Big Country at Sony Hall

Bruce Watson, Simon Hough

Formed in 1981 in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland, Big Country's music was unique in how it incorporated Scottish folk and martial music styles. The band engineered its guitar-driven arrangements to summon the sound of bagpipes, fiddles and other traditional folk instruments. Although Big Country's popularity  had a longer lifespan in the United Kingdom, the band was essentially a one-hit wonder in the United States, thanks to the 1983 Top 40 song "In a Big Country." The song featured heavily-engineered guitar playing that sounded similar to bagpipes. The Crossing, the album that featured the single, achieved gold record status in the United States for sales of over 500,000 units. Follow-up singles and albums fared comparatively poorly in the United States. The band's lead singer died in 2001, after which surviving members periodically rebranded Big Country for occasional tours. The band presently consists of original members Bruce Watson on guitar and Mark Brzezicki on drums, plus Watson' son, Jamie Watson, on guitar, Simon Hough on vocals, and Scott Whitley on bass. Big Country's ninth and most recent album is 2013's The Journey.

At Sony Hall tonight, Big Country focused exclusively on its 1980s catalogue, perhaps because these might be the only Big Country songs known by the majority of its American audiences. Simon Hough approximated the vocal style of the original vocalist, helping the band to recapture its old flavor. Essentially, however, that is what the band produced, an old flavor. The set was memory-evoking for folks who were fans decades ago, with no indication that the performance was anything more than nostalgia. The musicians performed well, the songs were lively, and between songs Watson shared anecdotes from back in the day, recalling for instance how the band had first opened in New York for Darlene Love. It was all a pleasant rock and roll evening, but unless Big Country continues to write and perform new material, the band will have little hope of  becoming a viable band in the 2020s.

Setlist:

1. 1000 Stars
2. Look Away
3. East of Eden
4. Lost Patrol
5. The Storm
6. Just a Shadow
7. Steeltown
8. Harvest Home
9. Where the Rose Is Sown
10. Come Back to Me
11. In a Big Country
12. Chance
13. Wonderland
14. Fields of Fire

Encore:

1. Restless Natives