What is this place, anyway? Nashville North?
For the second time in three weeks, the cozy confines of Marquee at the Tralf hosted one of the hottest acts in country music Friday night, as the Forester Sisters performed two well-attended shows.
OK. It wasn't really the Forester Sisters. It was three-fourths of the Forester Sisters. But they put on an engaging, upbeat show that was well-received by the audience at the 8 p.m. concert.
They may not have burned the house down, like hillbilly wildman Marty Stuart did Feb. 28, but June, Christy and Kim Forestershowed why their stars are rising in the galaxy of country music. They packed 14 of their best songs into a 70-minute set that clearly pleased a head-bobbing audience of thirtysomething country fans.
It didn't exactly get off to a running start when the Forester ladies hit the stage. There was no previous warning that the full contingent wouldn't be there, but it was immediately apparent to any true country fan that something was missing. That something being Kathy Forester, one of the group's best singers.
People are also reading…
"Y'all notice there's something different?" Kim drawled.
"Where's the other one?" volunteered one of the audience leather-lungs.
"We fired her!" Kim laughed.
She then went on to tell the real story -- that Kathy is "very pregnant" and that a doctor has ordered her to venture no farther than 50 miles from home until the next little Forester arrives.
"We're really not too sad, because we're splitting her money," Kim added with a hearty chuckle.
With that, Kim, June and Christy plunged on with their show. And if one didn't know how good the Foresters sound when all four are singing together, one wouldn't have known anyone was missing. For those who did know the difference, something was just a little off-target. Even at 75 percent speed, the Foresters are a spunky, engaging act. Their five-piece band did a nice job of moving them through the set.
Although it seems they've only been around a couple of years, the ladies from Lookout Mountain, Ga., have put out 10 albums now. By far, the most popular was last year's "Talkin' 'Bout Men," a hard-hitting, but (I think) tongue-in-cheek assault on the male species.
Between the songs, the Foresters spent plenty of time talking about men Friday night -- usually in negative terms. But they kept it all in good fun by attacking the issue from a good-natured female perspective -- without beating the audience over the head with feminist sloganeering.
Kim, who acts as spokeswoman of the group and plays a wicked acoustic guitar, made no bones about her feelings. She said that being recently divorced is no great fun.
"I'm newly single," she said. "So if there are any men out there, you can meet me at the bus."
She said that when the Foresters first recorded their most popular hit, "Men," they thought the song was "a hoot," one that had some fun with the ages-old battle between the sexes. The record sold millions, she said, but it also inspired protests, boycotts and hate mail from men.
"If you're a man and this song offends you, then it probably should," she said, in introducing the jaunty tune.
Despite the missing Kathy, there were other nice moments in this show, especially a pretty harmony version of "Sincerely," the old Lennon Sisters hit, and the group's new song, "I Got A Date," which should be subtitled, "We hope this sells as many records as 'Talkin' 'Bout Men.' "
James Patrick Lynch, a singer-songwriter from Tonawanda who has a growing following in the Buffalo area, opened the show with a half-hour of his own songs. Playing solo with an acoustic guitar, Lynch really hit his stride with the hard-driving "Runaway Train," about a fellow who rolls blindly through life until meeting the right woman.
With a good promoter and a little luck, Lynch would be making big bucks as Nashville songwriter. His songs are top quality.
REVIEW
The Forester Sisters
Country music singers.
Friday in Marquee at the Tralf
0 Comments
'); var s = document.createElement('script'); s.setAttribute('src', 'https://assets.revcontent.com/master/delivery.js'); document.body.appendChild(s); window.removeEventListener('scroll', throttledRevContent); __tnt.log('Load Rev Content'); } } }, 100); window.addEventListener('scroll', throttledRevContent); }
Be the first to know
Get local news delivered to your inbox!
