Chris Denny @ The Living Room 4/8/09

After Riley and Co. went to see Chris Denny and Graham Wilkinson at Duke's in Chicago last week and came back with such rave reviews (and also promised Chris himself that I'd attend in NY) I wanted to make sure I made it to the performance at The Living Room last night.

I made it to The Living Room around 9 and as I settled into a spot at a front bar and said excuse me to the dreadlocked gentleman at the table near my stool I realized I was sitting next to our night's performers. I said hello to Graham Wilkinson and Chris Denny and explained that I had heard good things about the Duke's show in CHI and was looking forward to their set tonight. The gents were both gracious in remembering Riley and Big D from that show and we laughed about their performance of "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" with Duke's owner Neil.
The guys explained they had been traveling pretty heavily and had just made the trip down from an upstate show the night before. One could tell that life on the road certainly had its ups and downs as these guys needed a few beers to catch their stride for the night.
I left them alone and after a few more beverages made my way to the rear of the Living Room to get a spot for the performance. Guest photographer, TA, and I waited patiently for Graham and Chris' set as 11PM became more like 11:30, but when they came on it was immediately evident that this would be worth the wait.
Graham Wilkinson started things off with a few high energy tunes and set the table for Chris to take the stage.

He played a short set of about five tunes; sprinkling in some new tunes, including one I think Riley caught in CHI.
There were a couple tunes off Chris' 07 release Age Old Hunger, including "Heart's on Fire."
While Chris' set was brief, he played two songs solo and the rest with the band, I remained amazed at his voice and vocal range. He sounds a lot like Roy Orbison to me and when looking at him I kept being impressed that this booming sound could be generated by a rather diminutive figure. It was well worth the wait to see him and he remained gracious throughout the night as I told him how much my Dad enjoyed his music. Go pick up Chris' CD Age Old Hunger. You can listen to a number of his tracks on his myspace page and find his tour dates as well. Be sure to check him out when he comes to your town.
Upcoming Tour Dates
Apr 10 2009 THE LANTERN - BLACKSBURG, VA.
Apr 11 2009 BOONE SALOON - BOONE, NC
Apr 12 2009 POUR HOUSE MUSIC HALL - RALEIGH, NC
Apr 13 2009 THE FISHTANK - LEXINGTON, KY
Apr 14 2009 THE RED LINE TAP - CHICAGO, IL
Apr 15 2009 NORTHSIDE TAVERN - CINCINATTI, OH
Apr 16 2009 WHITEWATER TAVERN - LITTLE ROCK, AR
Apr 17 2009 THE GREEN ELEPHANT - DALLAS, TX

*Special thanks to TA for the pics.