It was a last minute decision. But I’m glad I went.
Tonight, I went to see Sam Baker with special guest Rodney Crowell at Riverside Revival in East Nashville. What a great show!
I went alone but wound up sharing a table with another Rodney Crowell camper and musical artist, Lucia Comnes.
First, I was not very familiar with Sam Baker. But I’m glad to have seen him now. His style is unique. He reminds me a bit of Tom Waits. He doesn’t sound like Tom Waits but he’s created a style that’s one of a kind. It’s more on the country side of the spectrum than Waits. His writing is both heartfelt and quirky. His performance is sparse and emotional. I’ll be looking into more of his work.
Sam and Rodney traded songs and stories for about two and a half hours.
Rodney, as usual, put on a great show. He played some of his classics. He played a couple of songs he wrote with Guy Clark. And he played a classic Townes Van Zandt song, No Place to Fall.
I’ve been to two Rodney Crowell song camps, in 2022 and 2023. And there’s something that Rodney does that I’ve never seen anyone else do. He watches other songwriters with complete intention and respect. When Sam played, Rodney turned and watched him through each and every song entirely. And that reminded me that Rodney does the same thing at his song camps. He listens to each song fully and intentionally, even if the writer is a beginner who can’t play an instrument or sing in key. There’s something gracious about that.
In an earlier article about my experience at Rodney’s song camps, I said that Rodney surrounds himself with people that are as or more talented than himself. That remains true. Baker is on par with Rodney. I love that the show was billed as Sam Baker (with special guest Rodney Crowell). Again, it shows a kind of graciousness as Rodney is clearly the better-known name.
In the end, the entire audience sang the Beatles, Get By With a Little Help from My Friends. Then Lucia and I went and said hi to Sam and Rodney and some of the other musicians, including Tim Lorsch, who did some great fiddle work throughout the show. And I finally broke down and got my photo with Rodney. I’ve avoided that in the past, because I didn’t want to be one of “those people.” I guess now I am one. – dse
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