Shawn Colvin and Mary Chapin Carpenter, two long-time acoustic performers and friends joined together on the 19th of October at 7:30 PM for an intimate concert at the Eisenhower Auditorium in Penn state university. Some of the event sponsors included Don and Mary Ellen Fisher and Big Froggy101 as the media sponsor. The performance that took place on a Saturday by the Grammy Award-winning artists was staged with vast renditions of their song collections. Tickets for the presentation were $40 adults, $15 for the University Park students and $30 individuals 18years and younger (Penn State News 2013). Their catalog spanned a careful selection of blues, country, acoustic and folk just to mention a few. Over the course of her 25 year career, Mary Carpenter has sold millions of albums which include “He Thinks He’ll Keep Her,” “Passionate Kisses”", Down at the Twist and Shout”, “Shut Up and Kiss Me" and "I Take My Chances." Shawn Colvin on the other hand is famed for her thoughtful songs including the 1997 hit “How Do”, “Never had it so Good”, and “Quittin” Time. "Sunny Came Home” (Mando 2013). The huge turn up was therefore not a surprise as it explained the anxiety and high expectations from the gathered audience. The two did not disappoint as they gave out a ground breaking performance that was filled with beautiful and melodious voices intricately accompanied with guitar strums and funny intimate stories. What was even more enlightening about the whole event were the comfortable chairs, serene atmosphere, and soothing music. For a moment they took the audience to another realm where melodies filled the air. Performances from the two ladies on stage together should probably not be missed by any fan particularly due to their praised acclamation and garnered recognitions, awards and appearances in radio and television programs.
Some of the songs in the set list included “Trouble”, “Avalanche”, “Sunny Came Home” and “Shotgun Down” form Shawn Colvin. Mary Carpenter performed a mixture of her recent and past albums songs like “He Thinks He'll Keep Her”, “I Feel Lucky”, “Halley Came To Jackson” and “The Hard Way” just to mention a few.
The two opening songs were however not entirely evoking since their melodies had tended to wisp from the mind as soon as the play was over. On a brighter note however the rest of the show was worth the attendance. Not only were their choice songs moving, but they were also evocative and pleasant to listen to. Their lyrics related more to love, friendship, nationalism and emotional personal incidences. “Shotgun Down” was a good selection with a melody that was sung beautifully as it captured the deepest sensations of the whole evening. Yet another very good piece was “All Fall Down” from Colvin’s eighth studio album, which had a nice harmonic twist throughout the song. The two team group generally has close ambient relationship with the slow ballads that evidently contributed to their great performance. “Soul Companion.” from ‘Ashes and Roses’, Mary’s newest album in 2012 was similarly a decent pick for the country-western audience (Don 2013). This is especially because of the catchy melody with some guitar background and an alluring country-western beat.“Halley Came to Jackson” the song a famous city with its citizens was however not a very country-western tune though it had a beautiful melody. Instead of the oboe in the background, the song had a thoughtful mixture of subtle slide guitars and pastoral violin.
The concert was generally a mightily inspiring and thought provoking performance that bagged a good rating secured on the merits of its lovely ballads.
References
Mando, Lines. Mary Chapin Carpenter and Shawn Colvin. 2013. No Depression. Retrieved
Mary Chapin Carpenter, Shawn Colvin to share acoustic evening Oct. 19. 2013. Penn State
News. Retrieved from: http://news.psu.edu/story/289205/2013/09/26/music/mary-chapin-carpenter-shawn-colvin-share-acoustic-evening-oct-19.
Don, Ignacio. Live Concert Review:Mary Chapin Carpenter.2013. Retrieved from,
http://donignacio.com/music/carpentermarychapinpage.html
