hooves on the turf

From the first of the two November 13, 2006 shows: Newsom started with an impeccable performance of a few solo tunes—”Bridges and Balloons,” a traditional Scottish song, and “Sadie”. A request for “Emily” came in early in the show, at which Newsom said with a smile, I’ll get to that in a while. Then - her three-piece band appeared with a female vocalist, and to everyone’s delight she announced they were going to play the new record start to finish. And so they did with greatest sensitivity, the songs meticulously arranged for a four-piece. After “Only Skin,” perhaps knowing there was only one more tune from the album to go, the audience took time to pre-emptively hoot and encore-applaud, at which Newsom turned to her band with a shrug and an inquisitive look. After the slow and quiet finish of “Cosmia,” she came back solo, ending with “Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie” and “The Book of Right-On.” Then - she just ran off the stage.