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Marty Stuart at Hopkins Center
Setlist
03/23/2018 Madisonville, KY Glema Mahr Ctr.
Read More03/24/2018 Chattanooga, TN The Walker Theatre 03/29/2018 Marietta, OH Adelphia Music Hall 03/30/2018 Cincinnati, OH Memorial Hall 04/05/2018 Savannah Music Festival 04/06/2018 Alexandria, VA Birchmere 04/07/2018 Alexandria, VA Birchmere 04/14/2018 Florida Jazz and Blues Jam 05/12/2018 Lancaster, PA American Music Theatre 06/02/2018 Lincoln City, IN Lincoln Amph 06/15/2018 Tumbleweed Country 06/16/2018 Brandon, MS Brandon Amph 06/22/2018 Rogers, AR Walmart AMP 06/28/2018 Darien Center, NY Darien Lake Theme Park 06/29/2018 Camden, NJ BB&T Pavilion 06/30/2018 Mansfield, MA Xfinity Center 07/13/2018 Maryland Heights, MO Hollywood Casino 07/15/2018 Cumberland, MD Allegany County Fair 07/19/2018 Spokane, WA Spokane Arena 07/20/2018 Ridgefield, WA Sunlight Supply Amph 07/21/2018 Auburn, WA White River Amph 07/26/2018 Stateline, NV Lake Tahoe Outdoor 07/27/2018 Wheatland, CA Toyota Amph 07/28/2018 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amph 08/02/2018 Billings, MT Rimrock Auto Arena 08/03/2018 Missoula, MT Adams Center 08/04/2018 Nampa, ID Ford Idaho Center Arena 08/09/2018 Albuquerque, NM Isleta Amph 08/10/2018 Denver, CO Pepsi Center 08/11/2018 Salt Lake City, UT Usana Amph 08/12/2018 Grand Targhee Bluegrass Festival 08/16/2018 Chula Vista, CA Mattress Firm Amph 08/17/2018 Anaheim, CA Honda Center 08/18/2018 Inglewood, CA Forum 08/23/2018 Saratoga Springs, NY Saratoga Perf Arts Ctr 08/24/2018 Gilford, NH Bank of NH Pavilion 08/25/2018 Gilford, NH Bank of NH Pavilion 09/28/2018 Mayberry Days 10/04/2018 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Ctr 10/05/2018 Noblesville, IN Ruoff Home Mortgage 10/06/2018 Tinley Park, IL Hollywood Casino 10/11/2018 Charlotte, NC PNC Music Pavilion 10/12/2018 Raleigh, NC Coastal Credit Union 10/13/2018 Bristow, VA Jiffy Lube Live 10/19/2018 Alpharetta, GA Verizon Amphitheatre 10/20/2018 Atlanta, GA Cellairis Amphitheatre 10/25/2018 Columbia, SC Colonial Life Arena 10/26/2018 Knoxville, TN Thompson-Boling Arena 10/27/2018 Lexington, KY Rupp Arena 11/02/2018 New York, NY Madison Sq Garden Arena 11/03/2018 Charlottesville, VA John Paul Jones Arena 11/04/2018 Baltimore, MD Royal Farms Arena
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Way Out West returned to the Midwest, and the roots of ‘Mojave’ are actually in Minnesota—
The sold-out Hopkins Center for the Arts played host to an area return performance by Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives for another musically noteworthy night by the country legend and his formidably solid band.
The venue itself is a sonically sound small theater, located in the downtown of this friendly and quaint Minneapolis suburb, away enough from the metro and the rowdy hub-bub that expectedly comes with a St. Patrick’s Day evening, but still enthusiastic enough to welcome Stuart and band, with loud applause and cheers.
Stuart and the Superlatives (Kenny “Cuz” Vaughan- guitars; Chris “Professor” Scruggs- bass/slide; “Handsome” Harry Stinson- drums/percussion) are still out in support of last year’s Way Out West (Superlatone Records), one of their best and most varied sounding albums that is a musical love letter to the desert southwest and the group played a more than memorable club show at the Fine Line last year, as the tour was just getting started.
“Turn the hillbillies loose, it’s Saturday night!” Stuart shouted after the opening ‘Sundown in Nashville’, he dressed in all black as usual, with the band nattily clad in matching powder blue rhinestone suits. After a scorching ‘Whole Lotta Highway’, tempo slowed a bit so Stuart could introduce his backing trio early, though most in the crowd seemed already familiar with everyone.
“Who says you can’t go surfing in Minnesota?!” Stuart said after the one-two of ‘Mojave’ and ‘Over the Moon’, disclosing that ‘Mojave’ was composed while the band was in town during their 2016 two-night stint “at the Minn-ah-so-dah State Fair” (in his best local accent). “So there you have it, it’s a part of you”.
“When you finish listening to the record, you’ll feel like you’ve been on Willie Nelson’s bus for twenty-one days” Stuart remarked about the latest album, “you’ll never have to leave home”. After a harmonically precise ‘Old Mexico’ (with full band huddled around one mic), Stuart let guitarist Vaughan lead for a couple songs, cutting loose with the rockabilly on his two numbers.
Stuart spoke about his kinship to the Native Americans in South Dakota before ‘Casino’ and paid tribute to Country Music Hall of Famer Grady Martin with ‘El Paso’ a Marty Robbins classic featuring Martin’s guitar, and complicated enough of a song “like learning War and Peace and the guitar part is like Mount Rushmore”, though he and the Superlatives played it as if their own.
Scruggs then took his solo turn, including a request by Stuart to hear the 1946 bluegrass classic ‘Blue Moon of Kentucky’ which Stuart helped out with on mandolin, and Stinson’s turn started with a Woody Guthrie cover, in which he held a note far longer than thought possible for any drummer, to rave applause, then encoring that with a Johnny Horton cover.
The mandolin is Stuart’s earliest and self-taught instrument and he showcased his formidable skills, by transforming the fiddle classic, ‘Orange Blossom Special’ into a chugging mando version to make one think it was made to only be played in that way.
As fans of Stuart’s belated weekly variety show on the RFD network know, a gospel portion was always part of each episode and this practice was reprised live with the main set closing, ‘Angels Rock Me to Sleep’, highlighted by soaring multi-part harmonies and a quiet swing to the melodies.
Stuart and the Superlatives soon returned to the standing ovation crowd, for a four-song encore beginning with an instrumental from the recent album, the surf-rock tinged ‘Torpedo’, revving things up next with a cover from friend and former touring partner, Travis Tritt.
“Clap your hands” Stuart asked, with everyone happily complying to the rolling ‘Tempted’ and ended things for the evening with “one of our favorite songs” from the newest album, ‘Time Don’t Wait’ which started with Vaughan’s brief guitar medley intro, beginning it with the jangle from The Byrds’ ‘Eight Miles High’.
As a smiling Stuart left the stage to loud applause, the rest of the band remained, launching into the signature instrumental theme from TV’s The Marty Stuart Show to end things rightfully on a high note.
With Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives piloting the journey, any return trip to way out west and beyond, is more than welcome, and the good news is that the legend and his band continue on the road for most of the rest of the year, including a well-deserved arena-sized outing, supporting Chris Stapleton.
(click on any photo below to enlarge and see full image)
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