Country Music Blog: Jack White

Dierks Bentley, John Rich and Gretchen Wilson remember the Station nightclub fire, which occurred five years ago, with an acoustic concert in Rhode Island.

Did you bite into something crunchy at Country Radio Seminar? The health scores for the Nashville Convention Center might explain why the lights were so dim.

Speaking of country radio, is your favorite station among the off-camera nominations for the Academy of Country Music Awards?

Sam Bush, Natalie McMaster and Chris Thile will be playing RockyGrass this summer in Telluride, Colo., and the single-day lineups have been announced.

This rock star produced Loretta Lynn's Grammy-winning album and lives in Nashville. Now, Jack White is rush-releasing a CD by his new band, The Raconteurs.

Going into the Bob Dylan concert at the Ryman Auditorium this week, I had very high expectations. But being a fan, one should always expect the unexpected at a Dylan show.

I got to my seat in time to watch surprise opening act Elvis Costello perform an acoustic set. I’ve seen him before and I thought that his previous performance was rinky-dink but he blew my mind onstage before Dylan. He intimately performed “Veronica” and others wearing sparkling boots while he sipped from a white mug, making the large auditorium feel like a small coffeehouse.

Then Dylan took the stage. He looked more fragile than the time I last saw him. He wore a Western suit with a rhinestone-studded collar. When he strapped on his guitar, I was relieved because I heard he had carpal tunnel and would be playing behind a piano the entire night instead of rocking out on his Fender. He played fan favorites like “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” and “Desolation Row” and opened with “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat,” but, to me, they were unrecognizable. Between his usual inaudible lyrical croaks and the instrument’s random microphone feedbacks, his most familiar songs became foreign. Even his closer, “Blowin’ in the Wind,” sounded unfamiliar.

I felt like Dylan was going through the motions as the set progressed. I expected a show driven by his punk attitude, while filled with a sincerity only a venue like the Ryman could capture. I was disappointed until Jack White from the White Stripes showed up. I was on the balcony near the soundboards to get a better look at Bob while he played electric keyboard. Jack came out with his back to the audience fixing his guitar strap on his shoulder before turning. Jack didn’t have to show his face for me to know who he was. Then I flipped out, “IT’S JACK WHITE! IT’S JACK WHITE!”

Bob seemed happy to see him too because he immediately strapped on his guitar again and grinned, as if playing with Jack made him feel 30 years younger. Jack’s appearance breathed new life into the show as they wailed together on “Meet Me in the Morning.” I felt like I was witnessing an encore performance of The Last Waltz and it left me incapacitated for the rest of the show. In the end, I couldn’t believe the night I had. Thinking about it still gives me chills.