The Jayhawks at Brooklyn Bowl
photo by Lou Montesano

The Jawhawks played 2 nights @ Brooklyn Bowl (review, setlists, pics)

The Jayhawks have been around a long time, so calling their two-night stand at Brooklyn Bowl “career-spanning” is saying something. Emerging from the ‘80s Minneapolis music scene, Gary Louris and Mark Olson pioneered the alt-country sound The Jayhawks continue to mine. Olson left the band not long after the breakthrough success of 1992’s Hollywood Town Hall but returned more than once to record and tour with his former mates. Despite multiple personnel changes, Louris has moved the music forward with superb songwriting on his own and through collaborations with a diverse range of artists including Ray Davies, The Dixie Chicks and Jakob Dylan.

Opening the first night (1/18) with “I’m Gonna Make You Love Me” from the 2000 album Smile, the lively harmonies were immediately infectious. In addition to Louris, the current lineup includes original member Marc Perlman on bass along with long-timer Karen Grotberg on keys and Tim O’Reagan on drums. The only recent addition is multi-instrumentalist John Jackson, impressive on guitar, mandolin and violin. Two backing vocalists and a trio of horns joined the band at various points throughout the evening.

Louris is clearly the frontman, but drummer O’Reagan sang lead on several tunes while keeping a rock-solid beat. Favorites such as “Waiting for the Sun” alternated with new material from the band’s most recent album, Back Roads and Abandoned Motels, an interesting collection of songs written with and, in some cases, for other artists. Most notable among the cuts was “Gonna Be a Darkness,” co-authored by Jakob Dylan.

Between songs, Louris bantered about the bowling going on to his left. “You missed that spare over there,” he called out to one of the bowlers. “You need to follow through.” Recognized for his songwriting and vocals, Louris might also be one of the most underappreciated guitarists around. Other highlights from Night One included “I’d Run Away,” “Two Hearts,” “Save It For a Rainy Day” and Karen Grotberg’s vocals on “I’m Down to My Last Cigarette.” Louris promised some different tunes for Saturday night, but no one left the Friday show disappointed.

Night 2 did indeed feature a few different songs, as well as an appearance by The Dream Syndicate’s Steve Wynn in the encore for a cover of Neil Young’s “Revolution Blues.” Check out pictures from Night 1 in the gallery above and setlists from both nights below.

SETLIST: The Jayhawks @ Brooklyn Bowl 1/18/2019 (via)
I’m Gonna Make You Love Me
Ain’t No End
Lovers of the Sun
Waiting for the Sun
Everybody Knows (Dixie Chicks cover)
Tampa to Tulsa
Trouble
Dying On The Vine
I’d Run Away
Gonna Be a Darkness
Smile
Leaving the Monsters Behind
Backwards Women
All the Right Reasons
Long Time Ago
Come Cryin’ to Me
Two Hearts
Tailspin
Blue

Encore:
Angelyne
Save It for a Rainy Day
Settled Down Like Rain
Haywire
Last Cigarette
Bad Time (Grand Funk Railroad cover)

SETLIST: The Jayhawks @ Brooklyn Bowl 1/19/2019 (via)
I’m Gonna Make You Love Me
The Man Who Loved Life
Quiet Corners and Empty Spaces
Waiting For The Sun
Everybody Knows (Dixie Chicks cover)
Tampa To Tulsa
Think About It
Smile
Come Cryin’ to Me
I’d Run Away
Gonna Be a Darkness
Nothing Left To Borrow
Stumbling Through the Dark
Somewhere in Ohio
Backwards Women
All the Right Reasons
Long Time Ago
Leaving the Monsters Behind
Settled Down Like Rain
Big Star
Blue

Encore:
Angelyne
Tailspin
Revolution Blues (Neil Young cover) w/ Steve Wynn
Bad Time (Grand Funk Railroad cover)

photos by Lou Montesano