Campfire music

We had advance warning. Bill Frisell and Arve Henrikson had never ever played together, not in public, and not even in a practice room. They blithely took the stage and drove the first number against a tree firmly.

What they did with the wreck of that was not exactly great music, but their attempt to make something work, and above all, to entertain the audience, was so honest and likeable, that it made you smile anyway. Henrikson mostly took the lead, he had canned atmospheres on his laptop, which helped the duo going until sombedy stumbled over a riff or something that would keep proceedings moving. Between the computer, stuff to augment the trumpet with (effects or a sax mouthpiece), and his surprisingly good vocals, Henriksen had quite an arsenal at his disposal to keep us all in a good mood, and for the finale he organised the least cringe-inducing singalong I ever croaked to. Frisell mostly just sat there, enjoyed the show and played some country licks.

I think these must be very nice people. Such warmth exuding from the stage. Joni Mitchell’s Both Sides Now as the encore. Campfire music.