Review: Big Richard at The Grey Eagle
Insert your own “Big Richard” joke here; it’s almost a given that the band itself has gotten there before you. Indeed, the poster advertising the Colorado-based neo-acoustic project’s Feb. 21 Asheville debut billed the group as “live and uncut.”
The four ladies comprising Big Richard — cellist Joy Adams, mandolinist Bonnie Sims, fiddler Eve Panning, and bassist Hazel Royer — have a lot of fun with the facade of hypermasculine swagger their name provides. Each boasts about a male alter ego, like Adams’ “Ski Boy” and Royer’s “Sir Willie,” each with his own catchphrase. But as shown in a smashing two-hour set at The Grey Eagle, they can back up the humor with serious chops.
The group originated in 2021 as a collaboration for Colorado’s McAwesome Fest and, in a way, its approach feels like a festival in miniature. Big Richard’s repertoire mashes together old-time classics, traditional fiddle tunes, original material, and well-chosen popular music covers like “Mad World” by Tears for Fears. The wide-ranging stylistic selection in an acoustic context reminded me of Punch Brothers or Yonder Mountain String Band.
So too did the instrumental virtuosity on display. Adams, who’s performed with legends like Chick Corea and Bruce Hornsby, is among the most versatile cellists I’ve ever encountered. Her playing seamlessly transitioned between choppy banjo-like parts, beautifully sustained chamber-music lines, and tricky solos that took her all over the fingerboard in lead-guitar fashion.
She paired well with Panning, who showed an effortlessly light touch on the fiddle and a penchant for creative elaborations of traditional melodies. When the two joined in widely spaced open harmonies, there was little to do but bask in the joy of vibrating strings set in motion.
Meanwhile, Royer’s bass work was rock-steady while remaining responsive to the swells of energy among the ensemble. And Sims, bouncing around the stage with her quickfire mandolin, felt like the engine pulling the entire train along.
All four women have fine voices as well. They took turns between lead-vocal duties and support of three- or four-part harmony, often in quite intricate arrangement. I was particularly struck by the paired call-and-response chorus of Sims’ original tune, “The Missing Stair,” as well as the mandolinist’s spot-on recreation of backing vocals on a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Time.”
My only quibble with the show wasn’t the band’s fault: The Grey Eagle had decided to make it a seated performance. That setup worked for the opener, the Penrose-based singer-songwriter Cody Hale. I enjoyed being able to focus on the lyrics of his midtempo love songs, especially the offbeat metaphors for permanence in “Tattoos Turn Green.”
But I wanted to move to Big Richard. The group is returning to Western North Carolina for the LEAF Retreat in May, and my hope is that they’ll be back many more times to come.
(Photo by Daniel Walton)
