Brandi Carlile on Cayamo.
1. Loud and Rich -Loud and Rich are better known as Loudon Wainwright and Richard Thompson, and this was a rare show as a duo. Who would have guessed that these wildly disparate players and personalities would meld so well? Their harmonies were terrific and their covers were inspired.
2. Brandi Carlile in all her incarnations – Glen Phillips calls her “the queen of the boat” with good reason. Her own dynamic sets and collaborations with the Indigo Girls, John Prine and Shawn Mullins energized the entire ship.
3. John Prine – Prine was the biggest draw on the ship and he delivered varied and entertaining sets through the first four days of the cruise.
4. Steve Earle – Last year, he played an acoustic set. This time around, he brought his band, including his wife Alison Moorer. These were great sets: passion and politics at high volume
5. Will Hoge – Too few people saw Hoge perform; he was consistently scheduled against fan favorites. He and his band were the closest thing to a rock band on the boat and provided a vibrant change of pace.
6. Richard Thompson solo – Thompson said this was his first solo show in many months, but the rust didn’t show. He played his best-known songs – “Wall of Death” and “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” among them – but sang “The Money Shuffle,” a jaunty new song attacking the world’s giant financial institutions with particular relish.
7. Songwriters in the round, featuring Dar Williams, Patti Griffin, Allison Moorer, Buddy Miller and Scott Miller – What better way to spend your early afternoon than listening to this talented line-up in an informal, acoustic setting?
8. Shawn Mullins and Chuck Cannon – Both performers were boat favorites, but there was a special dynamic when they played together.
9. Buddy Miller – This was billed as a solo show, but Patti Griffin sat in for much of the set. Buddy’s self-effacing approach and extraordinary guitar-playing made his shows special.
10. Larkin Poe – Rebecca and Megan Lovell are not old enough to drink in most states, but they have an extraordinary musical maturity. Larkin Poe (named after a great-great-great grandfather) is the successor to their earlier Lovell Sisters and features a fascinating melding of folk, bluegrass and rock. They were tireless performers on the cruise.
11. Colin Hay – Hay was the lead singer of Men at Work, and he sprinkled acoustic versions of his old band’s hits throughout his sets. He may have been the most talkative of performers, playing just three songs in the first 30 minutes of one of his shows. But that was fine. Hay is a great storyteller with an engaging stage presence, and his solo material was compelling.
And of course, all of this just scratches the surface. I heard estimates of more than 150 concerts over the span of the cruise, and regret not having seen more of Tyrone Wells, WPA, Sam and Ruby and a half-dozen more.
The Cayamo cruise is a singular experience for music fans, a floating festival of great performances. There’s nothing quite like it.