The full house at Newton, NJ’s Newton Theatre this Thursday, May 2, 2019 is ready for a special evening of music by singer, songwriter, and actress LeAnn Rimes.
Born in Jackson, Mississippi in 1982, Rimes was raised in Dallas and began singing and dancing in local variety shows at the age of five. She quickly built a dedicated following in Texas where she garnered the attention of Dallas record promoter and disc jockey Bill Mack. At the tender age of eleven, LeAnn recorded her first album.
By fourteen, Rimes had signed with Curb Records and recorded Blue, which debuted at #3 on the pop charts. The album’s title song, “Blue” — originally written by Mack for country legend Patsy Cline — reached #1 on the Billboardcountry charts and helped earn Rimes her first two Grammy Awards.
At 15, her album, You Light Up My Life — featuring the Grammy-nominated song “How Do I Live” — became the first album in music history to simultaneously debut at #1 on the pop, country, and contemporary Christian charts.
In 2000, Rimes made her motion picture debut, acting in the film Coyote Ugly. She also recorded several tunes for the film’s soundtrack.
More recently, in 2018, Rimes released Re-Imagined — an EP featuring five tracks from her back-catalogue which she has re-recorded. One tune, “Borrowed,” includes duet vocals by Stevie Nicks.
In 2019, Rimes is scheduled to release a live album entitled Rimes: Live at Gruene Hall.
The lights dim inside the intimate Newton Theatre and the crowd cheers as guitarist Greg Hagan takes the stage, strumming his instrument as LeAnn Rimes enters the stage to hoots and hollers.
Rimes opens her all-acoustic evening of songs with “Love Line.” On this powerful number, Rimes sings with emotion, “They say blood is thicker than water; I say love is thicker than blood,” as she’s expertly accompanied by Hagen on acoustic guitar and background vocals.
Singing up, down, and around the melody, Rimes’ soulful and emotional performance connects with the Jersey crowd.
Looking beautiful and relaxed in her jeans with the torn knees, a white camisole with matching kimono, and white platform sandals, Rimes welcomes the crowd, saying, “Jersey — how are you?”
She introduces accompanist Greg Hagan, exclaiming, “We’re going to hang out and have a good time!” before noting the pair will perform a number of songs which have recently been “re-imagined.”
Announcing, “This was my first #1 — at age 14 — when I was dancing in leather pants on trolley cars in San Francisco,” Rimes performs her 1996 hit, “One Way Ticket (Because I Can).”
Singing, “Well, I have walked through the fire/And crawled on my knees through the valley of the shadow of doubt/Then the truth came shining like a light on me and now I can see my way out,” she gives a soulful and thoughtful performance, ending by bowing in appreciation to the audience.
Exclaiming, “East Coast — you guys must dig music!” Rimes launches into an unplugged version of “Nothin’ Better to Do.” Dancing as she sings — freely and fluidly — to this toe-tapping rockabilly number, her voice sounds soulful and countrified, her low register notably sexy and sultry.
Clapping along with the crowd as Hagan solos, she sings up and down the scale, the crowd rewarding her with whistles and cheers.
The audience goes crazy when they hear the first yodel of her classic 1996 hit, “Blue.” Rimes effortlessly sings — her beautiful, rich, clear honey-coated tone delighting the enthusiastic crowd at every turn — as Hagen skillfully accompanies her on his six-string acoustic.
Rimes takes a moment to talk about her musical influences, citing “Broadway, classical, country, rock, and rap” before exclaiming, “Salt-n-Pepa were absolutely fantastic!”and imitating the ’80s-era hip-hop duo.
Declaring, “I’m a mish-mosh of a bunch of different people,” she notes, “I was influenced by the best,” acknowledging how she’s been both “inspired by and compared to Patsy Cline.”
Here, she delivers a powerful and poignant rendition of Willie Nelson’s composition for Cline, “Crazy.”
With raw emotion, she cries, “I’m crazy for cryin’/And crazy for tryin’/And I’m crazy for lovin’ you,” segueing into Cline’s “Sweet Dreams” before her heartfelt performance brings some audience members to tears and elicits applause from accompanist, Greg Hagen.
Announcing, “I’m hot, now!” Rimes uses a hair tie to pull her long blonde hair up into a ponytail right in front of the audience.
Acknowledging, “I’ve made so many records,” Rimes contends, “You can’t keep me in a box — that’s been my greatest gift and my worst enemy. My music — and the storytelling within me — has such truth in it. A lot of love came out of it.”
Here, she performs one of her favorite compositions, “Love is Love.”
Singing directly from her heart, her arms wide open, Rimes performs flawlessly, her entire body dancing freely on the Newton Theatre stage. Smiling as she sings, “Oh, let’s start a revolution/Oh, love is love is love is love is love,” the audience receives Rimes’ message loud and clear and reflects it right back to her.
Feeling the music as Hagan strums, she performs “Life Goes On,” a funky and rhythmic rocker, where she sings, “Oh life goes on/And it’s only gonna make me strong/It’s a fact/Once you get on board/Say good-bye/‘Cause you can’t go back,” she invites the audience to clap and then sing along on the song’s “Na na na na life goes on/Na na na na made me strong” interlude.
When the crowd’s initial attempt isn’t up to her standards, Rimes has the impromptu choir try it again exclaiming, “This is where you get in the spaces and crevices of music!” Happily, her suggestion works and the audience gets it right the second time.
Revealing, “I’m gonna do some Springsteen songs for Jersey,” first, Rimes performs one of her favorites, “I’m On Fire.” Singing with her eyes closed, she provides a smoldering rendition of the song — slow and sultry — exposing her heart and soul for all to see and hear. Her smooth, smoky vocal floats across the stage to the appreciative crowd as she’s perfectly accompanied by Greg Hagan.
Noting, “This song has some of the most beautiful lyrics I’ve ever heard,” she performs Springsteen’s “Secret Garden.” Singing with her hand on her heart, she performs the song as a slow and heartfelt ballad. Crooning, “She’s got a secret garden/Where everything you want/Where everything you need/Will always stay — vocalizing and humming at the end after the last line — “a million miles away.”
Talking a moment to chat with a fan in the front row sporting a LeAnn Rimes Spitfire T-shirt, Rimes exclaims, “I’m going to do this next song because of your shirt!”
Explaining how angry she was when she wrote the song, she performs an off-the-cuff rendition of “Spitfire.” Hagan impresses with his amazing guitar work before Rimes joins him singing, dancing, and waving her hand on this bluesy country rocker.
The audience cheers, and members of the crowd begin shouting out songs for Rimes to sing. After one fan screams out “Big Deal,” Rimes exclaims, “I was 17 when I sang that song,” to which the fan yells out, “It’s a good song, though!”
After asking the fan his name and learning it’s “John,” LeAnn performs an off-the-cuff version of “Big Deal” for John. The crowd going crazy for her impromptu rendition of this appealing country rocker.
Another member of the crowd yells out “Today is Christmas,” making Rimes laugh out loud before she and Hagen perform the beginning of the song as the audience applauds.
A highlight of the show is Rimes’ and Hagen’s version of another audience member’s song suggestion, “Unchained Melody.” Her resonant voice filling the theater with glorious sound as she rocks gently to Hagan’s arpeggiated guitar accompaniment, Rimes provides a performance for the ages of this classic number which she makes her own, and inspires the audience to respond with a standing ovation for her artistic and heartfelt interpretation.
Hagan moves to the piano for Rimes’ rendition of her biggest hit — #4 on Billboard’s all time Top 100 list — “How Do I Live.” Her voice sounding even richer than it does on the original recording, this gifted singer makes audience members cry with her spellbindingly stunning performance, letting it all out, the natural gift of her three-octave range on display for all to hear, feel, and enjoy.
Audience members leap to their feet for this stellar performance before Hagen picks up his guitar for an electrifying rendition of Rimes’ 2000 Top 20 song from Coyote Ugly, “Can’t Fight the Moonlight.”
Rimes cues the audience to sing and clap along on the “Can’t fight the moonlight” refrain of this upbeat and funky arrangement before she segues into Whitney Houston’s “I’m Every Woman,” Prince’s “1999,” and Aretha Franklin’s “Respect.” For the coda, she lets her hair back down while segueing back into “Can’t Fight the Moonlight,” Hagen’s impressive guitar playing solidly backing her up.
Bowing with Hagan as she leaves the stage, the audience stands and cheers — clapping in unison — until Rimes comes back and thanks the audience “for showing so much love and appreciation.”
Saying, “I hope you don’t mind if I end with just me,” Rimes explains, “This song is so beautiful — I’ve sung it everywhere from church to my family living room.”
Alone center stage, Rimes presents a stunningly beautiful a cappella rendition of “Amazing Grace,” infusing the timeless hymn with grace and love in every note, the tone of her voice bringing the lyrics — “Amazing Grace/How sweet the sound/That saved a wretch like me/I once was lost, but now am found/Was blind but now I see” to life.
As audience members make their way out of the Newton Theatre, we take a moment to chat with musician extraordinaire Greg Hagan who tells us, “I love being in Jersey!” adding, “and I love how the audience tonight was so into the music — the way they just threw suggestions out — yet were respectful at the same time.”
When asked what it’s like working with a special talent like LeAnn Rimes, Hagen explains, “When LeAnn sings, it comes from the depth of her soul. She can sing anything — and bring passion to it,” revealing, “Just tonight, before the show, LeAnn was warming up and she started singing a Jefferson Starship song — ‘We Built This City’ — in a slow rendition and I had to stop and say to myself, “Wow, I just got a special concert which was just for me!”
We also chat with several members of the audience who share their opinions of LeAnn Rimes’ performance tonight with us.
Comments Laura From Branchville, “LeAnn Rimes was amazing! I just wanted to get up and dance with her and listen to her majesty. I’d never seen her live before but I’ve always had a special love for her music.”
Laura from Harmony remarks, “LeAnn Rimes has always been great, but I especially loved her performance tonight.”
Ronald from Green Twp. says, “This is the first time I’ve ever seen her. I’ve been a fan of hers since she was young,” before noting, “She has an incredible voice. I’d definitely see her again.”
His wife, Mary, adds, “She’s fantastic — just great. She made me a fan tonight,” before adding, “and this was the best venue to see her in, too.”
Keith from Great Meadow concurs noting, “I was surprised that she played such a small venue, but it was great hearing her in this space — the sound here is excellent.”
Lastly, we chat with Susan from Great Meadows who acknowledges, “This is my first time seeing her. I remember her when she was thirteen and she’s just gotten better and better.” Adding, “I love the way she interacts and connects with the audience,” Susan concludes by exclaiming, “She’s just awesome.”
To learn more about LeAnn Rimes, please go to leannrimesworld.com. For further information about upcoming concerts at The Newton Theatre — including Judy Collins on June 13, Jefferson Starship on June 20, and Aimee Mann on July 14 — please click on thenewtontheatre.com
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