Tag Archives: Margo Price

Review: ‘American Made’ Margo Price shows off musical growth, grit at Meijer Gardens

Entertainment, Local Entertainment, Reviews,
Margo Price at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park outdoor amphitheater stage Wednesday, July 31. (Courtesy of Kevin Huver Photography)

By K.D. Norris
ken@wktv.org
 

90-second Review

In early 2017, just after Margo Price released her “Midwest Farmer’s Daughter” and started receiving her long deserved Americana and County Music awards notice, it was easy to call her an “outlaw alt-country” singer — which I think I did in a previous WKTV Journal review after seeing her for the first time.

Price’s fledging career, after all, had her not only playing with Jack White (of the alt-rock White Stripes) — and signing with his Third Man Records label, in fact — but also playing with Outlaw country god Willie Nelson as well as covering the likes of Kris Kistofferson and Waylon Jennings in her solo concerts.

Margo Price and her band (with husband and musical mate Jeremy Ivey in foreground, at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park outdoor amphitheater stage Wednesday, July 31. (Courtesy of Kevin Huver Photography)

But as evidenced by her and her 5-member band’s 70-minute, 15-song set as the opening act of a double bill at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park outdoor amphitheater stage Wednesday, July 31, Price and her latest release — “All American Made” — has moved beyond labels and expectations to be a singer/songwriter of artistically diverse and emotionally powerful music.

Opening her set with three almost Allman Brothers Band-esque county-rock songs, including “Four Years of Chances” from “Midwest Farmer’s Daughter” and “Nowhere Fast” from “All American Made”, she showed off her beautiful voice with “Tennessee Song”, also from “Midwest …”, which had her almost a capella at the beginning and end.

And that was just the start of her showing off her current musical range and tastes, as evidenced by the set list.

Covers of Janis Joplin’s rock classic “Move over?” — “We were going to play this at Woodstock, but they cancelled it,” she told the Meijer Garden audience — as well as Dusty Springfield’s county classic “Son of a Preacher Man” and Bob Dylan’s forgotten classic “One More Cup of Coffee” (One of my all-time favorites!). Can you be any more diverse than that?

And diving deep into her own rapidly growing catalogue of fine songs, including several fine tunes from “All American Made”, including the album’s title track — which, when you listen close, has a socio-political bite — as well as “Don’t Say it”, “Just Like Love” and her set-closing bluesy “A Little Pain”, when she may have been giving her personal take on her life making a living in music and on the road.

“I’m breaking my back and working like a mother. Who’s to say just how it’s done? A little pain, never hurt anyone …”

One thing for sure, Margo Price — singer/songwriter, music producer, wife, mother (of two including a two-month old), and burgeoning social commentator — ain’t no farmers daughter any more.

May I have more please?

Three things: her taking care of the home fires, our political world and your entertainment finances.

To the first: Price may be all about the music, but she is a family woman as well. During the concert she sung a sweet duet with her husband, Jeremy Ivey, who wrote the tune and has an album out soon which she produced — gotta stand by her man!

And to the second: She has her own unabashed take on modern American society and politics, as the lyrics of “All American Made” attest — “1987 and I didn’t know it then. Reagan was selling weapons to the leaders of Iran … And I wonder if the president gets much sleep at night, and if folks on welfare are making it alright … It’s all American made”.

Also, finally, other remaining Meijer Gardens shows with original price tickets remaining include JJGrey and Mofro with Jonny Lang on Aug. 14, The Stray Cats on Aug. 15, Mandolin Orange — one of my early not-to-miss concerts — on Sept. 4, Dash Sultana on Sept. 8, The B-52s with ODM and Berlin on Sept. 11, and the season finale of Calexico and Iron & Wine on Sept. 18.

For more information and tickets visit meijergardens.org .

‘American Made’ Margo Price, with baby story and great music, comes to Meijer Gardens amphitheater

3-bottom, Local Entertainment, Reviews, Upcoming Events,
Margo Price. (Supplied by the artist)

By K.D. Norris
ken@wktv.org

Say what you want about the alt/retro country music sounds of Margo Price, who will be opening for Dawes on the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park outdoor amphitheater stage Wednesday, July 31. But there is no doubt she is “All American Made”, both her music and her just delivered child.

Price comes to town with music from her outstanding 2016 release “Midwest Farmer’s Daughter” and her even better 2017 release “All American Made”. She also comes to the stage after giving birth to a daughter, Ramona Lynn Ivey, on June 4 — of this year.

That’s what I would call “American Made” tough.

Price and her husband, Jeremy Ivey, who plays guitar in Price’s band, have one other child, a boy born in 2010.

Margo Price. (Supplied by the artist)

Price was on the road both during and, as evidenced by her current tour schedule, soon after her latest pregnancy — last November she announced the pending addition to the family at a concert in Nashville: “I’ve been hiding something behind my guitar. We’re expecting a baby,” she says on her website.

What the singer/songwriter hasn’t been hiding is her great songs, including during her 2017 stop at St. Cecilia Music Center. (For a review of the concert, visit here.)

All American Made album cover

Her list of musical honors includes winning Americana Music Emerging Artist of the Year in 2016, the UK Americana International Song of the Year in 2017 for “Hands of Time” (from “Midwest Farmer’s Daughter”), 2018 Americana Music nominations for Artist of the Year and Album of the Year as well as a win for for Song of the Year for “A Little Pain” (from “All American Made”), and just this year, a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist.

And with a story like her’s, and a growing musical catalogue, I’d bet she is not done with that Grammy thing.

According to her official bio, in 2015, she “was a country underdog just trying to keep enough gas in the tank to get to the next gig,” but by the end of 2016, she was one of the genre’s most celebrated new artists with gigs on late night television and at major festivals around the world. And things are not slowing down, even if her music is growing.

Margo Price. (Supplied by the artist)

“People have started asking me, ‘Now that you’re having success, what are you going to write about?’” Price says in her bio. “A lot of what I wrote on my debut came out of my struggles in the music business, but we don’t have any shortage of material now. I’m just excited to finally have an audience and know that people are going to listen to our songs.”

With all due respect to Dawes, many people will be at Meijer Gardens to listen to her “American Made” songs — and maybe get a baby story or two.

For a video of “All American Made”, visit here.

Other remaining Meijer Gardens shows with original price tickets remaining include An Evening with the Beach Boys on Aug. 1, JJGrey and Mofro with Jonny Lang on Aug. 14, The Stray Cats on Aug. 15, Mandolin Orange — one of my early not-to-miss concerts — on Sept. 4, Dash Sultana on Sept. 8, The B-52s with ODM and Berlin on Sept. 11, and the season finale of Calexico and Iron & Wine on Sept. 18.

The Dawes with Margo Price concert will start at 6:30 p.m. (5:15 p.m. gates open), with a $50 general admission ticket price. For more information and tickets visit meijergardens.org .

After first concert, tickets remain for 14 concerts at Meijer Garden’s summer series

Entertainment, Local Entertainment, Reviews, Upcoming Events, , ,
The new entrance gates to the Meijer Gardens outdoor concert venue. (Supplied/Meijer Gardens)

By K.D. Norris
ken@wktv.org

If you were letting your summer schedule settle out before you bought tickets for the summer concert at Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park, there is some good news and bad news awaiting you at the box office.

The good news is that there are some great shows in a spectrum of genres with original-price tickets available through the Gardens, including this Sunday’s Rodrigo y Gabriela visit, with the fine alt-folkie Justin Townes Earle opening, as well as July shows by Andrew Bird, The Mavericks + Los Lobos, and Dawes + Margo Price.

Foreigner will strut their stuff on Meijer Gardens’ outdoor stage. (Supplied/Foreigner)

But if you waited to get your tickets for the likes of classic rock stalwarts The Beach Boys, Styx, and Foreigner, you are going to have to pay the price for indecision — tickets for the sold-out Aug. 11 show with Foreigner had an original ticket price of $84 and now the cheapest we see are $155 on StubHub.

In all, and including the Nahko and Medicine for the People show on June 6, 15 of the 30 shows were sold out as of this week — but that means tickets are still available for (in addition to the one’s mentioned) Buddy Guy + Kenny Wayne Shepherd, June 10; Steve Miller Band + Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives, June 24; Gipsy Kings with Simi, July 21; An Evening with Lyle Lovett and his Large Band, July 26; JJ Grey & Mofro + Jonny Lang, Aug. 14; Stray Cats, Aug. 15; Mandolin Orange, Sept.4; Tash Sultana with Leo James Conroy, Sept. 8; The B-52’s + OMD + Berlin, Sept. 11; and the season closing show of Calexico and Iron & Wine, Sept. 18.

The three aforementioned “great shows”, in our humble but semi-knowledgable opinion, are worth the ticket price and worth deeper preview discussion.

Andrew Bird (Supplied/Meijer Gardens)

Anybody who saw Andrew Bird last year probably already have their tickets for his show. Bird has been around but you may only know him from his 2016 solo release “Are You Serious” and the single “Capsized”. His visit last year to Meijer Gardens with Esperanza Spalding was, arguably, the hippest night of the season.

Los Lobos in 2014 (Supplied by the band)

Los Lobos, the hard working, constantly touring band – led by David Hidalgo, Louie Perez, Cesar Rosas, Conrad Lozano and Steve Berlin – rolled into their fifth decade with 2015’s “Gates of Gold”, their first full length studio album since 2010’s “Tin Can Trust” — a great collection constantly on my playlist.

Margo Price. (Supplied/Angelina Castillo for Third Man Records)

And Margo Price is, borrowed from someone else, country as is should be. Price has played with Jack White and Willie Nelson … is there two more diverse musical mentors? At her 2017 concert at St, Cecilia Music Center, my review noted that Price came to the stage wearing a pretty pink little dress perfect for the stage of the Grand Ole Opry but with her exposed shoulders showing off a big ole tattoo, and proceeded with a rough-edged if not intentionally alt-country set of often introspective, intimate original songs and covers of the who’s who of classic and outlaw country.

As the Gardens opens its season it will do so with more audience entry gates in an expanded plaza area, an expanded and modernized concession area, and access to new and expanded restrooms first from the outside for those lined up and then from the inside.

The physical changes conclude a two-year effort of significant expansion and improvement of the venue while maintaining the 1,900-seat general seating area.

The Frederik Meijer Gardens Amphitheater tickets are general admission. Concertgoers are welcome to bring a blanket or low-rise chair to sit on. Low-rise chairs are defined as 12-inch maximum from ground to front of seat bottom and 32-inch maximum to top of chair back in highest position — these rules are strictly enforced. No other chairs will be permitted in the venue. A limited number of standard-height chairs will be available to rent for $10 (located in designated area-may not be removed) on a first-come, first-served basis.

All concerts take place rain or shine, and weather delays possible. Concertgoers are also welcomed to bring their own food, sealed bottled water and non-alcoholic beverages in their original sealed containers.

For more information and tickets for non-sold out shows visit meijergardens.org . For those seeking aftermarket tickets, you are on your own.

‘Midwest Farmer’s Daughter’ coming to St. Cecilia’s Acoustic Café stage

3-bottom, Local Entertainment,

Ready to spark: Margo Price will will bring music from her breakthrough solo release to St. Cecilia Music Center on April 6. (Supplied/Angelina Castillo for Third Man Records)

By. K.D. Norris

ken@wktv.org

 

Rarely has there been a more perfect title than Margo Price’s 2016 debut solo recording — “Midwest Farmer’s Daughter” — she hails from the town of Buffalo Prairie, Ill., after all.

 

And rarely has a country/Americana singer emerged with a more perfect pedigree: she left college to move to Nashville, cites Emmylou Harris as a major influence and has a voice compared to Loretta Lynn, and has recently shared the stage with the likes of Sturgill Simpson and Jack White.

 

She also was named “Emerging Artist of the Year” by the Americana Music Association and performed “Hands of Time” from her latest release for the Grammy Award audience early this year.

 

Oh, and did I mention there’s a story is that she sold her car to help pay for the recording of “Midwest Farmer’s Daughter” at the legendary Sun Studios in Memphis, Tenn.?

 

Price will be bringing here stories and songs from “Midwest Farmer’s Daughter” to the St. Cecilia Music Center Acoustic Café series Thursday, April 6, for a 7:30 p.m. concert. Tickets are available.

 

 

“We are so lucky to have Margo Price performing here in Grand Rapids at this stage in her career,” said Cathy Holbrook, St. Cecilia’s executive director. “She’s a rising star who is moving very fast in the music spotlight. This concert will be one that the audience will say, ‘I saw Margo Price when she was new and rising on the scene’.”

 

Price’s music has been variously labeled as not only country and Americana but also honky tonk and outlaw. Her earlier bands include The Pricetags and Buffalo Clover. But with her newest recording, she brings her musical world back to its rural roots.

 

The 10-track record, according to supplied information, influenced by Price’s years of trying to “make it” in Nashville, the childhood memories of her family losing their farm in Illinois and the pain of trying to cope with the death of her first child. After recording the album, Price shopped the project around in Nashville but found no takers until connecting with White’s Third Man Records — where she’s the label’s lone country artist.

 

In the last year, Price appeared on Saturday Night Live, both Charlie Rose’s and Seth Meyers’ television shows, took home the Emerging Artist of the Year award at AmericanaFest, and performed with White on an episode of “A Prairie Home Companion”.

 

For a video of her work, visit here.

 

There will be a post-concert “Meet-the-artist” reception open to all ticket-holders with the opportunity to meet Price and obtain signed CDs of her releases.

 

St. Cecilia’s Acoustic Café series will conclude its 2016-17 season on Thursday, April 13, with Grammy Award winning Marc Cohn — he of 1991’s Grammy winning ballad “Walking in Memphis” and so much more. With his newest 2016 release “Careful What you Dream: Lost Songs and Rarities”, his concert will feature a 25-year retrospective of his most well known music mixed with new releases. Tickets for this concert are $35 and $40.

 

For more information visit scmc-online.org.