Texas troubadour Robert Earl Keen is almost as beloved for his stories as for his songs. After he played “Swervin’ In My Lane” during his recent performance of The Birchmere (on the second of three nights), he spoke at length of his relationship with the late Nanci Griffith. She was a judge at the Kerrville New Folk Contest, which he won.

“You almost lost,” she told him, “because you played that Swervin’ song, and it’s a real piece of shit.”

Fortunately, she thought better of many of his other songs, recording “I Would Change My Life” and becoming a mentor to him. She even took him on tour to open for her in Ireland, where Keen says, “She was a rock star.” That affection didn’t extend to him; “the Irish people hated me,” he said.

It was something of a surprise that Keen returned to the area, as he formally retired from the road in 2022. Retirements in music are much like deaths in comic books: They’re never permanent. While Robert was off the road, he did make an album, Western Chill, which just came out digitally earlier this summer. At The Birchmere on August 7, Keen explained it was a band album; everyone came with songs. He played the title track as part of his set.

Watch Robert Earl Keen and his band perform Western Chill for WNCW 88.7 on YouTube:

While Keen is known for his songwriting, he chose to open with a cover of “Amarillo Highway” by fellow Texan Terry Allen, who is known for his visual art as much, if not more, than his music. “Mr. Wolf and Mama Bear,” he said, “gets a lot of applause from kids.” Afer “Comin’ Home,” he mentioned how he was “told if I kept playing ‘The Five-pound Bass, I’d ruin my career.” (Being a lifelong city boy with an aversion to fishing, I have no idea if 5 lbs. is a lot for a bass.)

The set continued with “Lonely Feeling” and “Dreadful Selfish Crime.” After “Paint the Town Beige,” he told the story of how he met his wife at a 5:30 happy hour he was playing in Austin, when she invited Robert to have a drink with her and her friend. They’ve been married for 38 years, which is especially impressive for a musician.

Keen knows how to please a crowd, and he doesn’t hesitate to do it. His set included his most popular songs, “The Road Goes On Forever and the Party Never Ends,” the story of a crime spree committed by a couple of small town losers, and “Merry Christmas from the Fam-O-Lee,” a warm-hearted celebration of how dysfunctional the holidays can be. His encore included one of my favorites, the character study “Corpus Christi Bay.” His set was rounded out with the humorous “Then Came Lo Mein,” “Shades of Gray, “Gringo Honeymoon,” and “Feelin’ Good Again.” He finished his main set with “The Front Porch Song,” which he wrote with Lyle Lovett when they were students at Texas A&M university (he also told a story about how he was put on academic probation and had to attend a junior college), and he sent the audience home with, fittingly, “I Gotta Go.”

Josh Morningstar, a native of Funkstown, Maryland (which is a great name), and current resident of Knoxville, Tennessee, kicked off the evening with a delightful opening set. Morningstar’s style — he’s a storyteller, and he frequently breaks his songs with spoken digressions — reminds me of Todd Snider, as does his outspoken fondness for weed. (He told the audience they might be able to find him in the parking lot after his set, having a smoke, if they wanted to hear the weed song.) Like Snider, Morningstar is an accomplished and sought after songwriter, having written songs with America stalwarts Hayes Carl and Brent Cobb, modern-day outlaw Cody Jinks, and Sunny Sweeney.

“I try to write a song every day,” Josh said. “Some days, I write a song about not being able to write a song.” (I work in prose, but the principle behind this holds up: you just have to get the gears turning, keep the muscles strong and limber.) Josh’s first number was one of these songs, and he had the audience entertained right away. “People have been doing crummy stuff to get ahead for a long time,” he said, referencing the two thieves who were crucified along with Jesus, and he played “Get By (We’re All Just Trying to Make It).”

Watch Josh Morningstar perform “Get By (We’re All Just Trying to Make It)” by Josh Morningstar on YouTube:

I didn’t get the name of the next song, but it was followed by “Sanitarium Lovesick Blues #4702.” He then brought his partner, Madison Casey, on stage for a duet, which was followed by Kris Kristofferson’s “To Beat the Devil,” which he said is “a song I did not write, but I sure as shit wish I did.” He closed with Jerry Lee, a song about Jerry Lee Lewis, which was accompanied by a rather interesting story about how the Killer likely killed his fourth and fifth wives.

I didn’t expect to see Robert Earl Keen again after he hung up his boots a couple of years ago, and it was a pleasant, welcome surprise to have him back and playing for us. His concerts are always a good time, with people singing along to many of the lyrics. And it’s to see why: So many of his songs are all-time greats. And in more good news: He’s bringing back his annual Christmas show, which is always a highlight of the holiday season. I’m anxious to see what theme he picks for it this year.

Here are a few photos of Josh Morningstar opening Robert Earl Keen at The Bichmere on August 7, 2024. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Steve Satzberg.

Here are some photos of Robert Earl Keen headlining The Bichmere on August 7, 2024. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Steve Satzberg.