pat Shea]

I was really hopin for Play an Train Song. Hearing it live reminded me of the line from the Boss "We learnt more from a three-minute record than we ever did in school." Friendship, spontaneity, independence, love, death, and trains...all in just a couple of minutes. Who doesn't hear "Marlboro Reds" and know exactly what he means?

Todd achieved perfection with that one.

$25? A steal!