Before the gig

Poor Spokes has been very poorly with a nasty flu-type thing (I'm not a medical professional...) for the last 10 days or so, mostly confined to bed apart from a couple of visits to the doctor. I've had a less severe version of the same thing and was worried that neither of us would be up to going out to see the wonderful Steve Earle play a solo gig tonight.

So, imagine my delight when I got a text from Spokes this afternoon saying she'd turned a corner and was going to make the gig after all! Having dosed myself up with anti coughy/sniffy stuff I met her down by the docks and was thrilled to find her looking radiant and once again able to laugh without coughing!

The show itself was great and Steve was on chatty form throughout. I took a bunch of pictures of him but, much as I love him, this shot of Spokes won out blip-wise! I did blip him last year though... And I've added a shot from tonight's gig here if you simply must see him again!

For me, the most moving moment of the gig was the encore when Steve spoke at length about his recent project working with Israeli and Palestinian musicians in Jerusalem (a film about the collaboration is due out in January) and the need to keep believing in the possibility of a peaceful and dignified resolution to the on-going tragedy in that region. He then played a spine-tingling version of this before segueing into a foot stomping Guitar Town.

Other highlights? The Devil's Right Hand, Taneytown, Copperhead Road, I Feel Alright, My Old Friend The Blues, the obligatory Beatles cover - You've Got to Hide Your Love Away - and a very moving rendition of Goodbye, dedicated to Emmylou Harris's mother who died yesterday.