Ray Wylie Hubbard
By Paul T. Mueller — While a church is not necessarily the first place you’d expect to see Ray Wylie Hubbard performing, it does make sense in a way. The Oklahoma-bred singer-songwriter has been called the Wylie Lama, after all, and there’s a certain mystical/spiritual thread that runs through many of his songs. So it’s fitting that he was chosen to kick off “Songs of Lovin’ and Redemption,” a free concert series that began Feb. 20 at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Houston.
The series was put together by the Rev. Patrick J. Miller and the Rev. Eric P. Hungerford, the church’s rector and associate rector, respectively. According to Hungerford, it was designed as a gift to fans of Texas singer-songwriters and also as a way to get people thinking about the themes of love and redemption during the weeks leading up to Easter.
Accompanied by drummer Kyle Schneider, Hubbard was apparently untroubled by the less-than-optimal sound system in the church’s beautifully renovated sanctuary (to be fair, it’s no doubt an excellent venue for music of a more sacred nature). The two performed a 14-song, 90-minute set that showcased Hubbard’s excellent harmonica and guitar playing (with and without slide) and gritty vocals, and Schneider’s fine percussion, all in service of Hubbard’s iconoclastic songs. A couple of selections came from last year’s The Grifter’s Hymnal: the antiwar “Red Badge of Courage” and the rock ‘n’ roll memoir “Mother Blues” (“I’m going to see how far I can push this,” Hubbard said by way of introducing the latter).
Other highlights, interspersed with funny stories, included “Without Love,” a quiet, beautiful anthem; “Loco Gringo’s Lament,” a cautionary tale about the perils of fast living; “Snake Farm,” as always a sing-along (and the first song Hubbard sang after announcing, “That’s all the nice songs I know”); and “Mississippi Flush,” a gambling tale played at the request of an audience member. He closed with “The Messenger,” which he prefaced with a story about overcoming his apprehension and belatedly learning to finger-pick when he was in his 40s. The song mentions Townes Van Zandt and poet Rainer Marie Rilke, quoting the latter: “Our fears are like dragons/Guarding our most precious treasures.”
Other artists scheduled for the series include Houston singer-songwriter Shake Russell on Feb. 20, legendary honky-tonker Billy Joe Shaver on March 6, Sara Hickman (former Official State Musician of Texas) on March 13, and San Marcos-based singer-songwriter Terri Hendrix on March 20.
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