Episode 070 - Blackberry Smoke Concert Review

This week, I've got another concert review for you. I went down to North Carolina to see one of my favorite bands, Blackberry Smoke, at the Red Hat Amphitheater in downtown Raleigh, NC. Hear all about the 21-song set, including a memorable five-song Tom Petty encore featuring the Dirty Knobs. Discover why Blackberry Smoke is considered one of the best live bands today, and don't miss out on my detailed breakdown of their performance, including standout tracks and band history. It's all happening this week, on the Rock-N-Roll Show podcast!

00:00 Introduction to the Rock-N-Roll Show podcast

02:50 Opening Acts and Rainy Weather

05:05 Blackberry Smoke Takes the Stage

06:38 Band History and Evolution

07:52 Memorable Performances and Setlist Highlights

15:40 Encore with The Dirty Knobs

22:28 Final Thoughts and Farewell

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Transcript

0:00

Welcome to the Rock-N-Roll Show podcast. I'm your host, Alex Gadd, and this week I've got another concert review for you. Yeah, I'm catching up on a backlog of shows I still need to review, and among the best of them was the one I saw late last summer when I headed to downtown Raleigh, North Carolina to see Blackberry Smoke at the Red Hat amphitheater. Man, they put on one hell of a show, 21 songs on a rainy summer night, capped by a five song encore of Tom Petty Classics. Played with Mike Campbell in the Dirty Knobs. It was loud, loose, emotional, very memorable, and I can't wait to tell you all about it. So stick around for my Blackberry Smoke Concert review coming up right now. If you've listened to the show for a while, you know that I'm a big Blackberry Smoke fan. Back in episode 29, which was my top 10, 21st Century Rock acts, I put this band at number one, my favorite band to form in this century. Now, I first encountered them in 2012 watching their first concert video. Leave a Scar Live in North Carolina on Axis tv. I remember sitting in my kitchen, eating lunch, watching a band I'd never heard of, tear through song after song with total confidence. No weak links, no filler, just a band that already knew who they were and where they were going. I followed them ever since, and I've never seen a bad show. Blackberry Smoke is one of the best live rock bands working today. The songs are strong. The musicianship is top tier, and because they live on the road, they understand pacing dynamics and how to build a set. This is a real band, but make no mistake, it's also driven by one guy. His name is Charlie Starr. He's the singer, the primary songwriter, and one of the best guitarists I've seen in years. And his playing especially live, is something to watch closely in the clips that I'll share with you now, I made the trip to Raleigh because my good buddy Eric. Who was the guest on the very first episode of this podcast back in early 2024, was having a birthday, and I wanted to celebrate with him and take him to see one of my favorite bands. He knew nothing about Blackberry Smoke, but as an avid music fan, he was more than up for it. I got down there on a cool late summer evening, grabbed some barbecue, and we walked over to the Red Hat Amphitheater. It's a small outdoor venue. What stands out about it is that it's right in the middle of the city, which is very different from some of the other indoor outdoor shed places like Jones Beach or the Garden State Art Center, or even the Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater that are around here in the New York area. As we walked in, we caught the tail end of the opening act. Her name was Shannon McNally. I wasn't familiar with her, but even the few minutes that we heard, she sounded strong. It started misting soon after we entered, and before long the mist turned into a steady drizzle, but it was warm enough out, so we got a drink and settled into our seats. Next up was the Dirty Knobs. Mike Campbell's Post Tom Petty in the Heartbreakers Band, which also includes Heartbreakers drummer Steve Ferone and man, they sounded great. Mike's never been a great singer, but that's hardly the point. These are sharp, straight ahead, rock and roll songs. Written by one of the greatest guitarist and collaborators of the last 50 years. One standout song was a track called Fuck That Guy, which surely is a little juvenile, but also funny, cathartic, and very much in the spirit of rock and roll. Well look at that clown dressed up like Charles Dickens, sneaking round. Slim Pickens. If he was a woman, he'd think he was God's gift to man. Ought to stick his head in a garbage can. Yeah, fuck that guy. Bad guy ought to be in crime. He ain't no friend of mine. Fuck that. God. Come on side rider. Their set ran kinda long. 13 songs, plenty of stories, and the drizzle never stopped, but I wasn't in a hurry for them to clear the stage. After they wrapped up though, Eric and I went to get another drink and we kind of hid out under an overhang to keep out of the rain for a few minutes while the stage was reset for Blackberry Smoke. Then after less than 30 minutes the lights went down and as if on cue the rain stopped as the first notes of"Live It Down," the lead track from the 2021 album You Hear Georgia rang out They followed that with"Hammer and the Nail" from their latest release, 2024's Be Right Here. Then they rolled straight into Payback's a Bitch. Now that song's been around since 2015, and it always goes over well in concert. Here's a good time to review that. The band has expanded since its early days. Blackberry Smoke started as a local Atlanta band with Charlie Starr on guitars and vocals. His high school buddy Britt Turner on Drums and Britt's older brother Richard Turner on bass. They quickly added Paul Jackson as the second guitar player and the high harmony singer. And then over time, the bands expanded, further added keyboardist Brandon Still and later Benji Shanks on third guitar. In 2024, the band suffered a devastating loss when Britt Turner passed away from a brain tumor, but rather than stop, they chose to continue honoring Britt by doing what they've always done. Getting back on the road. Drummer Kent Aberly stepped in seamlessly, and the band's resolve only deepened. I saw one of the first shows after Britt passed in March of 2024, and they were certainly reverential but determined to keep going, and they shown no signs of stopping. While they always take time to remember their fallen brother Britt. Sometimes they also add backup singers to the touring group, and when they do. That backing group is usually the Black Bettys who are also from Atlanta, and add a great additional tone to the band's live sound. The Black Bettys were on the show that we saw, so take a look out for them in the clips All of that context comes into play when you see this band live. Now, the fourth song of the night was"Good One Comin' On," one of their most beloved tracks and one that the crowd knows word for word. After that, they moved through a mix of newer material and deeper cuts. Eventually landing on Crimson Moon, which felt especially right as the clouds cleared and a nearly full moon rose behind us. The audience clearly viewable from the stage. Charlie even pointed it out during the next song, Sleeping Dogs, which is their mid set jam vehicle hat they use to stretch out and have fun with. I don't shake. Oh. A sleeping dog. After Sleeping Dogs, they slowed it down with a few Folkier tunes before they went into one of their most understated melancholy songs. One Horse Town. This is really one of my favorites of theirs. It's quiet, reflective, and written from inside a character's skin. In the tradition of Melancamp or Springsteen, it always stands out as a highlight of the set. Check out one Horse Town. The. One Horse Town flowed into a cover of Little Feat's"Willin," which is one of my all time favorite songs, and one that Blackberry Smoke has always handled with restraint and respect. I've been worked by the rain, driven by the snow here, drunk and dirt. Don't you know when I'm still. I was out on the road late last night seeing my pretty Addison every night. Yes, jealous. Hey, up in from Tucson to Hatch a. The back road, and if you give. They closed out the main set the way they often do with Ain't much left to me. It's a bruised, honest song about the wreckage left behind after divorce and it hits really hard live. It's a great one. From Grace. After a short break, they returned with the entire Dirty Knobs band for a five song Tom Petty encore. This has become a tradition on the tour that they did together, and it was a joy to watch. They kicked it off with Rocking Around with You from the first Heartbreakers album. Welcome to the midnight set for all the diehards. Thank you very much, and all the other people too. Then came Louisiana Rain from the seminal Damn the Torpedoes collection. You Wreck Me was third, and this one is again one of my favorite songs. I used to play this live when I was in various cover bands. It always went over well. It's got great energy and great dynamics, and it makes it a perfect song for a live performance. We ride. I.

Alex Gadd Live 20:35

They wrapped up the night with a high energy Running Down a Dream from Petty's first solo album, Full Moon Fever.

20:59

Down. Was possible. Unstoppable.

Alex Gadd Live 22:26

And with that they were done. Eric had been smoked, as they say. He was duly impressed As we walked back to my hotel, which was right up the street, he gifted me this poster that you see right behind me, which is one of the nicest tour posters I've. Ever seen. I don't know if it reproduces so well on video because of the foil competing with the lights in the studio here, but it's a beautiful poster and I'll always appreciate that. Thank you. Eric. Blackberry Smoke calls themselves a working band and they mean it their to shirt reads. Always on tour. Well, you can't see it, but it does. If you love rock and roll, played with conviction, soul, and craft. Go see them out this spring on the road. I'm hoping to catch them again in Tarrytown, New York if I can in a month or so. This band is so good. If they had come up in the seventies, I believe they'd be legends by now and I'd love to help them get there in the 2020. So that's your assignment. Go see Blackberry Smoke live, and then let me know what you think. And that's it for this week's episode. Thank you for joining me. If you like what you heard today, I'd appreciate it if you would like and either subscribe or follow this channel to make sure you get notified about each new episode. And please tell your friends. Also a reminder that I release a playlist for every episode. So look for the Rock and Roll Show podcast playlist on Spotify and Apple Music every week, this week, featuring all 21 songs from the show in Raleigh, plus some additional favorites of mine. So check that out. Additionally, I wanna know what you think. Please leave me a comment and I'll try to respond to every one of them. The Rock-N-Roll Show Podcast is a World Highway Media production. I'm your host, Alex Gadd, and until next time, remember that life is short, so get those concert tickets.