“Music is a sacrament.” —Bono
The above sentiment may be theologically suspect, but the spirit rings true for me. Indefinable, incredible things can happen in the air shared by a live band and a listener, moving the hearers’ hips and hearts alike. We may be leaving a decade behind, but I’ll be carrying the memories of these performers, and these particular performances, with me.
- “Impossible Soul” – Sufjan Stevens, The Tabernacle, Atlanta – Nov 6, 2010 As loud and weird as Age of Adz was, I still expected a guy and a guitar on a spartan stage. Instead, Stevens gave us a spectacle — anchored by the multiple movements and pure joy of “Impossible Soul.”
~ - “The Wanderer” – U2, Vanderbilt Stadium, Nashville – July 2, 2011 Under an apocalyptic set known as “the claw,” in a city with a country soul, U2 surprised and delighted us with one of its only live performances of the Zooropa tune they recorded with Johnny Cash.
~ - “So Much Wine” – Andrew Bird, The Ryman, Nashville – March 19, 2012 Bird’s trademark performance style — loop pedals on loop pedals — is mesmerizing. But somehow this spare, heartbreaking cover of the Handsome Family stole the show.
~ - “All My Favorite People” – Over the Rhine, Franklin Theatre, Nashville – April 5, 2013 Over the Rhine soars live as a full rock band, acoustic duo or any way in between. This was a stripped-down show in a classic venue, and the line “All my favorite people are broken” feels truer every year.
~ - “When You Come Back Down” – Nickel Creek, Track 29, Chattanooga – April 21, 2014 Nickel Creek’s reunion was a thrill, and they put on a note-perfect performance in my adopted hometown. “When You Come Back Down” foreshadows the fast-approaching day when our daughters fly on their own.
~ - “40” – U2, United Center, Chicago – July 2, 2015 We took an all-night bus ride from Chattanooga so our daughters could see U2. I pray the closing refrain, “How long?,” still echoing from the crowd long after the lights came back up, somehow settled into their bones.
~ - “Call to War” – The Lone Bellow, Revelry Room, Chattanooga – Nov 7, 2016 The Lone Bellow blew the roof off this little venue — true to form. Kanene Pipkin seemed to be singing for her life on what I always hear as a gospel line: “When called to war from trumpets tall, love will see the armies fall.”
~ - “If We Were Vampires” – Jason Isbell, Track 29, Chattanooga – April 20, 2017 Ahead of releasing it on The Nashville Sound, Isbell opened his encore with “If We Were Vampires.” It’s one of his finest, most moving songs, and I loved it from the first stanza.
~ - “It Is Well With My Soul” – Julien Baker, Calvin College, Grand Rapids – April 11, 2018 Baker stunned in a show that served as the catalyst for a life-affirming weekend at Calvin’s Festival of Faith and Writing. Closing the show with a classic hymn was a holy benediction.
~ - “Crowded Table” – Brandi Carlile, Moon River Festival, Chattanooga – Sept 8, 2019 Carlile’s show epitomized a festival performers described as a “family reunion.” She welcomed Natalie Hemby, Drew & Ellie Holcomb and The Lone Bellow on stage for “Crowded Table,” a song that could be an anthem for our expanding family.
