Every month should be Women’s History Month if it means more shows like the Leading Ladies of Americana, including, Katy Tessman, Jillian Rae, Laura Hugo and Sammie Jean Cohen. The music was gorgeous and even under the umbrella of Americana, each artists had her own distinctive sound, which is exactly why we need to see more women play gigs together.
But before I even get into the show, I have to give a nod to the location, The Cabooze. It hasn’t aged a minute since I was going there in high school. Or course, it wasn’t that young or new then either. It looks the same and in my group, we were remembering some of the awesome shows we had seen there is the past. It’s a huge barn of a place with a great patio and a The Joint next door for when you need a little quiet.
Back to the music. The night started with Sammie Jean. She has such a strong bluesy voice and is a world class whistler. The two paired together make for some interesting songs. A personal highlight was, Do You Believe in Love, an existential searching song about dating.
Katy Tessman followed with full band (the Turnbuckles) and two generations on stage with her son, Louis Tessman Stanoch. Katy just lifts a room and fills it with boundless energy. She played Seven Sisters, a song she also played in studio with us last weekend. It’s a song that celebrates the sisterhood, an ethos that Katy lives. For example, she made the second Leading Ladies of Americana happen last night with planning, promoting and playing. It was
Laura Hugo also brought a full band, which I’ve seen a few times now. Laura’s music is so intimate. She generously shares the stories of her life and deaths in her music and between songs. It’s awesome to see her in a coffee shop but even better backed up by her friends. She’s got one song out now, Even a Little Bit, so folks were singing along. I’m hoping we’ll be seeing more of that when more songs get recorded.
Jillian Rae batted clean up with her full band alongside her. Jillian can put the pep in the step of every audience member with just a few notes played on one of her many instruments. He voice is somehow sultry and joyful at the same time and her energy is infectious. It was a great end of a fantastic night of music!
Mostly Minnesota 