The Troubadour - Fri Jul 10

Dan Parsons is talkative and in high spirits tonight, his restrained guitar lines gelling well with his smooth voice as punters begin to filter in. I know, I know, split infinitives and all that … but it sounds better than well gelling. Not being able to resist paying tribute to a folk and country hero that shares the same surname, Jordie Lane is invited onstage to assist with a performance of Gram Parsons’ A Song For You. I wonder if they drew straws for who had to be Emmylou Harris?

Coming back for his own set proper a few minutes later, Melbourne’s Jordie Lane runs through another solo performance, playing a foundation of folk tunes with smatterings of more surprising indie pop from his recent album Sleeping Patterns. But even with this curious mix, there is a tendency to drift into the dime-a-dozen world of singer-songwriters, a danger that his off-kilter warble can only fend off so many times.

A man who has no shortage of friends and well-wishers in attendance (I feel like the only person here that hasn’t strummed a guitar with the headliner), Andrew Morris uses his scruffy charm to lead the crowd through his back catalogue. His backing band is top notch, ready for a quick guitar fill of swell of horns at a moment’s notice. Tonight’s show goes a long way in separating Morris from the sea of Brisbane balladeers.

MITCH ALEXANDER

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