It’s a real treat when a favorite musical artist comes to the region and plays a cool venue. There are so many non-descript places to see a show and some, like a giant stadium, are just plain impersonal. When I found out that Ryan Adams and the Cardinals were to play at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, Connecticut, I just had to go.
Ryan Adams and the Cardinals
I’ve been a huge fan of Ryan Adams since his breakthrough album Gold was released in 2001. Since then, I’ve followed his career from Rock N Roll to covering classic albums. One of my favorite periods in his career has been his time with the Cardinals band which lasted from 2004 to roughly 2009. It was a time in my life when I voraciously ate up new music, especially by artists that I loved.
The Cardinals blended easygoing and meandering country rock with four-chord rock ‘n roll. There were a few incarnations of the band, but classic albums such as Cold Roses and Cardinology were and are some of my faves.
Ryan has been on a recording streak releasing a slew of new albums over the past two years (with many others in the works). When he reformed the Cardinals (even featuring the great Don Was on bass in this version), I was happily shocked and needed to go see them.
The Palace Theater
I ventured to Waterbury, Connecticut, for the show. The Palace Theater is in a nicely renovated part of the Brass City. The Palace Theater is a majestic 100-year-old theater that was rehabbed and reopened in 2004. The marble, the gilding, and the chandeliers make this a stunner. I certainly was not expecting this in Waterbury. Entering from the street, the lobby rolls out in front of you with staircases flanking both sides. Our seats were in the first row of the mezzanine which gave a perfect bird’s eye view of the stage. Fun fact: before the venue closed in 1987, Tony Bennett was the last artist to grace the stage. When it reopened in 2004, Bennett rechristened the venue once again.
The Cardinals put on quite the show, including a near 20-minute heavy version of “Peaceful Valley” that sounded only in essence like the record. Covers by KISS and Black Sabbath were also on the agenda. The songs were culled only from the Cardinals records with heavy emphasis on Cold Roses, Jacksonville City Nights, and Cardinology. (No Cardinals III/IV or Easy Tiger, which was labeled a Ryan Adams album but featured the Cardinals as his band).
The band scorched for two and a half hours. The meshing of a historic, and awe inspiring venue with the Cardinals was a match made in rock lore. For more music reviews, check out this article.
