Zoë Lewis with Roxanne Layton ~ 2025 July 11 ~ Cultural Center of Cape Cod, South Yarmouth, MA ("the bank vault")
Personnel: Zoë Lewis (vocals, piano, guitar, ukulele, harmonica, percussion, train whistle, spoons); Roxanne Layton (recorder, rain stick, spoons, vocals).
Set List
Exactly Like You - Blink - Chili - Barbizon - Dandelion - When the Rain Comes - Step by Step - These Shoes - Welcome to the Circus ... interval ... Cup of Tea - Wild and Precious Life - Souvenirs - Box Car - Beja Flor - Little Bit of Lovin' - Gringo ... encore ... Always Have the Moon
Scroll to below videos for a review of the show.
Videos
Step By Step
Review
I'd have to say Zoë presented just about the best balanced set list I've seen to date. She started at the gorgeous grand piano, which she just loved playing, and played the first five songs there, including a new song, "Dandelion," which we had seen her debut at Chatham First Night (the most recent time we'd seen her). The piano set included one of my favorite of her songs, the title track from her recent CD Blink in which she reminds the audience to grab every moment of this life and talks about the crazy and fun times she and the Social Distancers had putting on "virtual shows" during the pandemic.
After the first five songs she came out from behind the grand and took up guitar and ukulele, alternating instruments from one song to the next. Meanwhile sidekick Roxanne Layton deployed the recorder and the exotic Amazon rainstick on "When the Rain Comes." That instrument really does sound like rain! I need to ask Roxanne how much that thing weighs next time I see her. The joyfully optimistic "Step By Step" was followed by the song advising everyone to take those steps in someone else's shoes, and Zoë was so invigorated by the thought that at the end of the song she took a leap skyward, and her joyfulness had her floating in air! That gesture was repeated at the end of the song "Gringo" toward the end of the show and your very lucky shutterbug snapped the button just in time to get both leaps.
"Welcome to the Circus" ended the first set, without the usual humorous intro, but the song not only included the usual acrobatic spinning of plates and juggling, but Zoë added a parasol into the act. After an intermission she and Roxanne returned for a generous second set, which included the beautiful piano song "Souvenirs." She's recently introduced a song about riding the rails called "Box Car," in which she plays harmonica, and whacks herself with an instrument (don't know what it's called) that is a long stick with bells, and then at the end she pulls a whistle out of her pocket and ends the song with a train whistle! Next song was the pretty thing "Beja Flor" about hummingbirds, then both Zoë and Roxanne pulled out spoons to accompany the song "Little Bit of Lovin'" with tapping themselves (and each other) with the spoons -- yes the show was getting crazier! -- then onto the rockin' "Gringo" with very loud singing along and vocalizations from the audience, followed by yet another rock star leap and truly loud applause, followed by a nice quiet down in the form of "You Will Always Have the Moon" at the piano.
Zoë and Roxanne were very "on" tonight. The venue was probably not quite sold out, but it was a very enthuiastic audience. Zoë currently has a multimedia show playing in Provincetown (her home town) called "Souvenirs" that we are hoping to get to, and she's hoping to find other venues she can bring it to. Needs a back wall where she can project images, which leaves out this venue. But thanks in any case to the Cultural Center for another great show. They also had a much better art show on the walls, a very nice display of pastels, than at our last visit. Hoping to visit again soon.
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