Amy and I visited Nassau Presbyterian Church to see Dar Williams to perform in support of the thirtieth anniversary of Isles, Inc. Isles is a non-profit community development organization with a mission to foster sustainability. I’ve been enjoying Dar’s singing and songwriting since 1995 or so. Her songs were frequently played on WXPN 88.5 and I quickly became a fan.
I first saw Dar live at the Columbia Folk Festival in Columbia, Pennsylvania, on June 15, 1996. (Thank you to Internet Archive Wayback Machine for helping me figure that out!) For those unfamiliar with Dar Williams, she is easily the best contemporary singer-songwriter, with poetry rivaling Bob Dylan and intricate music, complex for “folk” but with simple chord progressions that are only obvious after the fact. Most importantly, Dar understands how to connect with an audience, and as a result, has a strong community of devoted fans. I returned to visit Dar’s performances several times each year through 2002.
In those last few years, Dar Williams came to Princeton, New Jersey several times to perform at the Nassau Presbyterian Church in support of the Coalition for Peace Action and Isles, Inc. During one of these concerts, I met Dar again back stage. We’ve met a few times, and almost every time Dar has mentioned that she recognized me — even, strangely enough, the time we met after that first concert in 1996. Here’s a photograph I snapped with my first digital camera in 2000.
Now, more about last night’s interesting performance.
In attendance where some of Dar’s childhood friends, and it was an emotional reunion. One of her friends recalled seeing Dar, at the age of ten, perform “What I Did for Love” from A Chorus Line at the age of ten and being blown away. Her musical genius was clear.
During the concert, Dar was her usual, story-telling self. Our second-row seats were fantastic; it was worth paying extra for VIP seating, particularly considering proceeds went to a worthy cause. We arrived early and could have chosen first-row seats but decided against it to ensure we could see Bryn, as well. Dar played songs off every album, including her next. If I remember correctly, Dar has decided to theme her next album around Greek mythology. Although she didn’t expect to write a song about the Greek god Hepahestus, his story made a great narrative for Dar’s poetry. Hephaestus was the least attractive of the Greek gods, and his wife from an arranged marriage, Aphrodite, sought the affections of Ares.
Dar performed the resulting new song, called to the best of my memory, “In This World,” last night for only the second time. It was fantastic despite what might have been some confusion over the chords. It will be a highlight on the next album.
I don’t remember the exact words she used, but during the concert Dar spoke about her fire for life. There was a time when she was younger, if she had been presented with a “sink or swim” situation, she might not have fought for her life. As she discovered ideas that were important to her, and perhaps discovered her personal mission, the world seemed to go from black-and-white to color. Everyone needs this fire for life.
I’m glad Dar Williams’ music is once again a part of my life. Everybody needs some genius in theirs.
Forgive the quality of the photograph below. I didn’t bring my DSLR, and Amy’s compact digital, while a good camera, is not very forgiving in low-light situations. Following the photo are some videos of Dar’s performances.
“Calling The Moon” with IBIS Chamber Ensemble
“As Cool As I Am”
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfSlU__h7rs
“The One Who Knows”
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF62YUxZgRc