One: During the first half of the night, in which Ms. Newsom and band were joined by the Brooklyn Philharmonic, there was one particularly striking instrumental passage of unaccompanied harp. The cascade of notes reminded me of a passage from Erik Davis’s deeply comprehensive article on the making of Ys in which the kora was mentioned. I thought it oddly serendipitous that noted kora player Toumani Diabaté had passed through New York City the day before.
Two: It should be noted that watching drummer Neal Morgan was pretty much a joy throughout the night. During the first half, there was something inherently tactile about the way in which he played that contrasted with virtually everyone else on stage. (That may have been due to his bare feet, or the way in which he occasionally wrapped himself around his drum.) For the second half, stage banter gave way at one point to a lengthy conversation on the subject of the Obama campaign, which met with a warm reception from the audience.
Three: The second half of the set found the audience faced with a four-piece band. With a harp/violin/tambura*/drum dynamic set up, the feel was distinctly Irish, notably on Joanna Newsom & the Ys Street Band‘s “Colleen”. Not unlike the kora moment, a point at which many things came together.
Four: Introducing her encore, Karen Dalton was mentioned. Once again: cue the light bulb.
*-I was in the balcony. If I’ve completely botched the non-banjo instrument being played, please let me know.
Startling admission: I’m pretty sure I’ve never heard a Joanna Newsom album in its entirety.