My first trip to the Ram's Head Tavern in Annapolis was to see Old Crow Medicine Show, a quintet of old-time mountain music street musicians from all over the country (Louisiana, Kentucky, and all other parts authentic) who met in New York and started busking on busy street corners. Their debut album of last year, O.C.M.S., produced by guitarist and longtime Gillian Welch collaborator David Rawlings, was recorded with a punk rock spirit that came through in filthy fiddle solos and furiously jangled guitar chords.
In concert, only half the band was everything their record made them out to be. Lead singer and fiddler Ketch Secor had an irrepressible onstage chemistry with guitarist Willie Watson. Their vocal harmonies on "Wagon Wheel" and "We're All In This Together" seemed almost too natural, and Secor played his best solos when accompanying the guitarist. But regardless of who was singing, Secor shredded the horsehair of his bow the whole night, and his rough mountain-style fiddling was the highlight of the night. And bassist Morgan Jahnig added to the whole punk thing, clawing furiously at his upright bass strings.
The rest of the band -- namely guitjo player Kevin Hayes and guitarist/singer Critter Fuqua -- were completely unremarkable. Watching them play was like watching plants grow. Their uninspired detachment took away from the band's bubbling momentum.
The only other setback to the Old Crow stage show was that the Ram's Head is a venue that is a little more friendly to less rowdy bands. The audience sits at about 50 tables, eating their dinner and drinking pints of Fordham draft beer, and it's really nice and all, but this concert was the kind that made you want to jump up and down and clap your hands, especially for tunes like "Hard to Love" and "Hard to Tell."
-- Robbie Whelan
