Sam Outlaw

Tuesday October 1st, Bush Hall, London. Sam Outlaw. A rare solo outing for me and it wasn’t a reflection of the band but other commitments, etc for my usual gig going buddies tonight.

It’s a wet and windy night when we start in West London but ninety minutes later Sam Outlaw and his band have brought a bit of Nashville sunshine to this part of the world and the streets are warm and dry when we leave.

As usual for what is one of the best venues in London the sound tonight is very good, and the raised stage allows for perfect sight and sound lines. A good crowd tonight further reinforcing that the country scene in the UK is continually growing and that’s no surprise for someone of the quality of Sam Outlaw. Tonight, he’s backed by a fine band with the addition of super talented Lydia Luce, the support act, on fiddle/viola and vocals along with an excellent slide guitarist for these UK dates.

According to his Wikipedia page Outlaw describes himself as SoCal country and on record its true as he sounds a lot like the recently departed Neal Casal fronting a country band. But whether it’s because he has recently moved to Nashville his voice live is has shifted to a more traditional albeit less twangy country style.

Tonight’s set is a good blend of assorted tracks from his back catalogue, a bunch of new stuff from hopefully an imminent new album and a couple of great covers especially the Lydia led version of the Lucinda Williams song ‘Passionate Kisses’ after which Sam regales us with a great story about meeting Mary Chapin Carpenter who made the song famous.

Highlights on a night of highs were probably ‘Tenderheart’ and ‘Diamond Ring’. A word for the band who although not showy provided the perfect accompaniment driving all of the songs along without fault, well apart from a misplaced Capo but I will forgive them that.

As seems to be the norm for a gig in Bush Hall the night ended with the band unplugging and performing in the middle of the crowd ‘bluegrass’ style with a fabulous version of ‘Angeleno’. The warmth of the crowd reciprocated by the band provided a glow to all those lucky to be here tonight as we floated home on the back of that musical wave.

Till the next time keep on country rockin y’all

Saw Sam in Manchester at the Night and Day cafe and can honestly say it was one of most enjoyable gigs I’ve been to. I’m only surprised he’s not playing to huge crowds! The venue is small and intimate which I guess helped make concert so memorable and Sam Outlaw was no exception. His band was fabulous- guitars, fiddle, peddle steel, drums and the sound was Bob on! They were all very talented. Lydia Luce was great support act and also provided vocals and fiddle playing in main event. Great stuff! Played a real range including some new tracks which actually were great and I also loved his cover of Reo Speedwagon track!
Was not disappointed and the icing on the cake was when whole band came into the floor and played Angeleno surrounded by crowd all singing. Absolutely brilliant. Would highly recommend seeing Sam Outlaw live! I will certainly be looking out for next tour!

I am a fan of Sam Outlaw and this is the second time I have seen him at Greystones, Sheffield.

This year Sam toured with a band which was better except that at times the band drowned his voice slightly. I saw this is the sound mans problem.

Sam sang from his new album Tenderheart but included a couple of my favourites from his last album- Angeleno and Love Her For A While. He also included a few covers which were equally popular and they were performed well.

Overall, it was a brilliant night out. The venue was extremely hot so how Sam performed I will never know.

The seating was removed before we arrived which was a bad decision and poorly received by the audience who then went and purloined chairs from the pub! We are British and wanted to sit down, so we did...

Sam has the kind of voice I hear in my head for days afterward, and Wayfarer is an intimate venue with a really good sound engineer.
Sam and band seemed a grey and tired after a long tour. Sam said they had just arrived back from Europe, where "nobody believes in Jesus anymore," then used that comment to launch into "Jesus Take the Wheel," God love him.
Sidekick Molly Jennison sang a solo classic, which was a treat.
The Outlaws have a new recording due release in 2 months, I'll be in line for that one.
I pray that this winter Sam has some peace, at home, off the road, enough to recharge his batteries and compose a few more of those 5-star hits.

Very entertaining show 5th of Oct at gosforth ..it’s so refreshing to see artists enjoying there music as well as keeping the public happy . Lidia Luce and Sam complimented each other well musically and the guys on guitars were fab x

What a fantastic performance. Sound was perfectly mixed and a real joy to listen to. Show finished far to early - they could have played all night and I wouldn't have complained !! Great venue and a perfect evening.

Wonderful performance from all acts. Molly and Sam deliver the goods and the band was tight. Sam's lyrics carry weight and meaning delivered in an alt country style that gets people out dancing.

Brilliant! Great voice, great banter and great songs. Molly was amazing too. Like the snippet of the new songs, can’t wait for the album. Would like to see him in a more raucous venue though

Great show. Sam has great contact with the audience. He likes to improvise (playing and singing without microphones). We had a great time yesterday. Hope to see him back in Amsterdam soon.