CMT Blog: Archive

Pete Yorn came through Nashville last night (July 16) on tour behind his new album, Back and Fourth. Last time I saw him in town, he played at the Ryman, but this time around he was at a former warehouse called the Cannery Ballroom. I actually preferred seeing him in the smaller room because his cool California melodies fit the vibe of a club more than a theatre. He's a fine singer-songwriter, yes, but he's a rock star, too. (Plus he doesn't seem to have aged a day.) Even though he's creatively a bit rougher around the edges than a typical Nashville musician, his original songs draw from the same well as the country classics -- regret, bad decisions and convincing yourself to keep on keeping on.

I can't believe it's been eight years since he released musicforthemorningafter -- one of my all-time favorite albums, especially when you can absorb all the studio effects through headphones. I was 26 when that record came out. Wow. On that note, I don't remember the last time when I was the same age as everybody else in a music venue. And since it was an early show, I was in bed by 11 p.m. Hard to believe I could make it to work today without that morning-after remorse.

By the way, if you want to catch up on what he's doing now, the new record has quite a few strong songs on it. I especially like "Paradise Cove," "Last Summer" and "Country." I also picked up an EP at the merch table that has two tunes with Natalie Maines on harmony. He's touring heavily through August, all over the U.S. Hopefully I can catch him again down the road.