Get On The Train: Railroad Earth at Irving Plaza

Todd Sheaffer‘s voice and guitar-playing forms an incredible base for a band. Back in the day I saw From Good Homes on the H.O.R.D.E. tour and really enjoyed Todd’s performance. Railroad Earth is made up of musicians who do an even better job of playing with and pushing Todd. The phrasings and tones that came from Sheaffer’s guitar were unique and always kept me on my toes.

Contrary to what I had heard, the band isn’t straight-up bluegrass by any means: There were a few spacey jams, some tight improvisation, and even a few rockers. Each member of the band really pulled their weight. Drummer Carey Harmon not only kept a steady beat, he showed off his amazing vocal talents backing up Sheaffer. Tim Carbone dropped some crazy fiddle solos and added a nice layered sound to the mix when he wasn’t ripping those solos. Andy Goessling seemed to break out a new instrument for each song, which kept things interesting. Johnny Grubb is a solid upright bassman, and John Skehan adds great mando playing to the band’s sound.

Photo by Mike Davis

Long Way To Go and Elko got incredible responses from the crowd. When the band launched into Head, a tune Sheaffer wrote for From Good Homes, the crowd went ballistic. I’ve seen about 40 concerts at Irving over the years, but nothing compared to the hoots and hollers that were coming from Railroad Earth’s audience during that song. I was downstairs by the band’s merch table and the amount of stomping going on upstairs made me worried the ceiling would come crumbling down. It also made me wonder how this band had flown under my radar for so long. Never again.

Ollabelle, featuring Levon Helm’s daughter Amy, opened the show. Amy and her bandmate Fiona McBain joined Railroad Earth for an incredible version of the Sensational Nightengale’s My Sisters and Brothers (you may know that tune from many a Jerry Garcia Band show). The tone coming from Sheaffer’s acoustic guitar reminded me of Garcia throughout the evening, so it was nice to hear his take on a song Jerry made famous.

Photo by Mike Davis

At about 11pm Sheaffer announced that they had one song left. I was surprised, as the previous week TLG had just started their show around 11. After a quick encore I left the venue with a big smile on my face.

Try to go to a Railroad Earth gig and not smile, I dare you.

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10 Responses

  1. Great Review- Railroad Earth is one of the most under-rated bands out there – they should be headlining theaters

  2. these guys are some of the best musicians out there…and they all found eachother. Great songwriting, great vocals, great feel, awesome crowds. Your line about leaving with a smile is right on…it’s impossible not to.

  3. VEry nice review. Last year, I had left Red Rocks very disappointed with a double bill of Ratdog and String Cheese Incident. Four days later, I saw RRE at Cervantes play a show that made both bands look like a total joke. RRE is the complete package: Rock-solid songwriting with plenty of substance, high quality musicianship and most of all…passion! I’ve been seeing RRE since 2002 and look forward to tomorrow night at the Fox, where I know they and the Duhks will produce a high quality evening of music.

  4. i know johnny grub went to school at Appalachian state many moons ago, always a talented musician, would like to check out RR earth as I have never seen them, keep up the good work Scotty I love reading hidden track on my lunch break everyday

  5. Nice review ScottyB! The Portland show was just as much a revelation for me.

    I wish these guys were around when I lived in Jersey. (I’m sure I probably saw From Good Homes, but they didn’t make nearly the impression on me that RRE has.)

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