Lyle Lovett Live In Texas

One decade's oddity is the next decade's institution. Or at least that's been the case with Lyle Lovett. The Lone Star eccentric emerged in the 1980s ostensibly as a country artist, but it became clear pretty quickly that a Southern accent and a pair of cowboy boots does not a Nashville favorite make. In time, however, Lovett's free-range brand of swing, blues, gospel, folk, and whatever has been embraced by a coterie of fans who have as little interest in genres as their hero. Live in Texas is something of a valentine to them--as well as an in-concert 13-year career summary for the uninitiated. Rife with live staples ("That's Right," "If I Had a Boat," "She's No Lady," and "North Dakota," which features an appearance by Rickie Lee Jones), the 14-track showcase certifies what loyalists have known for years: Lovett is one of the best bandleaders around. He and his crack crew get big and get small as needed, punching up uptempo numbers with brass or stripping down to the bare essentials for ballads. Taking it all in, one can't help concluding there's absolutely nothing odd about that. --Steven Stolder Amazon.com

Awesome, awesome, awesome!!!

Lyle Lovett, to the casual observer, is considered a country-singer. To the more-than-casual observer, he is considered an alternative-country-singer. To the hardcore followers, our description is as follows: "He's a little bit of everything." He definetely has roots in country, but he also has roots and the love for the blues, jazz, and folk-music.

And this live record serves as proof. If you listen to the songs, such as "Here I Am", you can easily see that, despite the big-band arrangement, it could still very well be done in a true-blue country format if he wanted to.

Some take joy in makming fun of Lovett, calling him a "hipster country/cowboy wannabe". Except for the "wannabe" part, I believe Lovett should be referred - in a good way, mind you - as a cowboy/country hipster. In this live album, as well as his studio albums, he is basically saying, "Hey, I love country-music. But what would happen if we took a country-song and turned it into a jazz-number? A blues-number?"

If we're completely honest, Lovett's incorporation of jazz, blues, and big-band has helped attract people to country-music who might not pay heed to it in the first place.

I know I'm rambling, but, if you take a listen to this live album, everything I've written here will make sense.

Peace and God bless. June 3, 2008

Lyle leads a great band

This is a great live album. Lovett has a fantastic band of about 16-18 people, and this album really showcases the talent that he has surrounded himself with.

The recording is top-notch, and the songs are all good. I have seen him live, and this is an excellent representation of what you'll get... You won't be disappointed. June 18, 2007

Great live recording

If you've been to one of the concerts, you'll love this live recording. A great companion to Lyle Lovett and His Large Band studio album (I still have that on cassette) November 10, 2006

CD t hat makes you smile!

What a great CD. A talented artist with intelligent,funny lyrics at his best LIVE! August 25, 2006

Captures Great Energy of LIVE Peformance :)

After seeing Lyle in Oshkosh, Wisconsin last month, I find that I have been playing LL's live album in the car over and over remembering what a professional performance I saw at Leach Amphitheatre. It was a warm night,with temps in the high 80's with a half-moon rising over the nearby river, much like a Texas night. Lyle played for two and a-half hours. It was a great and relaxing time for my wife Debbie and I. A perfect evening. WOW! July 31, 2006

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