NASHVILLE'S MOST WANTED
Ft. William Michael Morgan
Tuesday November 2, 2021
@ Scoreboard Bar & Grill in Nashville, TN
(Review by: Jeffrey Kurtis)
Cody Purvis continues to be a very bright spot in Nashville’s overcrowded music scene with his weekly live concert series, Nashville’s Most Wanted. The show has become a consistent source for hearing great music from renowned established acts, top songwriters, and Nashville’s strongest emerging talent.
This week, Purvis welcomed headlining act William Michael Morgan to the stage at the Music Valley hotspot, the Scoreboard Bar & Grill.
The Mississippi native first burst onto our radio in 2015 with his #1 smash “I Met a Girl,” and has since continued to establish himself as one of country music’s most reliable male artists by delivering a fresh brand of traditionally bent country.
Morgan has most recently given us original songs such as “Whiskey Kinda Night,” “Girl Like Mine,” and “Cowboy Cool,” as well as stellar covers of both Charlie Rich’s “Behind Closed Doors” and Dave Loggins “Please Come to Boston.”
In front of an enthusiastic, Tuesday night crowd who were clearly in the mood to hear a great classic country sound as was evident from their reaction to opening acts Kristen and Kimberly Kelly, William Michael Morgan used his hour and twenty-minute timeslot to completely satisfy their itch.
Balancing his set with a 50/50 split, the first half of it contained mostly his favorite songs from his 2016 Vinyl album and a slight taste of new material that he’s been recently recording, while the second half of it was chalk full of the songs that he listened to growing up that helped shape him and his music today.
He launched into his set with his top 40 single “Missing,” and followed it quickly with “Beer Drinker,” a song which he dedicated to the truck drivers, first responders, and anyone out there getting it done, and he was able to instantly entice the crowd and pull them into his set while showcasing his pure vocal talent that playing acoustic really allowed him to put on display.
“Well, I guess we might as well play some country music,” Morgan playfully stated as the crowd clapped along in approval. “One of my favorite artists is rightfully so called “The King of Country Music,” Morgan said, allowing the crowd to cheer at the mention of George Strait’s nickname before playing “The Chair,” which brought several couples to front of the stage to hold each other close as they danced throughout the classic hit song.
With a smile and a thank you nod to the dancing couples as the song’s final notes were played, Morgan then lifted back up the tempo with the toe-tapping “Somethin’ to Drink About,” honored a request from host Cody Purvis with “Lonesomeville,” and had the crowd bopping along with the groove-laden “Workin’.”
“I’ve recorded about 6 or 7 songs for a new album that I’ve been working on,” explained Morgan, “and we’re gonna try a few of them here tonight that me and Sam Banks (pointed at guitarist to his right) wrote together,” he finished as he played “Just Not Letting Go,” before Banks took over the lead vocals on “Might Be On To Something.”
“This is a song I released when I was with Warner Brothers. It was my first at country radio, and we pushed the hell out of it all the way up to #1. I’m blessed for that, and I still get to play shows today because of it,” he told as he immediately had the crowd singing along with him while he played “I Met a Girl.”
With the first half of his set completed and the crowd already totally invested in it, Morgan shifted gears for the second half of his set by keeping the crowd’s spirits amped while focusing solely on the cover songs that shaped him, but those that also gave the crowd the chance to continue singing along with him.
“Don’t Rock the Jukebox,” “Luckenbach, Texas,” and “Baby, Don’t Get Hooked on Me,” a Mac Davis song which Morgan told was recorded for an album of his favorite country classics that will be releasing soon, kicked off the second half of his set while skillfully allowing him to give a nod of his true appreciation to the traditional country sound.
He honored legends with the iconic “Who’s Gonna Fill Their Shoes,” satisfied an audience request with “Miami, My Amy,” had the crowd shoulder dancing with the up-tempo rhythm of “It’s a Little Too Late,” and riled them up with Hank Jr.’s “Dinosaur,” before closing with “Are The Good Times Really Over,” which he introduced by first asking the crowd, “We’re gonna do one more, so how ‘bout a Merle Haggard song?”
FULL SET LIST
1) Missing
2) Beer Drinker
3) The Chair (George Strait cover)
4) Somethin’ To Drink About
5) Lonesomeville
6) Workin’
7) Just Not Letting Go
8) Might Be On To Something
9) I Met a Girl
10) Don’t Rock the Jukebox (Alan Jackson cover)
11) Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love) (Waylon Jennings cover)
12) Baby, Don’t Get Hooked on Me (Mac Davis cover)
13) Who’s Gonna Fill Their Shoes (George Jones cover)
14) Miami, My Amy (Keith Whitley cover)
15) It’s a Little Too Late (Mark Chesnutt cover)
16) Dinosaur (Hank Williams Jr. cover)
17) Are The Good Times Really Over (I Wish a Buck Was Still Silver) (Merle Haggard cover)