part 3: the saga concludes

When I start the all-girl band, Lifts and Separates, it will be a power trio. (I guess the band name is better suited to a duo, isn’t it?) The pantheon of power trios includes the Police and Cream (recent contenders: Green Day and Los Lonely Boys), and I like the balance and energy the format requires.

Scott Miller and the Commonwealth aren’t technically a power trio, but I think of them as that + a utility player who is usually on keyboards. They generate a wonderful wall of sound and just when you think you can’t take it any more, they drench it with organ and great harmonies. They bring elements of Springsteen, Petty, Replacements, Who – and something all their own.

That's what makes them a great live band, and this performance was no exception. The drummer was beyond belief. One guy in the crowd kept yelling, “Your drummer’s a monster!” and he truly was. He was a force of nature and a joy to watch.

I have just one regret about sitting so close to the tiny stage, and it’s that the band could see the stupid grin I wore from the first 30 seconds on. When Scott Miller launched into the guitar solo in “Across the Line,” I pretty much left the planet for the rest of the evening.

Not to take anything away from Scott’s own songs, but one of the biggest delights was realizing that he was starting a cover of “Spike,” a darkly loopy Petty song off “Southern Accents.” It was perfect for Scott's temperament and heritage and for the band’s strengths. At the end of the song, I did something very unlike me, I called out, “It’s like Stan Lynch was right here!”

After the show the very amazing and very sweaty drummer came and gave me a big hug to thank me for my compliment.

It was a wonderful night and I can’t think of the last time I was so carefree – that Tommy Womack show in St. Louis, I guess, where I also stood around and talked with a drummer. Since the small but mighty crowd was dispersing, and I was now fully wide awake, I decided to say goodbye to the band, who had reconvened at the bar.

The +1 member of the band, the utility player, was a classically trained cellist (!) who is now playing keyboards and a mean slide guitar for a number of folks around Nashville. It was great to talk with him about the music scene there and what’s new in East Nashville.

I finally thought of something I wanted to tell Scott Miller, which was that this show was just what I needed. And that seeing his band the very first time thrilled me the way that seeing Springsteen did. So before I hit the road, I made my way over and said just that. He gave me that intense look and said, “That is very high praise, young lady.”

Indeed it is, and heartfelt.

The little hand was on 12 and would soon enough be on 6 and it would be time for work again. So I got back in my car, which does not have a working CD player, and drove a long while in silence. All the to-do lists and worries and ruminations floated back into my mind, but in a little corner “Spike” still lingered. So I thought about “Southern Accents,” and all its varied and underappreciated tracks, and listened to it when I got home.