29 September 2001
Missing the Groobees
I decided to take in Susan Gibson at the Mucky Duck last night.
Susan Gibson was formerly a songwriter and co-lead vocalist for the Groobees before embarking on a solo career with the breakup of the band. She is the person who wrote Wide Open Spaces, made famous by the Dixie Chicks, and she is a powerful, distinctive vocalist. She is playing shows with Eleanor Whitmore (a fiddle player who previously played/sang with Brent Mitchell, with whom she made some great music) and some guitarist I did not know.
All of that being said, her show was quite a disappointment for this major fan of the Groobees. One of the Groobees' strengths was the musical arrangement of their songs, which really drew out every member of the band. Another strength of that band was the great harmonies that Susan and Scott Melott (the other co-lead vocalist and songwriter, not to mention keyboard player) produced.
All of that is lost now in what has become a one-woman show. I couldn't help but notice that Susan's "band" was treated basically like a couple of studio musicians -- something friends with me commented on also. Despite Whitmore's brilliance at her craft, she was just so much background -- subdued fiddle, and subdued backing vocals, really unfortunate since Whitmore's harmony vocals in her earlier days with Brent Mitchell really brought his music to life. And at the conclusion of one "Groobees" song, Susan actually commented "Shades of Gary" after the guitar solo -- Gary Thomason being the guitarist of the Groobees. Maybe it was intended as a compliment, but to me it showed disrespect to the people who are "her" band now.
Interestingly, Susan played a number of songs from the old band, but has clearly made them "hers." That is to say, the distinctive, well-conceived arrangement of the music is gone in favor of "Showcase Susan." I'll give credit where it's due -- Susan is a STRONG vocalist, but she is not good enough to carry music on her own. And she does not have the good sense of arrangement that was a trademark of the Groobees (and, I'm guessing, was driven by Scott Melott). Maybe if I had not heard many of the songs she performed as Groobees songs, I would not have been as turned off. However, I had the same reaction to songs she performed that were never recorded by the Groobees, or performed at any shows I've been to, so perhaps not.
I suppose I was also turned off by her numerous flippant comments about the old band and the breakup. Most of us in the room were old Groobees fans, and whatever Susan's feelings about her old mates, I don't think any of us really wanted to hear the cynical comments about the old band. Especially if she's going to play old Groobees songs that she didn't even write -- like my favorite song of the former band, Wayside (click here for a windows media bootleg of an old Groobees performance of the song at the Duck), written by Scott Melott. The song was accompanied by a snide comment about not playing the banjo anymore (the Groobees version featured Susan on the banjo, which gave it a nice quality). Notably absent, of course: the harmony vocals that previously made the song my favorite.
Susan Gibson will probably win some new fans to what she is doing, but right now it seems like a significant step backwards from the Groobees. Meanwhile, I'm eagerly waiting for whatever Scott Melott puts together next.
[Posted @ 09:45 PM CST]
