Listening to a few stories by Hayes Carll

Hayes Carll's concert at Threadgill's was more like a campfire experience.

He didn't pad the lyrics with more than the essentials. And, along the journey, he shared honest stories that inspired the songs. 

And, for sure, he was adored by his followers and completely invested.

Watching him perform was like sitting alongside a campfire with a bunch of old friends.  Carll lifted stage barriers by inviting a super-fan on stage to help him sing Another Like You. But, even with the lyrics on her phone and years of watching Carll tour, the super-fan missed "the main part." Carll joked and let her have it as if they'd been friends forever. The crowd roared with laughter. It was the most united moment in the show.

In between songs, Carll was real about the hard work it took to make it as a musician. He told this Croatian shower story. He had spent time in Croatia and he said much of the country at that time was out of work, so he and a few others, had a lot of downtime for sports. At one time, he ended up in the showers with a group of big Croatian men. He said that it didn't appear things were going to go in any right direction. He said all of the men lined up and asked him, in their towels, staring right at him with expectation, "So is everything really bigger in Texas?" Carll laughed and said after that moment, he made a non-team sport commitment. 

He joked about a job with the Census team. He saw that was helpful to at least have work every ten years. And, it gave him time for his music.

And, he shared stories that not only inspired him as musician, but as a songwriter.

He said The Magic Kid song was about his son who would not give up on his dream to become a magician, even when everyone- -even his own dad, was telling him to move on. 

And, Carll wouldn't let things get too serious. He went on to brag about his son being invited into an Austin "magician not-musician" academy. He added they meet Mondays at IHOP (just in case anyone wanted to join them). 

After the song, Carll's son showed off his cards. Between songs, he shared a trick with the audience. 

At the end of a song or two, the magic kid, age 11, would make gun pointing gestures at the stage as if directing the end of a song. He was a shy clown in the back rafters in his own little world.

Hayes Carll

Carll not only had depth and comedic timing, he had a real warmth in his performance style. You got the feeling after the concert, he was just going to go home like the rest of us, put up his feet and just hang out. He was the first musician I've seen in a long time that seemed to check his ego at the door.

He invited audiences into a journey to hear his story and yet to become a part of those stories too.  And, you got the feeling anyone was invited.

He appreciated the audience genuinely as much as they appreciated him. He said, “It’s nice to play with less people, but when a lot of people come, it’s nice too.” 

I found him refreshingly cool.