The Currys’ Christmas Tour
The Currys brought their annual Christmas show to the Heartwood Soundstage, and there was a large, adoring crowd that came for their skintight harmonies, infectious stage humor, and fine songwriting. The Currys are fun. They enjoy playing, and they clearly enjoy having fun themselves when they do it. The have a huge following in Florida, having grown up in the panhandle before relocating to Virginia, and their annual Christmas tour sells out in most venues. With the addition of Heartwood’s outdoor stage, there was plenty of room for their fans for this last show of the tour. In spite of a chill in the air, the venue had added firepits and propane heaters to provide a comfy atmosphere.
The family band (brothers Jimmy and Tommy and cousin Galen) just released their fourth studio album Keepers in October. All of the Currys are songwriters, and the new album shows a clear progression toward more adventurous songwriting and is a well-rounded folk/rock collection of original songs. Along with some Christmas standards and some unrecorded original Christmas songs, their sets include some of the songs that their fans have loved: “Fault Lines,”, “Jose,” “Wrecking Ball,” and “Firestarter.” I was really looking forward to hearing live versions from their newest album, and they provided some solid examples: the title track “Keepers,” the heart-achy “Running Into You,” the hopeful “If You Really Want,” and the Motown vibe of “The Right Things.”
Their slightly twisted original Christmas songs were a treat. The evening kicked off with “I’ll Be Home for Christmas But Only If You Leave” and later in the set we got “Get Off of My Roof,” told from the perspective of a kleptomaniacal child who gets coal every year and is banned from KB Toys for life. “Present is Now” is a more traditional tune that again has an R&B vibe.
Covers of “Blue Christmas” and “Last Christmas” kept things seasonal. One surprise to me was Peter Yarrow’s “Light One Candle,” a 1982 Peter, Paul and Mary Hanukah song that celebrates the Maccabean liberation from the Greek Empire.
The Currys’ self-deprecating humor (including Galen’s jokes, that vie for the worst jokes you’ve heard this or any other year) and off-the-wall observations keep the audience engaged; they’re accessible and unpretentious. You don’t get a night full of angst-ridden anthemic tunes, so don’t expect Blood on the Tracks or Bat Out of Hell. What you do get is carefully crafted substantial folk/soft rock songs presented with beautiful harmonies and subtle instrumentation. At times they are reminiscent of the Thorns, the short-lived early 2000s “supergoup” with Matthew Sweet, Pete Droge and Shawn Mullins. Both of these bands featured ethereal harmonies and quality songwriting. If you get a chance to see The Currys, go for it. You just don’t see disappointed people leaving a Currys show.
Set 1
I’ll Be Home for Christmas But Only If You Leave
Fault Lines
If You Really Want
The Right Things
Wrecking Ball
West of Here
Present is Now
Get Off My Roof
Holly Jolly Christmas
Blue Christmas
Keepers
Set 2
Jose
Firestarter
It’s Beginning
Rudolph
Light One Candle
If I Find It
Running Into You
Last Christmas
Anywhere
White Christmas
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