GLORIA ANDERSON

Pickin’ on the Plaza

Thursday June 22, 2023

@ PNC Plaza Stage at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN

(Review By: Jeffrey Kurtis)

The Ryman Auditorium, affectionately referred to by its nickname of the Mother Church of Country Music, throws back to its earliest foundations every summer when Springer Mountain Farms presents their ultra popular series, Bluegrass Nights at The Ryman.

Celebrating the 80th anniversary of the birth of Bluegrass happening on their very stage, the atmosphere outside the building was absolutely buzzing ahead of night #1 as Sierra Hull and East Nash Grass were readying to take the stage inside.

However, outside those hallowed walls on the PNC Plaza Stage, the spirit of Bill Monroe radiated through his bronze statue as it metaphorically tipped a hat to generation next as rising sensation Gloria Anderson played the Pickin' on the Plaza pre-show, igniting the gathering crowd and toasting them with a blend of Americana and bluegrass flavors and a strong appreciation for country music's storytelling ideals.

"This is a murder song," Anderson smirked with slyness in her grin as she opened with "Owl Hollow," allowing plenty of room for the dobro, mandolin, and fiddle to instantly pull in the bluegrass bred crowd as she dripped her vocal into the tale of cheating, love, lust, and revenge. 

"I wrote this next song about moving here, being a writer, and missing back home," she said as she injected a mountain flavor into "In Texas," paying homage to her home state while spotlighting the values that growing up there taught her.

"So, I claim Texas as home, but I was actually born in Charleston, SC. I haven't been back there since I was 2 or 3, though, so I don't really feel that I can claim it as home," she confessed before playing "Lighthouse," pouring her heart into a long-distance love letter that sung of her yearning to reconnect with her birth state.

"I've got a few dreams in life. The first is to play music like we are here tonight, but the other is to move to Montana when I'm older and have horses, goats, and bake cookies," she endearingly smiled as she sang straight to who she referred to as “the old me,” painting pictures of her future life through "Marry Montana" while presenting a catchy melody that had several in the crowd slapping their toes on the cement in perfect rhythm.

"Saguaro," a song inspired during a recent trip to Arizona, saw Gloria intriguingly embracing the western desert aura and fusing it with her natural Appalachia style to weave a tale that poignantly spoke directly to taking time to grow.

"This next one is a true story and that's all I'm gonna say about that," Gloria chuckled as she dropped into the one two plucking of "San Marcos River," pulling the crowd through the worried parent franticness of the story that told of the day she innocently got lost while out having fun on the river, igniting a town wide search party for her that she was none the wiser about.

"This is the first song I ever put out and it got some things started for me," humbly said Gloria. "And it's crazy to be playing it for you now outside the Mother Church," she gratefully spoke as she softened the pace with the heart tugging "Yours."

"This next song is about one of the times I went to Florida and learned a lot about the person I was walking along the riverside with," she introduced as heads began to bob in time with “St. John River" while the mandolin and dobro flared the bluegrass flavor of the atmosphere as the bass pumped the rhythm and Gloria sat her voice squarely in its natural pocket to enthrall the crowd.

"This past August I got to go out to Wyoming and spend about twenty hours on horseback which was amazing, but my boots were right atop the sage brush…and I didn't realize how tough sage brush was," quizzingly shared Anderson as "Sage Brush Soulmate" paid heartfelt homage to the person standing strongly by your side through everything.

"Where The Swing Bands Get Hired" then saw her presenting her love story to the Texas Hill Country she grew up playing music in, painting vivid pictures of each map dot to expertly transport the audience to the Lone Star State alongside the cry of fiddle, thump of bass, and picking of the mandolin.

"This is my one drinking song of the night," Anderson said as "Genie" let her softly pour her rich vocal into the intro before a two-stepping rhythm infused the song with a melody that saw her smiling as she bounced along on stage, competing with the enthusiasm of the crowd who were doing the same.

After pugging the Sierra Hull show that was now drawing near and thanking all those who served in the military to great applause, Anderson then delivered the powerful title track of her album "Households," taking us inside the walls of her childhood home to sing us through the good, the bad, and the secrets that each memory holds.

Staying on the inspiration drawn from her childhood, "Front Porch" then brought an unmistakable Sunday morning feel to the setlist as the Mother Church appropriately loomed in the foreground while Anderson continued to put on a pure vocal display that showed off her songwriting expertise as her gentle brush strokes painted the idea of her dream home.

"Walker Canyon" twisted into a traditional country flash as she pumped through the up-tempo song that derived from a true story moment of when she and her family were evacuated from their home in Colorado due to impending fires on the nearby mountain.

Dedicated to the songwriters in the crowd, "Small Town Big Time Stars" travelled the journey of pounding the pavement to chase after music dreams, encompassing all that comes with it; the living, the losing, the ups, and the downs that somehow all work together to keep you motivated and plugging away one step at a time.

Sans the backing band, acoustic guitarist Max joined his voice with Gloria’s on the irresistible "Dust Bowl Darling," striking a tale of the backwoods girl who stole his heart over a souped-up tempo that got the excited crowd moving along as they clapped in rhythm.

"I've convinced Max to do another song," smiled Gloria as "Old Friend," a song lifted from the catalog of his band Maxwell & The Shakes, saw him delivering a heartland feel while singing a cleverly worded ode to his trusty guitar that ignited a rousing sing along with the crowd.

"This has been such an honor to play out here for you tonight," Anderson thankfully gushed with pure appreciation as she rounded out her set with "Jolene" and "Wildwood Baby."

The last time we were blessed to catch a Gloria Anderson performance was at an exciting night in March at the Mockingbird Theater in Franklin, TN to celebrate the release of her Households EP.

It's always so exciting for us to be blessed to witness an incredibly gifted artist/songwriter impressing the masses with their raw talent, but to also watch them taking very precise steps on their career path toward their overall goals.

Gloria Anderson has been making all the right moves since releasing her EP, and that continued tonight with her moving that much closer to achieving a dream of playing the famed Ryman Auditorium stage as she's now only a few mere steps away from it.

FULL SET LIST

1) Owl Hollow

2) In Texas

3) Lighthouse

4) Marry Montana

5) Saguaro

6) San Marcos River

7) Yours

8) St. John River

9) Sage Brush Soulmate

10) Where The Swing Bands Get Hired

11) Genie

12) Households

13) Front Porch

14) Walker Canyon

15) Small Town Big Time Stars

16) Dust Bowl Darling

17) Old Friend

18) Jolene (Dolly Parton cover)

19)Wildwood Baby

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