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January 10, 2007 @ The Basement—PAUL BURCH with JON LANGFORD Wednesday January 10, 2007 was a great night at the Basement. I arrived at 9pm sharp to catch the Paul Burch show, and to my surprise the "early show" (which I discovered was a benefit show for a local woman needing a kidney transplant) was winding up. On stage performing was bass player Victor Wooten (Bela Fleck and the Flecktones), followed by Nashville favorite Will Kimbrough. Kimbrough performed two songs to close the early show, ending with a poignant performance of "Goodnight Moon." The room was quite full from this early benefit show, and while Jon Langford's band set-up, the room emptied to only ¼ full. Langford is from the UK, but often sounds more Irish than British. Langford's performance was part The Clash, part The Kinks, part Irish pub music, and part recent Elvis Costello. All of these influences tossed together in a rock-a-billy salad captures the vibe of Jon Langford. Langford's lyrics often jab at current political situations, as well as the current state of country music in the USA (or Nashville). He appeared quite comfortable onstage and bantered with the audience between every song. Boisterous and affable, Langford had the audience laughing and singing, and by the end of his set everybody in the room was feeling something that I can only describe as, well, happy. Paul Burch provided the drumming for Langford during the hour-long set. Burch's drumming was "in the pocket" and after listening to his own set that followed I am convinced that Burch is the real-life Harry Potter—a wizard.
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