Billed by Austin's premier folk and songwriter listening room as "The King of Alternative Country," Robbie Fulks was actually damned by faint praise with that line. He may be one of alt-country's biggest heroes, but the Chicago-based talent transcends the clichés and conventions of whatever country music you may choose—alt, trad, mainstream or what have you—to simply be one of the finest musical talents and showmen on the contemporary scene. And in an utterly delightful two-set show that offered some 30 songs over nearly three hours, Fulks proved himself an Emperor of Entertainment, Majesty of Mirth, Demigod of Downhome and Uptown Musical Cool.
Fulks' Austin-based pal Dallas Wayne opened the show with an acoustic set in which his loamy baritone and solid-oak songwriting would have earned him star billing at the Grand Ole Opry circa the 1960s. Then the man himself took the stage solo for a few beginning numbers, delivering "Good-Bye, Good Lookin'" with an authority that doesn't even need a band to hit a homer out of the proverbial park. He was then joined by his longtime bud and master guitarist Robbie Gjersoe—a Chicagoan who now calls Austin home and plays with The Flatlanders and The Greencards—for another mini-set highlighted by their sublime Everlys-style harmonies on "Donna On My Mind."
Once his mighty four-man band (highlighted by fiddler, mandolin player and steel guitarist Fats Kaplan) hit the stage, it was a rollicking feast of pleasurable treats that touched on most all the flavors of country as well as roots and folk rocking, progressive jazz, and bossa nova (on "Let's Live Together"). Fulks treated listeners to a generous sampling of songs from his latest opus of country as it should be, Georgia Hard—cheeky gems like "Wedding Of The Bugs" and "Cigarette State," Michael Jackson's "Black Or White" (from Fulks' legendary To Michael, Love Robbie album), and swooning romanticism on "Banks Of The Marianne" and "South Richmond Girl."
In between and even within some numbers, Fulks proved a hilarious raconteur who can crack up an audience like the best stand-up comic. He's a masterful guitarist (which he teaches at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music), a songwriter of near infinite variety and impact, and a singer who spans the range from silly to serious with aplomb. Ending the night with encores that included a jug band rendition of his signature tune "Fuck This Town," a delectable straight-up reading of Ronnie Milsap's "Pure Love," and a killer punch rave-up of "Cocktails" (that included a devastatingly hilarious send-up of alt-country über-brat Ryan Adams), Fulks ruled the roost with an entertainment experience second to none on any and all counts.
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