Bonnie Raitt made waiting through the pandemic worthwhile.
Playing at the Orpheum Theatre Saturday night, she reminded us why live music is so important and why you can’t take magic moments for granted – or embrace them through a cellphone video.
Offering up plenty from her new album, “Just Like That,” including a nice chunk from “Nick of Time,” and singing a couple of memory songs, she brought plenty into focus and led us to believe she could be back in the Grammy hunt.
The title cut, inspired by a woman who was about to meet the recipient of her late son’s heart, captured so much of the pain, hurt – and hope – we’ve been feeling, it emerged as something more than others have produced during the past three years. Other songs – “Made Up Mind” and “Living for the Ones” – combine to paint a picture that we couldn’t.
Paired with “Angel From Montgomery,” a song Raitt has been performing with the late John Prine, and, well, you got a very succinct look at the way emotions can manifest.
Luckily, Raitt had those upbeat hits like “Something to Talk About” to keep the night from becoming a “what was.” She was good at bantering, too, and putting everything in context. A Ukrainian flag represented her support for the people of that war-torn country; a screen with what looked like a vast sky at various times of day, set the scene for everything.
She talked about old friends that were no longer around, dished about a new venue that looked like it was made out of “Flintstones rocks” and admitted “Blame It on Me” was one of her favorites from the new album.
Her voice was still just as touching as always; her guitar ability was sharper than ever.
Her choice of openers, too, was pretty darn good. Veteran Mavis Staples, she said, was an inspiration.
At 83, Staples was more than that. A force (that’s the easiest way to describe her), she sang like she was bringing the whole Staples Family on stage. On “This Is My Country,” she cut through all the talking-heads nonsense and put the nation’s divide into perspective. On “I’m Just Another Soldier,” she dug deep and pulled out that rasp that made breastbones rattle.
When a fly started buzzing around her, Staples tried to swat it away but couldn’t. After the song was over, she said, “That shows I still got it,” and burst into laughter. “That was the biggest fly I’ve ever seen.” Sioux City would be known as the place where “giant flies are swarming around the artist.”
After “My Country,” Staples said, “I just might run for president.” If Saturday’s crowd was an indication, she’d win in a landslide. She did plenty of her family’s songs (Staples music has been around for 74 years) and closed with “I’ll Take You There,” a classic that was about as perfect as an opening act could get.
Raitt picked up the baton and continued the charge, winning plenty of admirers for that new album and a place for herself in the business as someone who remembers the past but builds for the future.
Another Grammy for Raitt’s shelf? Bank on it. Saturday’s concert was a down payment.
Bruce Miller is editor of the Sioux City Journal. He has covered entertainment for more than 40 years and teaches newswriting at Briar Cliff University. In 2023, Miller was named a Master Editor-Publisher by the Iowa Newspaper Association. In addition, he has won more than 100 first place awards from state and national press organizations. Also in 2023, he was named Man of Excellence by Women Aware.
At first I wasn’t planning to go see Bonnie Raitt and Mavis Staples at Overture Hall on Tuesday night. I’ve seen both of them before, didn’t really know their new albums, it was a Tuesday night. The usual excuses.
But then those videos of Joni Mitchell singing at the Newport Folk Festival started circulating Monday morning. Mitchell suffered a brain aneurysm in 2015, and I assumed I’d never hear her sing again, let alone sing so beautifully.
It was a reminder to treasure the legends while they’re still with us. There’s no particular reason to think Raitt, 72, or Staples, 83, won’t still be around for a while to come (“This won’t be the last you hear from me,” Staples expressly said at the end of her opening set. “I’ll be back.”) But, especially after going without live music for a long stretch recently, you don’t want to be the one who missed your last chance at a transcendent musical moment because it was a Tuesday night, right?
The Overture show provided many such moments, with both artists still working at the height of their powers as performers. Staples, a gospel and blues icon, took the stage with what can only be described as swagger, shimmying and belting out both classics (“I’ll Take You There”) and strong recent material. “Loosen your seatbelts,” she exhorted the audience. “You need to get loose like a bowl of Jell-O.”
Backed by a tight band in steel gray suits, Staples captivated the crowd whether she was doing a gospel rave-up like “Hand Writing on the Wall” or an act of consolation and empathy like the stirring “You’re Not Alone.” She marshaled her energy wisely, taking breaks on a stool and sipping tea during guitar solos, and kidded herself when she momentarily forgot which song to do next. “That’s why I have these youngsters on stage with me, to tell me what I’m good for.”
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Staples’ sees performing music as an act of kindness and fellowship, and her joyful spirit was irresistible. That generosity of spirit carried over when Raitt took the stage later, brimming with happiness at being able to play anywhere, but especially in Madison.
She told the crowd that she enjoyed getting away from the “bigger cities with the big reviewers” (ouch, Bonnie) and playing a place like Madison, where it felt like she was among friends. That was literally true, as she shouted out old compatriots like Madison jazz great Ben Sidran and Milwaukee roots icon Paul Cebar in the audience.
The magic of a Raitt concert is how she chats and jokes with an audience between songs, like we all have our feet up at the lake house together, then dive so deep into the emotion of a song like “Nick of Time” or “I Can’t Make You Love Me” that you wonder how she’s ever emerge.
To the pantheon of great Raitt songs she added a few new ones from her 2022 album “Just Like That” (no relation to the “Sex and the City” reboot). They included the aching title track and “Livin’ For the Ones,” a timely midtempo rocker about dealing with survivor’s guilt.
But the showstopper, as always, was Raitt’s cover of John Prine’s “Angel from Montgomery.” It’s a song she’s performed for nearly a half a century, but only now has to do in Prine’s absence (the singer-songwriter died from COVID in 2021). That loss added an extra weight to Raitt’s evocation of a lonely old woman. As the crowd burst from their seats at the end of the song, Raitt stood there, head bowed, eyes closed, as if willing Prine to feel their love through her. It was, yes, a transcendent moment.
The only disappointment of the night was that Staples and Raitt, who have been friends since they worked on a Pops Staples solo album decades ago, never took the stage together. But, after seeing two legends in fine form separately, the only proper emotion was gratitude.
An average person will live 2.2 billion seconds in their lifetime — and in just one of them, everything can change. It’s one of life’s great mysteries that gave Bonnie Raitt pause while writing her latest masterpiece, “Just Like That …”
“I know the word unprecedented gets used a lot lately, but there’s never been a five- to six-year period in my life as devastating as this,” said Raitt, reflecting on the many topical influences behind her 21st album.
The 10-song stunner was released in April on Redwing Records, around the time Raitt was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Recording Academy as well as the Icon Award at Billboard’s Women of the Year 2022 ceremony, recognizing the illustrious 50-year career of a renegade who showed a woman could slay a guitar and write a song as well as her touring mentors and contemporaries like Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and James Taylor. She remains one of music’s greatest crossover artists who has blurred the lines of blues, rock and pop.
Of course, the pandemic, elections, Black Lives Matter and climate change all weighed heavily on Raitt as the “Just Like That …” material was germinating. They’re issues that often have concerned the 72-year-old artist-activist, as evidenced through her fundamental work with MUSE (Musicians United for Safe Energy), Vote For Change and various social justice causes advocating for women, Native Americans and Black creators.
BONNIE RAITT
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday Where: Ravinia, 201 Ravinia Park Rd., Highland Park Tickets: $38+
Yet, in spite of all the downtrodden news, Raitt also saw some silver linings. Like Mr. Rogers used to say, she “looked for the helpers.” And when Raitt found them, she wrote about them, uncovering the story of two families impacted by organ donation that evolved into the title track for the new album, and the story of a prison hospice program that inspired “Down the Hall.”
“These stories moved me so much. I just burst into tears and realized how aching I was for some heart-blasting, uplifting stories of love and action,” said Raitt.
Recently, she also was dealt a number of personal losses (an experience shared on the song “Livin’ for the Ones”) including the passing of friend John Prine after a battle with COVID. The poignant “Angel From Montgomery” — Prine’s song that Raitt recorded for her 1974 album “Streetlights” — is one she still loves to play nearly every show, and its style influenced the storyteller narrative on “Just Like That …”
“I wanted to go back and sing other people’s stories, not just always take from my own life,” Raitt shared, even though her confessionals like “I Can’t Make You Love Me” are still some of her most prized.
As she offers the songs live, another artistic hero of Raitt’s will be part of the celebration, with Chicago’s Mavis Staples guesting at her Ravinia show on Wednesday.
“Mavis has meant so much to me because of her inspirational political stance as well as her spiritual guidance, positivity and unbelievably funky voice,” she explained.
Raitt and Jackson Browne worked with Pops Staples on one of his solo albums, and she and Mavis quickly became “soul sisters.” The relationship was further edified when The Staple Singers received the Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation, an organization Raitt helped co-found in the ’80s to reconcile better royalties and more recognition for early R&B pioneers who were often overshadowed and undercompensated.
“We have to rectify the unfairness and institutionalized racism in the case of rhythm and blues, jazz and soul artists who are still alive and their descendants,” said Raitt. It continues to be an important cause in her career that has let her use her voice in multiple ways, still ever-thankful that 30 years ago she had her own “Just Like That” moment that changed everything.
“It was 1990 when I won three Grammys for ‘Nick Of Time,’ ” said Raitt, remembering the circumstances of her commercial breakthrough album that sold 5 million copies and catapulted her to stardom after being an underground artist for almost 20 years. This year, the Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry.
“I was not expecting the response. It really meant so much to me and lifted up other people too. I got letters from artists in their 40s and older saying, ‘I’m going to give it another shot. If you can break through maybe I can too.’ ”
And with so many of her contemporaries still going strong, Raitt reflected, “There’s tremendous creativity that’s happening in your 60s, 70s and 80s. It’s not your grandparents’ 70s, I can tell you that much.”
Bandana Blues is and will always be a labor of love. Please help Spinner deal with the costs of hosting & bandwidth. Visit www.bandanablues.com and hit the tipjar. Any amount is much appreciated, no matter how small. Thank you.
Bonnie has contributed a new recording of "Prison Bound Blues" written by Leroy Carr to a project called Better Than Jail, an extraordinary new album benefiting Free Hearts and Equal Justice USA. Better Than Jail is available everywhere today and features covers of iconic prison songs from Steve Earle, Taj Mahal,Margo Price, The War and Treaty and many more. The album seeks to raise awareness and support for the urgent need to reduce the harm of the criminal justice system. https://found.ee/BetterThanJail.
I'm so proud to have joined in with so many illustrious artists in creating this very special album in support of rural prison reform. Overlooked for far too long, this issue cuts across all cultural and political divides and deserves all our focused attention to finally bring about some swift and meaningful action. Better Than Jail is one of the most inspired and heartfelt albums I've been blessed to be a part of and I hope it sets a fire in hearts far and wide to join in our efforts." ~ Bonnie Raitt
Released on: 2024-10-04 Executive Producer: Brian Hunt Producer: Kenny Greenberg Producer: Wally Wilson Producer: Bonnie Raitt Recording Engineer: Jason Lehning at Sound Emporium Mastering Engineer: Alex McCollough at True East Mastering Production Assistant: Shannon Finnegan Mixer: Justin Niebank at Hounds Ear Music Publisher: Universal Music Corp. Composer, Lyricist: Leroy Carr ℗ Believe Entertainment Group and Wyatt Road Records
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The Fabulous Thunderbirds - Nothing in Rambling Ft. Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal, Keb' Mo' & Mick Fleetwood
In celebration of the band’s 50th Anniversary, The Fabulous Thunderbirds have just released Struck Down, their first studio album in eight years on Stony Plain Records. The ten-track album includes a wonderful cover of Memphis Minnie’s “Nothing in Rambling,” featuring longtime friends, T-Birds founding member Kim Wilson, along with Bonnie, Keb’ Mo’, Taj Mahal and Mick Fleetwood. — BRHQ
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Little Feat - Long Distance Call
“I’ve always loved Little Feat and this new incarnation of the band is bringing some serious heat, cred and new blood to their enduring legacy. Every Feat fan loves us some Sam. I’m so glad he’s now gotten a chance to step out front and center and put his spin on these wonderful blues songs. I loved singing "Long Distance Call" with him, always one of my favorites, and Scott slayed on slide. Know you’ll enjoy hanging out with us at Sam’s Place!" -- Bonnie Raitt
“Long Distance Call” was written by blues legend, Muddy Waters. It has Sam Clayton and Bonnie Raitt on vocals, Scott Sharrard on Dobro, Fred Tackett on acoustic guitar, Tony Leone on drums, and Michael “The Bull” LoBue on harmonica. The album also features Bill Payne on piano and Kenny Gradney on bass.
Little Feat have composed an album that’s their love letter to the blues entitled, ‘Sam’s Place.’ “Long Distance Call” plus many other blues classics are on this album. You can stream and order ‘Sam’s Place’ here: https://orcd.co/samsplace
Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows: Songs of John Prine, Vol. 2, the anticipated new John Prine tribute record from Oh Boy Records, is out today. Stream/purchase HERE.
Created as a celebration of Prine’s life and career, the album features new renditions of some of Prine’s most beloved songs performed by Brandi Carlile (“I Remember Everything”), Tyler Childers (“Yes I Guess They Oughta Name A Drink After You”), Iris DeMent (“One Red Rose”), Emmylou Harris (“Hello In There”), Jason Isbell (“Souvenirs”), Valerie June (“Summer’s End”), Margo Price (“Sweet Revenge”), Bonnie Raitt (“Angel From Montgomery”), Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats (“Pretty Good”), Amanda Shires (“Saddle in the Rain”), Sturgill Simpson(“Paradise”) and John Paul White (“Sam Stone”). Proceeds from the album will benefit twelve different non-profit organizations, one selected by each of the featured artists.
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Bonnie Raitt - Write Me a Few of Your Lines/Kokomo Blues
60 years anniversary celebration of Arhoolie
December 10, 2020
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Arhoolie Foundation celebrates it's 60th anniversary (1960-2020) with an online broadcast.
Bonnie Raitt - Shadow of Doubt
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival
October 3, 2020
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass celebrates it's 20th anniversary with an online broadcast titled “Let The Music Play On”.
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Bonnie Raitt & Boz Scaggs - You Don't Know Like I Know
Farm Aid 2020 On the Road
Sam & Dave classic written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter.
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Sheryl Crow & Bonnie Raitt - Everything Is Broken
[Eric Clapton’s Crossroads 2019]
Eric Clapton, one of the world’s pre-eminent blues/rock guitarists, once again summoned an all-star team of six-string heroes for his fifth Crossroads Guitar Festival in 2019. Held at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, the two-day concert event raised funds for the Crossroads Centre in Antigua, the chemical dependency treatment and education facility that Clapton founded in 1998.
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'A Tribute To Mose Allison'
Celebrates The Music Of An Exciting Jazz Master
Raitt contributed to a new album, If You're Going To The City: A Tribute To Mose Allison, which celebrates the late singer and pianist, who famously blended the rough-edged blues of the Mississippi Delta with the 1950s jazz of New York City.
NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro talks to Bonnie Raitt about her friendship with the Mose Allison. They're also joined by Amy Allison — his daughter, who executive produced the album — about selecting an unexpected list of artists to contribute songs to the album.
Recorded on tour June 3, 2017 - Centennial Hall, London - Ontario Canada
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