Stagecoach festivalgoers leave Eric Church acoustic gospel set
Eric Church has a reputation as one of country music’s true rebels, with songs such as his tremulous blue-collar anthem “How ‘Bout You” that asks “I like my country rock, how about you?” But this isn’t the same guy who showed up to Stagecoach headlining on Friday.
For his seventh appearance at the festival – and his fifth time headlining – Church opted for something different.
After a long church organ played as an intro, Church appeared seated on a stool in front of a stunning set of red stained glass windows on the production screen.
He began playing Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” before being joined by backing singers for “Mistress Named Music”, then a choir for “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”, “This Little Light Of Mine”, “When The Saints Go Marching In, “I Will Fly Away”, “I Saw the Light” and much more.
The unplugged jam session sent festival-goers heading out of the Empire Polo Club after about 15 minutes, a spectacle that might best be described as Moses parting the Red Sea. It was a surprising move on Church’s part, given that his recent setlists seem to fit the type of show many probably expected him to perform.
There was a memorable moment when Church started singing a country and gospel version of Snoop Dogg’s “Gin & Juice” and the line “I’ve got a pocket full of rubbers and so do my homeboys” has never sounded better weird in the same set as the gospel songs. He continued with the potentially even more surprising choice of 2Pac’s “California Love.”
An hour and six minutes into the set, Church still hadn’t said more than “How’s it going?” but he finally played his hit “Springsteen,” one of the real highlights of this confusing set. The other highlight was the talented choir who joined him throughout the set, alongside his long-time collaborator Joanna Cotten, and the various solos which many of the talented singers performed towards the end.
So why did he choose to do a gospel set with the occasional country ballad (and even a few hip-hop hits)? I think we’re all still curious as to what the significance of this set was, but it’s clear he was trying something different.
It wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t what people wanted.
Gn entert
News Source : www.usatoday.com