COURTNEY MARIE ANDREWS – RESIDENT, BRIGHTON 8.10.22
It was early Saturday evening, the sun was sinking slowly over Brighton, the crowds were thinning and the shops in Kensington Gardens were closing as I joined the queue to see Courtney Marie Andrews. Unsure how many music lovers knew Andrews’ work, I was pleasantly surprised to see a large crowd of fans queueing happily in anticipation of this close-up, intimate gig by their favourite.
Courtney Marie Andrews is a Grammy-nominated and critically-acclaimed songwriter who has returned to the UK this October with seven intimate instore appearances countrywide, including this live performance and album signing at Resident Music, Brighton.
Andrews is no newcomer, she played in punk bands whilst still in high school and was a touring member of Arizona rock band ‘Jimmy Eat World’ from the age of 18. Andrews’ musical taste includes, amongst others, Tom Waits, Joni Mitchell, The Clash, Ann Rimes, Aretha Franklin and The Everly Brothers, in other words, Andrews has influences from a broad range of great music. Her deceptively simple songs are reminiscent of classics penned by the likes of Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell. Andrews’ songs are very personal to her but resonate with us all, and this is a large part of her appeal. If her last album ‘Old Flowers’ was the ‘break up album’ then ‘Loose Future’ is the next step, the ‘post break up album’, an album of optimistic new beginnings with a very slight touch of cynicism gained from experience.
The respectful audience at Resident Music included all ages, many faithful fans but also many new ones. They didn’t have to wait long for Andrews to arrive and thank Resident Music for hosting her, expressing her delight that small independent record shops now appeared to be thriving. She launched straight into ‘These Are The Good Old Days’. This is the latest single from her newly issued album ‘Loose Future’. The single is the third to be released from the album and was inspired by a favourite saying of Andrews’s uncle. It is a reminder to us all to live in the moment. “I tend to always live in a constant state of hindsight being 20/20, and I wanted to write this as a sort of mantra to honour my family’s sentiment. I also genuinely wanted to write a feel-good song after such a dark few years. Even in the saddest of times, there are little moments you’ll always look back on with a fondness that don’t seem so sad after all— they seem perfectly placed.” This track is one of my favourites from the album, where the sophisticated production never overwhelms her vocals and is lush with dense string arrangements, percussion, pedal steel, and vocal harmonies, but tonight the song sounded different, purer and stripped back, as she played it first in an acoustic set which both showcased her vocals and brought the meaning of the lyrics into sharp focus.
‘Let Her Go’ was next up, an ethereal, ‘will o’ the wisp’ country ballad, which, on the album, sounds like a dandelion clock being softly blown away, but last night sounded like a pretty folk song. The album’s title track, ‘Loose Future’, followed, an upbeat but laidback and optimistic song. Andrews chatted briefly to the audience next about ‘You Do What You Want’ which was written in the southeast corner of Arizona. The blooming of the agave, which only takes place every six to eight years, had been the starting point for the song, she explained. “You’re the kind of person everyone forgives”, she sang, who doesn’t know someone who fits that description? The appreciative audience clapped enthusiastically as the song drew to a close.
Andrews then played a few older tracks, asking for requests from her spellbound audience, ‘Near You’ had been issued as a single in 2017. ‘Table For One’ from her album ‘Honest Life’ which depicted an introspective single life ‘A Little Bit Lonely, A Little Bit Stoned’. Rounding off her short set, Andrews sang a song from her album ‘Old Flowers’, in ‘It Must Be Someone Else’s Fault’ where she smilingly described her own character flaws.
Gently thanking the audience for supporting her, Andrews offered to sign everyone’s albums and/or draw moustaches on them. Her fans would have loved to hear more but the gig had been a delectable taster of more to come next year. Andrews’ tour is next, from 1st March 2023, where she will be playing eight UK concerts and eleven European dates right across the month, including Thursday 9th March, when she will be playing at The Old Market in Hove. Purchase your tickets for this concert HERE.
Twilight darkened as we slowly dispersed into the Brighton Saturday night, our souls purified by Andrews’ songs and Kensington Gardens took on a magical and warm appearance, we returned to our lives calm, happy and keen to book tickets to her 2023 concert.
Setlist:
‘These Are The Good Old Days’
‘Let Her Go’
‘Loose Future’
‘You Do What You Want’
‘Near You’
‘Table For One’
‘It Must Be Someone Else’s Fault’
