darrell scott

Darrell Scott was in concert tonight at Spirit Square in Charlotte. He did not perform "Long Time Gone" or "Hank Williams' Ghost", but he did offer a two and a half hour set that included an inspired collection of his songs, including "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive", "The River Is Me", "Full Light", a cover of "Satisfied Mind" (the Porter Waggoner classic, penned by Rhodes and Hayes), "It's A Great Day To Be Alive", and "Love's Not Through With Me". Our older daughter and I had heard him (and talked with him) at Merlefest last spring, and in fact he has been on the main stage there the last two years. This evening it was simply the artist and his instruments: piano, acoustic guitar, banjo, dobro, electric guitar. He is a virtuouso, and he seems to do everything well. Up close, he is an astonishingly skilled guitarist. It was also good to hear his "I'm Sticking My Redneck Out", a populist manifesto that calls forth the best of the southern tradition (King, Rosa Parks, and others). The McGlohan Theater at Spirit Square is a former church sanctuary and it was nice when Scott got into a riff of "I Surrender All" at some point in the evening. A really nice evening of roots music, just the artist, the instrument, the voice and the song. If you are curious, check out Darrell Scott on "Youtube".