Show Review – Chris Nathan – Blue Bar, Nashville, TN – May 28, 2011

13 years ago Liv Carter 4

Sometimes you just have to break with convention. While Nashville is known for country music, it is home to many musical genres. Over the past few months, everyone who spent more than half an hour in my presence has heard about Chris Nathan. I have been trying to find an excuse to write about him here until I realized I didn’t need one. (I did previously sneak in a mention) His material is so far removed from what I mostly listen to that, if I love it this much, I know there are many others with whom this R&B/soul/funk/rock/etc will resonate. If I could I’d literally shout off the rooftops about these songs. It may not be much but I can at least shout off the rooftop of this small music news platform!

Last night, May 28, Chris returned to Nashville’s Blue Bar. The long delay at the start was more than made up for with the most passionate performance I have seen here. Starting out with a solo acoustic set, Chris played some new songs of which particularly ‘When’ (heartwrenching!) and ‘Ain’t that Just Like You’ caught my attention. The latter is how you write a love song. Cliché-free and with an irresistible groove! And it is proof that you don’t need to sacrifice poetry if you don’t go the sappy love song route: you shame the moon/but ain’t that just like you/to go and make a fool of all the stars. Another new song, ‘It Comes Natural’, which I had heard before, is a radio hit just waiting for a chance.

Chris was joined by his band for the remainder of the show. They kicked off with ‘Sugarcane’ which really sits in a musical genre all by itself. Southern R&B country soul maybe? Older songs ‘Bonnie & Clyde’, ‘Spin’, ‘Words’ and ‘Happy’ were joined by a few covers. Watching Chris take on ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ is an experience! It also allowed for a demonstration of how in-tune these players are. When Chris called for a “CD fade ending”, the band never skipped a beat and accompanied his increasingly softer vocals. The same thing happened when he guided them into an improv tempo change in the middle of a song. Impressive. Special mention goes to Jimmy Hendricks (yes, really) who is an incredibly accomplished bass player.

Among more new songs sat ‘Buy the Good Life’. Another future radio hit judging by the audience reaction. The song is another display of some great songwriting. I am just a sucker for those creative additive and assonance rhymes! Chris’s incredible energy (if there is such a thing as spontaneous combustion, I think he got close to it!) had worked its way into the room by this point. Covers of Bob Marley‘s ‘Exodus’ and 2Pac‘s ‘California Love’ had the place dancing, including some people who had arrived early for the DJ party following the live show but left as new Chris Nathan fans. They had seen an incredible performance and I really don’t have a vocabulary wide enough to accurately describe what this show was like. Near the end of all this, one of Chris’s guitar strings called it quits (Almost understandably. I mean, the poor things!). I am still surprised the bar’s windows stayed in place. ‘Sunshine & Alcohol’, a song with the ability to lift me out of even the darkest mood, closed out the night and we could all head to the bar to go process what we had just witnessed.

One thing I will never tire of is watching people get reeled in by great songs. A trio of girls near me went from talking about boyfriends to directing all their attention to the stage. We ended up in conversation following the show and they tried to classify what they had just heard. One of them remarked that “it’s not really R&B, I don’t know what to call it. What genre is this?”. My response: “This isn’t a genre; this is Chris Nathan. And he is unique.”

I am glad I went in open-minded when I first heard Chris and will be forever grateful to Rick Huckaby for telling me about him. I know there are lots of music fans out there listening to all kinds of tunes and I hope those so inclined among you will go check out Chris.

You can catch some videos of the new songs from last night here. If you like what you hear, I highly recommend downloading the Sugarcane EP here.

*edit* Chris later mentioned on Twitter that because of the delay he had felt it was his duty to repay the fans who had waited by really giving it his all. I am glad to hear that was his “all” because if this man has a level above this, it would almost be scary! :)

Liv Carter

Liv Carter

Liv is a career coach for creatives, and the people who work with them.
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.
Liv Carter

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