THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, October 13, 1994 TAG: 9410130048
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E5 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: MUSIC REVIEW
SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 50 lines
TALK ABOUT a night of contrasts - some cigarettes (cough-cough), a few sexy cowgirls, a lot of beer and the New Testament.
That was Shenandoah at Heartbreak Alley.
They played to a capacity crowd - on a Tuesday, yet. One reason might have been the ticket price - only $7.50. Is there a lesson there, somewhere?
Another reason, of course, is Shenandoah's popularity. They garnered some lengthy applause, the lengthiest for ``If Bubba Can Dance,'' which they performed twice.
Once, a song was introduced with a quote from John 13. Naturally, the subject was love.
There were plenty of love songs - great opportunities for lead singer Marty Raybon's voice to really show what it can do - but the accent was on uptempo.
The members of Shenandoah, all deeply religious, dedicated Christians, can still really kick butt, often getting the audience to join in on the musical fun.
Raybon, an ingratiating guy, knows how to work an audience.
Often, after a song he acknowledged the applause by saying ``thank you, music lovers.''
Rock music lovers would have enjoyed the Shenandoah tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughn. Otherwise, it was a solid country night - a Marty Raybon night.
The band is quite good and they got some opportunities to jam (particularly Jim Seales with some fine guitar work), but the lead singer was the dominant figure - a la Randy Owen and Alabama, unlike Little Texas.
Interestingly, and we didn't realize it until concert's end, Shenandoah has had a lot of hits - really good items such as ``The Church on Cumberland Road'' ``Sunday in the South'' ``Next to You, Next to Me,'' and their seventh No. 1 hit, ``I Wanna Be Loved Like That.
Tuesday, those songs were mixed with offerings from ``Vicinity of the Heart,'' the group's next album due for November release.
Due for a lot of credit, too, is the opening act, Easy Street, an area band that has been knocking around for several years. ILLUSTRATION: MUSIC REVIEW
Shenandoah with Easy Street Band
Tuesday at Heartbreak Alley in Newport News
by CNB