{"id":436,"date":"2013-09-19T19:00:50","date_gmt":"2013-09-19T19:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/216.71.127.204\/wordpress\/?p=436"},"modified":"2015-10-07T20:33:16","modified_gmt":"2015-10-07T20:33:16","slug":"robert-ellis-w-the-clarks-discovery-green-houston-tx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/2013\/09\/19\/robert-ellis-w-the-clarks-discovery-green-houston-tx\/","title":{"rendered":"Robert Ellis w\/ The Clarks – Discovery Green – Houston, TX"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
Written by James Killen <\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sep 19, 2013 at 06:30 PM<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\"Image\"The fall concert series at Discovery Green has begun again with an up-and-coming Houstonian taking the lead on stage for the first show. Robert Ellis has been influenced by talents as diverse as George Jones, Paul Simon and the Grateful Dead. The first show of the season suffered a low turnout due to the rain that blanketed the city through the afternoon. Luckily, the sun peeked through the clouds and the show on the hill could go forward.<\/p>\n

Although Ellis got his start in Houston at places like Mango\u2019s and Fitzgerald\u2019s, Thursday night\u2019s show was his first in Houston since New Year\u2019s Eve. Ellis fronted a five piece band complete with pedal steel, lead guitar, bass, drums and himself on acoustic and vocals. Most of the songs were performed as straight ahead country numbers and drew heavily from his latest disc, \u201cPhotographs\u201d.<\/p>\n

He lined them up to start the set with \u201cWest Bound Train\u201d, \u201cComing Home\u201d and \u201cTwo Kinds of Paint\u201d featuring plenty of pedal steel magic and some wandering melodies. The forth song was a strike off in a different direction called \u201cGood Intentions\u201d from his out of print \u201cGreat Rearranger\u201d CD.\u00a0 The lyrics followed traditional C&W wordplay (\u201cI don\u2019t care how wrong it is, I\u2019ve got good intentions\u201d), but featured a slightly psychedelic bass line and guitar solo.<\/p>\n

Robert then treated the crowd to a new tune called \u201cPride\u201d that should show up on his next release, due out in February of next year. It was a C&W tune with a nightclub jazz bass line that gave it a special smoky air. He featured several new tunes including \u201cOnly Lies\u201d and \u201cThe TV Song\u201d. The lead guitar player sometimes showed influences from Chet Atkins and Les Paul and sometimes from Jerry Garcia. The pedal steel player was no slouch either, stretching out on several cool solos.<\/p>\n

The band did a couple of covers which were Roseanne Cash\u2019s \u201cSeven Year Ache\u201d and Paul Simon\u2019s \u201cStill Crazy After All of These Years\u201d, interspersed with Ellis originals like \u201cPhotographs\u201d and \u201cFriends Like Those\u201d.<\/p>\n

The evening\u2019s set ended with another of Robert Ellis\u2019s original tunes called \u201cSing Along\u201d. That tune caught me coming completely out of left field. It started with a three of four minute Grateful Dead \u201cSpace\u201d-like jam and then burst into a lively bluegrass style condemnation of the fire and brimstone style of evangelism as applied to scaring young children toward religion. \u201cIt\u2019s a hell of a thing to do to a kid to teach him right from wrong by telling him he\u2019ll burn in Hell if he doesn\u2019t sing along\u201d. That line left me with my mouth gaping.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m looking forward to seeing where the next Robert Ellis CD takes him. He can play the straight up Country singer as well as anybody in Nashville, but he walks a line, in the way that Ryan Bingham does, that says he will not be limited by any specific music genre. I am looking forward to my next opportunity to see him.<\/p>\n

\"Image\"The evening\u2019s show was kicked off by a young couple from Temple, Texas named the Clarks. They had a down home bluegrass sound with Brandi Belle Clark singing and playing fiddle and Bryce Clark getting off some fine acoustic guitar licks and a few vocals here and there.<\/p>\n

They had several witty original tunes like \u201cDrinking for Three\u201d about finding out they were going to be parents and \u201cLove is Blind\u201d (\u201cit\u2019s not stupid\u201d). Their song \u201cMoon Over Nashville\u201d featured some very nice instrumental work. They also got off a couple of covers like Ernest Tubb\u2019s \u201cThanks A Lot\u201d and a bluegrass version of Springsteen\u2019s \u201cI\u2019m on Fire\u201d. They were quite an entertaining young couple.<\/p>\n

So the Discovery Green series has some great acts lined up between now and late October. Keep an eye out for some nice entertainment for free on the front lawn of the George R. Brown Convention Center. Ya\u2019ll have fun. We do.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Written by James Killen Sep 19, 2013 at 06:30 PM The fall concert series at Discovery Green has begun again with an up-and-coming Houstonian taking the lead on stage for the first show. Robert Ellis has been influenced by talents as diverse as George Jones, Paul Simon and the Grateful Dead. The first show of… <\/p>\n

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