Those who follow Jackson Browne know his songwriting has two sides, the personal and the political. Early on, Browne staked his reputation on confession and introspection, with powerful albums like 1974’s “Late For The Sky” and “The Pretender,” released following his wife’s suicide in 1976.
Then in the 1980s, Browne began backing causes from “No Nukes” to Amnesty International. If his conscience broadened, his music stiffened, and it wasn’t until 1993’s “I’m Alive” that Browne again embraced intimate soulscapes in song.
Browne’s latest release, “Looking East” (Elektra), marks an earnest attempt to meld the two sides. At times, the musicianship may seem slick as an L.A. sunbather, but the title track’s restless questioning is worthy of pause: “How long have I left my mind to the powers that be?/ How long will it take to find the higher power moving in me?”
Not that Browne fans need to worry. Tuesday’s concert at the Star Plaza Theatre in Merrillville, Ind., proved that Browne has a third side he saves for concerts: the performer.
In an energetic, 18-song show graced by lucid sound and musicianship, Browne took his chances, spotlighting more than a half-dozen tunes from his new album. In the process, Browne and his seven-member backup band injected urgency and muscular backbeat to the material that, if captured in the studio, could’ve taken “Looking East” to a higher level.
That’s puzzling, considering that the live band members, including standout guitarist Mark Goldenberg and drummer Mauricio Lewak, are essentially the same crew that played on the new album. But the difference in feel was apparent on songs like “The Barricades of Heaven,” where the band played with just a bit less polish and more urgency.
Browne’s voice bore a raspy edge as he sang about youth viewed from the rear view mirror, “When I was sixteen and on my own/ No, I couldn’t tell you what the hell those brakes were for.” A volley of anthemic, G-key riffs between Goldenberg and organist Jeffrey Young melted in the song’s tag like fading tail lights–a moody effect enhanced by the stage lighting.
On “Culver Moon,” Kevin McCormick’s lean bass stylings played a perfect complement to Luis Conte’s percussion rattles, as Browne and the band chugged with infectious joy. The crowd responded in kind, but saved their strongest reactions for familiar hits like “Rock Me On The Water.”
Here, Browne’s band laid down a gospel-tinged groove spiced with slide guitar, and as Browne launched into “Doctor My Eyes,” the crowd clapped along with the familiar piano-and-bongo intro. Listening to this song proved haunting, for after two decades, it seems the 47-year-old Browne’s voice hasn’t aged a day (neither has his look–same slim build, same shoulder-length hair parted just off center). Kudos to Goldenberg, for launching a solo of escalating runs with clever, cutting dynamics.
If one of two encores produced the predictable medley of “The Load Out” and “Stay,” then the moment was given a buoyant jolt when six of Browne’s burly roadies gathered around a microphone to sing falsetto backups.
