Note: I also posted this review at SacMusicBlog.

Singer/songwriter Jackson Browne was in town at our Community Center Theater the other night and showed once again why he is one of the best songwriters around. Most people may know his hits from the seventies, but he’s continued to write, record, and perform since then. His latest album of original material (Time The Conqueror) came out a few years ago.

This tour is solo and acoustic. It was just him, a keyboard, and seventeen (!) guitars. Yes, they each have different songs in them. The songs ranged from really good to excellent and spanned his entire career. There were plenty of hits and well-known songs, like The Pretender, Running On Empty, For Everyman, Jamaica Say You Will, These Days, Late For The Sky, In The Shape of a Heart, Take It Easy, For a Dancer, Something Fine, and more, but he highlighted the last couple decades too, with strong material like Sky Blue and Black, Going Down to Cuba, Looking East, The Barricades of Heaven, Two of Me Two of You, and more. And a new unrecorded song too.The encore was a mesmerizing song that he wrote a few years back for his girlfriend: My Stunning Mystery Companion. You can throw away all that junk in the top ten charts, this is a REAL love song.

The show lasted close to three hours with a 15-20 minute intermission. And there was never a dull moment. He’s personable and gave some introductions about some of the songs. But mostly it was the songs. If you listen closely to Late For The Sky or In The Shape Of A Heart or Sky Blue and Black, you might give up songwriting forever. Who could even come close? I mean what’s the point of even trying?  Ok, ok, that might be a bit much but he is a master at his craft and the sold-out crowd was cheering wildly. If you were there, you know. If not, don’t miss him next time!

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