Ryan Bingham and the Texas Gentlemen Charm Chicago's Vic Theatre
Every time Ryan Bingham rolls into town, it's a classy affair.
A good number of audience members roll up wearing immaculate cowboy hats that go perfectly with their perfectly broken in boots. Flannels are tucked into denim, usually accompanied by a belt buckle, even in Chicago. His most played venue while he's in the Windy City, the historic and beautiful Vic Theatre, has a gorgeous balcony that gives any act stopping by an extra whiff of sophistication.
And you can't say that Mr. Bingham didn't hold up his end of the bargain. Alongside his band who have appropriately rebranded as the Texas Gentlemen, his current tour takes him across the US with no support act to be seen. Every night, Bingham and the Gentlemen would hit the stage as the first, last, and only act of the evening and would play two separate sets with a 25 minute intermission in the middle. Intermissions are always a very clear sign of a classy event.
It's not breaking news to say that Ryan Bingham has one of the most distinct voices in all of music. His throat sounds barrel-aged over 9 consecutive record setting winters. But between having such a distinct sound and the march of time that pauses for no one, you always have to wonder in your mind when things are going to start falling off. The good news? Bingham sounded better than ever as he eased into 'Nothin' Holds Me Down' and 'Jingle and Go' to kick the evening off. Hell, he practically used the entire first set to show off, casually hitting the high notes in the chorus of 'Twist the Knife' before diving immediately into an absolutely punishing cover of the Allman Brothers' 'Whipping Post'. No notes were missed. No cracks in his voice. Not once was a song pushed to a lower octave for the live performance. Just 2+ hours of pure vocal mastery.
The Texas Gentlemen deserve their flowers too, settling in as all the best backing bands do: each individually stepping up when needed but for the most part blending into the show seamlessly and ceding the spotlight to their fearless leader. They're a band that plays like they've spent years in cramped tour busses and communicate more though grunting noises and winks than actual conversation. On the aforementioned 'Whipping Post' (and also during high tempo numbers like 'Sunrise' and 'Tell My Mother I Miss Her So'), everyone usually got a chance to individually stand out, breaking out in a hellacious solo for a few bars before settling back into the continuing groove.
After intermission, the second set that was deeper, looser, and in a few spots a little weirder. The juxtaposition of going from the quiet and introspective 'The Poet' followed by the raging 'Let the Big Dog Eat' really set the tone for the rest of the evening, where songs about grappling with mortality ('Hallelujah') shared equal space with songs just meant to get people moving their asses on the dance floor ('Southside of Heaven').
Like all classy musicians, Bingham made a special point to pay tribute to one of the greats that came before him. On what would have been Tom Petty's 76th birthday, he and the Gentlemen performed a heartfelt cover of 'Free Fallin''. Hearing an entire room of a historic venue sing the chorus to that song is only going to become more and more of a rare occurrence the more time passes after Petty's death, so every time it happens should be treated as a special occasion.
From there, the final stretch was a master class in how to close a show. 'The Weary Kind' is the song that won Bingham an Oscar and a Grammy, and it's easy to forget how well it holds up when it's being performed live and not rolling over the credits of a dimply lit theatre. 'Southside of Heaven,' 'All Choked Up Again,' and 'Nobody Knows My Trouble' kept the momentum rolling, and 'The Lucky Ones' brought the night to a close with a title that felt like a note to everyone in the room.
Which brings me back to the two sets. Twenty-one songs, no opener, no glancing at your watch, and a band that seemed to enjoy the extra room as much as we did. That's not a show you get from a lineup built around efficiency. It's one you get from a band that trusts its own catalog to carry an entire evening.
Maybe we were the Lucky Ones the whole time for having been there.
Ryan Bingham and the Texas Gentlemen will continue their tour through November. Dates and tickets can be found here.