Those who check out Kris Kristofferson's latest concert circuit may notice what's missing: No fancy lighting, no top-of-the-line equipment, no gorillas in security outfits. Shoot, not even a band. It's just Kris.
And it was this minimalist, for-real aspect that helped Kris connect with the audience. He was up there on the empty stage of the North Charleston Performing Arts Center, standing in the circle of light with two monitors at his feet, a microphone stand, and a music stand next to him. Just him, with a nothing-special acoustic guitar, occasional harmonica on the neck rack, and his songs. Take away the usual venue trappings and it could have been him playing in a coffee shop, some smoky tavern someplace, or your living room.
He's 73 now, and he's lived some hard miles. A songwriter in the 1960s and 1970s. A few albums on his own. Time as an acclaimed actor. Some tours with The Highwaymen, a country supergroup (with Waylon, Willie, and the Man In Black). A drinking habit that would have pickled anyone else's innards. I understand he's clean now.
Friday night, perhaps a form of redemption. It was just Kris Kristofferson, songwriter, warts and all, delivered in a personal manner you don't see on the concert circuit. And the crowd at the Performing Arts Center, mostly baby boomers who remember him more for his songs than for that bathtub scene with Barbra Streisand (A Star Is Born), was appreciative and often helpful.
You can't say he'd lost much off his voice over the years because, honestly, he never had that much of a voice anyway. His rhythm was sometimes off, and there were a couple of times where he forgot words or guitar phrases. But he'd already connected so solidly with the audience, so that really didn't matter.
Pastor Sonny, who accompanied me to the concert, knows something about this aspect. Sonny's a baby boomer in good standing, and makes his living speaking in front of audiences. He knows his music, too -- he's a fine rhythm guitarist, and it's always a pleasure throwing down some songs with him. He suggested the smaller venue and being up there alone, without the protection of a band and all the usual concert trappings, is really doing it the hard way.
Kris started slowly, apparently wasn't feeling too well for this show, but started to catch his stride with "Me And Bobby McGee." Janis Joplin made that song famous, it's pure Kristofferson. He noticed the audience response, and offered an apology. "When you're trying to sing along and we're not together, it's not your fault."
For this show, he just didn't seem to take this stardom business all that seriously. Or himself. "Don't try to clap along," he told the audience at one point, explaining his own sense of rhythm isn't all that great. "Don't even try." And on "Duvalier's Dream," he agan interjected, "don't try."
Between songs he'd occasionally check his set list on the music stand. "I already did that song," he said at one point, almost to himself. "Can't do this song, because then we'd be done."
But he broke out his songwriter's reportoire -- "For The Good Times," "To Beat The Devil," "Here Comes That Rainbow," "Sky King" (a ribald military chopper pilot's story that had Pastor Sonny, the Southern Baptist minister, rolling in his seat), "Best Of All Possible Worlds" (a shaggy-dog tale about spending a drunken night in jail, something Kris can probably sing about with authority). And my own favorites -- "Why Me Lord" and "Sunday Morning Comin' Down." A strong show, in all.
Those who are expecting a slick, prepackaged performer doing his songs just like they were on the album would probably be disappointed. Which is OK; there are plenty of musical acts that can cater to just that need.
This was just Kris, being honest.
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As a working musician, I got a couple of takeaways from this performance:
- Even if you're not at your best, connecting with the audience overcomes all.
- Keep things simple and straightforward. Sonny noticed Kris seldom strayed from the key of D.
- Like my old mandolin player Wil St. John (an incurable Bob Dylan fan) liked to say, the whole thing is just to deliver a song.
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Kris Kristofferson on allmusic.com
From The Boot: What he's doing lately
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