Meshell Ndegeocello returned to Seattle last night to present a set of Gil Scott-Heron material, only 8 months after her last appearance at the Triple Door. She was touring with the same band, with the exception of Keefus Ciancia on keyboards, whose absence was striking. With just bass, drums, and guitar for instrumentation, the songs were given room to breathe, and were more rock and roll than I previously thought.
She appeared confident and comfortable, and was eager(!) to talk in between songs, explaining why each song mattered to her. She was engaging and often funny. The band was in top form, too, and served the material well. Highlights included a very funky take on Who’ll Pay Reparations on My Soul?, an updated The Revolution Will Not be Televised (including pointed lyrics about Sarah Palin and President Obama – “frankly, he’s not that revolutionary”), an extended instrumental ending to Lola, and a short acoustic set featuring just her vocals and guitar on Grace and Beautiful.
As usual, she surprised and challenged the listeners, and provided yet another glimpse into her incredible musical world. If you are able to catch any remaining dates on this tour, I highly recommend doing so, as “The revolution will not be televised…the revolution is gonna be live.”
Set list
Gil’s music:
Where Did the Night Go
The Bottle
Whitey on the Moon
Who’ll Pay Reparations on My Soul?
Cannon Fodder (a song by Eugene McDaniels)
Peace Go With You, Brother (instrumental set to a taped lecture of Dr. Cornel West)
Free Will
Home is Where the Hatred is
The Revolution Will Not be Televised
Meshell’s music:
Die Young
Love You Down
Lola
Grace
Beautiful
Faithful
White Girl
Outside Your Door (encore)
Buy it
Meshell’s music available at Amazon
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Songs
A Peace of Light, The Day, and Right On by The Roots
Back story
The Roots are a Philadelphia-based hip-hop group known as one of the best live bands performing today. They are currently the house band for the Jimmy Fallon Show, and somehow managed to find time to record and release a new album, How I Got Over. It is filled with live instrumentation and varied guests, anchored by ?uestlove’s drumming and Black Thought’s spot-on MC work. It’s an album whose message and vibe is perfect for these tough economic times. A New York Times review described it as “a serious deliberation on perseverance: a message for an era of recession.” Anyone thinking that hip-hop is dead and gone should give this a listen.
Why these songs
I was intrigued that the Roots employed several indie-rock acts on their newest release, so I decided to highlight three songs instead of just one, all featuring female singers. These songs aren’t necessarily representative of the album, but are wonderful nonetheless, especially enjoyed back to back.
A Peace of Light is a gentle introduction, featuring the beautifully eery, tight vocals of the Dirty Projectors. ?uestlove’s arrangement is top-notch.
The Day takes us into a familiar behind-the-beat Roots groove, featuring the Icelandic singer Patty Crash. Guest MCs Blu and Phonte add weight to a song about simply making it through, well…the day.
Right On features an irresistible hook sampled from from the alt-indie singer-songwriter/harpist Joanna Newsom. Not to mention the best groove on the album. Guest MC STS trades verses with Black Thought in 3 and a half minutes of soul, hip-hop, and pop perfection.
Check it out
Buy it
Amazon
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