Concert review: Joe Ely at the Mint in Los Angeles

By Terry Roland
-It’s been a long four-year stretch without a solo Joe Ely show in Los Angeles. Our drought ended November 17th as he and supporting instrumentalist, Jeff Plankenhorn, made a rare appearance at L.A.’s famous club, The Mint.

The capacity crowd was treated to a 90 minutes-plus show, which included a rich set of songs, old and new. While his Flatlander friends are country-folk singers, Joe Ely is a born rocker. His stage presence was dynamic, even while his performance style has become more relaxed over the years. His vocal skills, both live and on record, are full of character, presence and the kind of soul that can inhabit country ballads and raw-to-the bone rockers with equal conviction.

Featuring songs from his new album, including the title track “Satisfied At Last,” Ely took the audience on a journey through his song catalogue that demonstrated the breadth and depth of his songwriting and performing ability.

Switching between acoustic lead guitar and slide dobro, Plankenhorn brought the kind of instrumental magic to the songs one usually expects to hear from Ry Cooder or David Lindley. He is that good. The exchange between the two brought a spontaneous feeling to much of the instrumental work, the kind you’d expect to hear from good jazz or blues. But Ely can bring this sensibility to the stage.

As he opened with the poetic and lyrical song of modern America, “Not That Much Has Changed,” he seemed like a reflective philosopher speaking to us from the front porch of his Lubbock home.

Other songs from the new album speak to mortality, the impermanence of life and our restless dance with trying to find meaning amidst its risks and dangers.

On the gospel-like “You Can Bet I’m Gone,” he sings “When I die don’t toll no bells/Just put my ashes in some shotgun shells/Get all of my friends some windy day to say goodbye/Watch me blow away.”

In contrast, his interpretation of Billy Joe and Eddy Shaver’s “Live Forever,” is as clear-eyed a look at death and the certainty of immortality delivered with a sweet immediacy. The rest of the songs performed included old ones, “I Had My Hopes Up High,” classics like “Billy The Kid,” and nods to his Flatlander pals, including Butch Hancock’s “If You Were A Bluebird.”

What remains unique about Ely both on stage and on record is his voice and stage presence. He calls up the country soul of a balladeer like Marty Robbins or the raw energy of a Buddy Holly rocker, while his lyrics reflect the Texas literature of Larry McMurtry and Cormac McCarthy.

Hearing this produced on record is one thing, but experiencing him bringing these elements to the concert stage is quite another. Once you’ve seen him perform you know you’ve experienced something unique, original and legendary, much like those who influenced him. This was the experience last Thursday at The Mint in L.A., where the audience reluctantly let him leave the stage after two encores.