The Kennedys with Quentin Callewaert ~ 2018 January 6 ~ Off the Common Coffeehouse ~ Bridgewater, MA
Band Personnel: Maura Kennedy, rhythm guitar, vocals; Pete Kennedy, lead guitar, ukulele, vocals; Quentin Callewaert, guitar and vocals, opening set and accompanying the Kennedys on a couple of songs.
Set List
Gypsy Rose {Dave Carter} - I Found a Road - Fireflies - Breathe - Late Night Grand Hotel {Nanci Griffith} - She Worked Her Magic On Me - Mad Russian - Riot in Bushwick ... intermission ... Half a Million Miles - The Cuckoo {traditional} - Galveston {Glen Campbell} - Cayenne In My Coffee - Be Silent No More - Safe Until Tomorrow - Rhapsody in Blue {Gershwin} (on ukulele) - Don't Talk to Strangers - Stand (with Quentin) ... encore ... Eight Days a Week {Beatles} (with Quentin)
Videos
She Worked Her Magic On Me
Don't Talk to Strangers
Beatles Medley (Quentin Callewaert)
Review
Pete and Maura Kennedy played an uplifting, musical, and entertaining 18 song set to an appreciative audience on a very cold night at this coffeehouse venue in southeastern Massachusetts, with an assist from up and coming teen guitarist Quentin Callewaert.
Having recently found some copies of two CDs they had thought to be sold out, Pete and Maura played a couple of songs from these albums. One of the rediscovered CDs, Better Dreams, consisted of songs written from dreams. "I Found a Road," from that record, was written by Maura after Leslie Gore sang it to her in a dream. The creative process continues to be an amazing thing.
The duo played a few new or newish songs, saying that the new album they are currently working on has more political content than usual for them. "It's the times we're living in," said Pete. "Maybe we should call the album Stable Genius." (The audience groaned.) New or newish songs included the wonderful pro-immigrant song "Don't Talk To Strangers," "Safe Until Tomorrow," a song dedicated to the caregivers of those in need, and a completely new song "Be Silent No More," that is so new that Maura had to consult her lyric sheet while singing it. I am very pleased to see the duo working on new material, since it has been three years now since they simultaneously released three albums to celebrate their 20 years together in music.
A highlight of the show was the rocker "Riot In Bushwick," from Pete's solo album of 2015, with its audience participation shout out of "This is a raid!" At my last Kennedys show, I was told I wasn't mean enough when I shouted that, so I've been practicing! I had brought a Kennedys newbie to the show with me and coached her ahead of time on the audience participation bit, and I can say without boasting that we were loud, and we were mean!
This was the third time that I have seen Quentin Callewaert, now 17 years old, open for The Kennedys. He played a six song opening set featuring covers from Ray Charles and other masters of the rock 'n' roll era. I shot a video of his Beatles instrumental medley; please check it out. He is also a very good singer. He has always been an impressive guitarist, but he has gained a lot of poise and stage presence since we last saw him. He asked Maura and Pete to sing backup on his last song, a gospel tune, and then Maura and Pete had him come up and accompany them on their final song, "Stand," and their encore, "Eight Days a Week," which Maura called a Baby Boomer Singalong, and asked the audience to stand and belt it out! What fun!
More Kennedys
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