The Laurie Morvan Band had offered
up the opening set, which filled the room with white-hot
guitar adventures for an hour and a half. She sings
original songs and classic tunes with a hot, contemporary
guitar buzz to reinforce her heartfelt vocals.
Few blues guitarists pour as
much energy into their performance. With backup singers
Lisa (Grubbs) Morvan and Carolyn Kelley in support, Morvan delivered
a meaningful performance that had us sitting on the
edge of our seats. Her vocals set the room at ease,
while her fiery guitar solos set the house on fire.
This night, as Morvan sang and
played selections from her recent album and her upcoming
project, she maintained a balance of sizzling guitar
work and deeply felt lyric tales. "Keep On Believin'"
stood out as one of the program's many high points for
its slow and meaningful dialogue. Bassist Pat Morvan
also sang backup on this one along with Grubbs and Kelley,
as drummer Angie Tabor provided a soft, velvety texture
and pianist Kelley covered the arrangement with a smooth
layer of honey.
Later, the program included plenty
of variety, as the band added violin, a second keyboard,
and beautiful soloing from everyone. The night's constant
driving force, however, remained focused on Morvan's
fiery guitar.
Her closing number, "Kickin' Down
Doors," brought the house down as the guitarist
strode through the audience kickin' out one fiery burst
of rock-solid blues fireworks after another.