JOE PURDY with THE GIVING TREE BAND at Lee’s Palace, Wednesday, June 13. Rating: NNN
It was only the second night of his tour with openers and backing group The Giving Tree Band, but Arkansas-born songwriter Joe Purdy was tired. Despite that, he put on a generous (over two hour long) show, fueled by whiskey and requests from the audience.
Purdy owes part of his cult following to song placements on shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Lost, but he isn’t without an edge. His banter is idiosyncratically awkward and personal, and he contorts his face and wails when he gets deep into a song.
He trades in done-wrong Americana for the most part, but when he gets it right, he hits an emotional chord. I Love The Rain The Most (off of 2004’s Julie Blue) is a good example.
In contrast, seven-piece The Giving Tree Band were shiny, tight, and eager to please, during their opening set, swapping instruments with ease, and finishing off with folk headbanging at the front of the stage. A little hard to believe as songwriters, but entertaining and smooth performers nonetheless.
