Tin Pan South: Peter Yarrow, Roger Cook, Larry Weiss, Michael McDermott

One of the opening shows on opening night of Tin Pan South in Nashville featured three songwriters with some of the best copyrights in popular music.  Roger Cook, Peter Yarrow, Larry Weiss and Michael McDermott showcased their catalogs at the Listening Room Café.

McDermott acknowledged that he was the poorest of the four and the only one without a monster hit.  A little self-deprecation is helpful when you’re sandwiched between Peter Yarrow doing his “Puff the Magic Dragon” and  the always entertaining Roger Cook performing a ukulele version of his Hollies hit “Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress.)” Still, McDermott proved to be the most dynamic performer.

Weiss kept the crowd waiting for something familiar until late in the set, finally performing a mini-medley of “Bend Me Shape Me” (a hit for the American Breed) and “Help Me Girl,” an underrated 1966 single from Eric Burdon and the Animals. Weiss saved “Rhinestone Cowboy” for a crowd-pleasing finale.