It's Miller Time

I went to see Steve Earle at the Barbican last night - just the man, his guitar and his mandolin. I saw him do an acoustic set with the Del McCoury Band a few years back but I've never seen him just by himself. Needless to say he was utterly magnificent.

I may do a Steve-themed post some time soon but today we focus on last night's support act, Rhett Miller. He was also on his own and generally made a good impression. He is probably better suited to a more intimate and slightly less formal venue, but he has a nice way with a tune and very expressive knee movements.

As well as releasing records under his own name, Rhett is also the frontman of The Old 97's. Here is a small selection of his work under different guises:

"I Need To Know Where I Stand" - Rhett Miller (from "Rhett Miller", 2009)

"Fireflies" - Rhett Miller & Rachel Yamagata (from "The Believer", 2006)

"Barrier Reef" - The Old 97's (from "Too Far To Care", 1997)

In "Barrier Reef", Rhett asks "What's so fine about art?". I imagine that is intended to be a Rhett-orical question (sorry), but it is such a silly one that it is not worth trying to respond seriously. Which is why I am going to leave the response to Boney M.