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Review: Dixie Chicks make nice, but not too nice, at DTE
By Gary Graff, Macomb Daily
INDEPENDENCE TOWNSHIP >> Near the start of the Dixie Chicks’ concert Saturday night, June 4, at
the DTE Energy Music Theatre, the group’s Natalie Maines promised the crowd — sporting what she called "that sexy,
wet look" — that "we are going to attempt to entertain you."
No problem there.
Some things have certainly changed during the decade since the Chicks kicked off their last full-scale tour
at Detroit’s Joe Louis Arena. The group has spent most of the past 10 years in two camps — Maines as a solo act,
sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer in their Court Yards Hound Band, touring together sporadically while also raising
families. And the Chicks that showed up at DTE were hardly the effervescent, chatty and irreverent troupe that broke barriers
and dominated country music during the late 90s and early 00s.
Still evident, however, was a strength of spirit and a musical adventurousness that gave the
two-hour, 25-song set plenty of strength and potency. It was certainly slicker, but there was still plenty of fun to be had
and a few surprises that made for an energetic, and quite welcome , return.
Since there’s been no new album since 2006’s "Taking the Long Way" — whose
title track opened Saturday’s show — the concert rested on nostalgia and a wealth of hits that still stands up.
Playing in front of a massive video screen and flanked by the five members of its lean ‘n’ mean band, the trio
cranked out ferocious versions of "Lubbock or Leave It" and "Sin Wagon," accented "Long Time Gone" with a pronounced New Orleans
flavor and offered majestic takes of favorites such as "Cowboy Take Me Away," "Wide Open Spaces" and an encore rendition of
"Not Ready To Make Nice."
The Chicks also showcased their rich vocal harmonies and fine taste in covers — including
Maines’ stellar, emotive performance of "Nothing Compares 2 U" in tribute to Prince. The trio added a new Patty Griffin
cover, "Don’t Let Me Die in Florida," to the mix during an unplugged-style set and followed that with a surprise rendition
of Beyonce’s "Daddy Lessons," after which Maines cracked, "I think she wrote it for us — She doesn’t know
that." The Chicks also offered up their hit version of Fleetwood Mac’s "Landslide," a loose-limbed treatment of Bob
Dylan’s "Mississippi" that showcased the individual instrumentalists and closed with Ben Harper’s "Better Way."
And while Maines stayed away from the kind of political statements that got the group in trouble
back in 2004, the Chicks weren’t ready to make totally nice on Saturday. There were pre-show video messages supporting
Planned Parenthood and Proclaim Justice, and the Chicks also took a brief shot at presumptive Republican presidential nominee
Donald Trump by flashing a photo — with devil’s horns and a fake moustache added — in the rogue’s
gallery shown during the vengeful "Goodbye Earl."
And, in a bit of nonpartisan commentary, the group accompanied "Ready To Run" with a political
cartoon that not too subtly panned candidates from both sides of the divide as clowns — while red, white and blue confetti
filled the pavilion.
As the show wound to a close, Maines saluted the crowd — as well as its fortitude in the rain —
and noted that, "We hope it’s not another 10 years before you invite us back." She and her bandmates could have considered
that request extended even before they left the stage on Saturday.
Dixie Chicks Get Political, Bring Nostalgia and Cover
Prince in Michigan
By Gary Graff, Billboard
The Dixie Chicks are
making nice on their DCX MMXVI World tour, the group's first major road trip in a decade. But its stop at the DTE Energy Music
Theatre on Saturday night (June 4) in suburban Detroit showed that the trio is not ready to make all nice just yet.
Since frontwoman Natalie Maines'
choice comments about U.S. President George W. Bush in 2004, the band has done battle with the political right and a conservative
country music community, which the Chicks dominated during the late ’90s and early ’00s. That may have stalled
the three-piece’s forward momentum and led to a prolonged period of limited activity, but the Chicks aren't exactly
looking to tow any lines.
There were messages about Planned Parenthood and the social action organization Proclaim
Justice, of which Maines is a board member, as part of a pre-show video package that also included Chicks trivia questions
and "random tweets" from Maines. And while there was no political verbiage from Maines (who's back to blonde these days),
Marti Maguire and Emily Strayer during the show, they did take a brief swipe at presumptive Republican presidential nominee
Donald Trump by flashing his photo -- with devil's horns and a fake mustache added -- amidst the rogue's gallery shown on
the rear-stage video screen during the vengeful "Goodbye Earl."
In a bit of non-partisan commentary, the Dixie Chicks accompanied "Ready to Run"
with a political cartoon that not too subtly panned candidates from both sides of the divide as clowns, while red, white and
blue confetti filled the pavilion.
Mostly, though, the two-hour, 25-song concert was steeped in nostalgia, displaying
how the three Chicks have grown during the intervening years since their last major tour, and also how well the songs still
hold up and how their performance continues to pack the same potent spirit it did a decade ago.
It was certainly a different set of Chicks that hit the DTE stage to "The Long Way
Around." The chatty irreverence and self-deprecation of previous shows was gone, and there was no running to and fro satellite
stages and extended ramp (the evening's steady rain was not conducive to that, anyway). Instead the Chicks were slick, professional
and straightforward, flanked by the five members of their band on a clean, wide open stage space. Their rich vocal harmonies
were fully intact, and the arrangements were agreeably lean 'n' mean, ranging from ferocious ("Lubbock or Leave It," "Sin
Wagon") to gentle ("Easy Silence," Patty Griffin's "Top
of the World," a trio-only version of "Travelin' Soldier"), with majestic renditions of "Wide Open Spaces," "Cowboy Take Me
Away" and "Not Ready To Make Nice."
The group accented "Long Time Gone" with a pronounced New Orleans flavor and nailed
the blues-rock stomp of "I Like It," while Maines, Maguire and Strayer romped through an instrumental bluegrass-style medley
that included snippets of Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)" and The
White Stripes ' "Seven Nation Army." And it stretched out
Bob Dylan's "Mississippi" with plenty of room for the instrumentalists,
to show off a little.
And while there have been no new recordings since 2006, there were additions to the
repertoire, including another Griffin tune, the jammy "Don't Let Me Die in Florida," during the mid-show unplugged-style set,
and Ben Harper's "Better Way." The Chicks also delivered
Beyonce's "Daddy Lessons" with a treatment even rootsier than on Lemonade.
"I think she wrote it for us. She doesn't know that," Maines quipped afterwards.
Maines shone on an emotive cover of "Nothing Compares 2 U," dedicated to the late
Prince and performed with his glyph-like logo on the screen.
Early on Maines promised the crowd that the Chicks "are going to attempt to entertain
you." No problem there. It was a welcome return and an equally welcome reminder of the abundant merits that took the Chicks
to the top before controversy marginalized their impact.
The set list included:
"The Long Way Around"
"Lubbock or Leave It"
"Truth #2" (Patty Griffin cover)
"Easy Silence"
"Favorite Year"
"I Like It"
"Long Time Gone"
"Nothing Compares 2 U" (Prince cover)
"Top of the World" (Patty Griffin cover)
"Goodbye Earl"
"Travelin' Soldier" (Bruce Robison cover)
"Don't Let Me Die in Florida" (Patty Griffin cover)
"Daddy Lessons" (Beyonce cover)
"White Trash Wedding"
Instrumental Bluegrass Medley
"Ready to Run"
"Mississippi" (Bob Dylan cover)
"Landslide" (Fleetwood Mac cover)
"Silent House"
"Cowboy Take Me Away"
"Wide Open Spaces"
"Sin Wagon"
"Not Ready to Make Nice"
"Better Way" (Ben Harper cover)
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