James McMurtry and the Heartless Bastards

When we made our way down to the 8X10 to see James McMurtry and the Heartless Bastards last night, we didn't actually think we'd see him standing on the sidewalk as we came up.

With nothing to say except the typical "oh my god, you're so cool, can you sign my left nipple?!" junk that goes over soo well, we just passed by quietly -- secretly happy that he was engaged in conversation with some other folks anyway so we had the excuse of not wanting to be rude. K said Bob Dylan complained that the worst thing about being famous is that every jackass wants to acost you in public, so that you could be thinking of some great new song and have it wiped out by some blathering idiot who has nothing better to say than "oh my god, you're so cool, can you sign my left nipple?!"

Besides, James McMurtry has that Crazy-Vietnam-vet-could-crack-at-any-moment look about him. No need to disturb him.

Anyhow, we thought we were arriving late, but then, so did the opening act. But, they were actually pretty good, so we didn't mind. Ryan Montbleau band. Funky little folk rock band out of Beantown. Hit all the right notes, including anti-war song and Black Crowes cover. Better than the hideous performance of Whispertown 2000 at the Recher a few months ago. And it looks like their Baltimore fan club was out in full force. Including the guy in the orange T-shirt who kept shouting encouragments and requests. A little too much. Overall, worth a second look.

And of course, James McMurtry himself. A fantastic set covering songs both new and old. What I really like about him is his ability to weave country-style stories with rock and roll music, creating this Texas redneck world of real people and places, all the while driving it with great force and hushed tones in all the right places. I can't really say much more, since I am shite at writing about music. All I can say is, I felt for just a moment as if we were back in Austin, and the last few months were only a strange dream.

Alas.

Mr. McM is in Charlotte tonight at the Visulite, for all my peeps in the greater Metrolina area.