Jack White’s Guitar Mastery Ignites Brooklyn Paramount

Off-stage, Jack White is a most curious character. Born 51 years ago as Jack Gillis, he took the surname of his first wife, White Stripes drummer Meg White, and then hoaxed the public into believing that he and Meg were siblings when in fact they were a divorced married couple. He records mostly using analog tape rather than computers, and strictly forbids his audiences from using cell phones and cameras. Reportedly obsessed with the number three, he signs his name as Jack White III, limits his onstage color palette to red, white and black, and structures his business, Third Man Records, around that numeral. He proposed to and married his third wife, Olivia Jean, onstage at a 2022 concert; she filed for divorce on June 3 citing "irreconcilable differences" and "inappropriate marital conduct." Born in Detroit, Michigan, White presently lives in Brentwood, Tennessee, in a sprawling compound valued at more than $6 million.

Onstage, Jack White is an inventive guitarist who plays a raw and roaring blend of Delta and Chicago blues, punk rock, and garage rock, characterized by angular riffs, booming fuzz, clamorous distortion and chaotic dissonance. His vocals and music loosely align with 1970s hard rock bands like Led Zeppelin and rougher-sounding modern bands like the Black Keys, Royal Blood and the Kills. Since bursting onto the music circuit in 1997, he has performed in the White Stripes, the Raconteurs, and the Dead Weather, enjoying the most mainstream success with his solo career.

White’s current 25-date 2026 North American tour supports his seventh and most recent solo album, Frozen Charlotte, released on July 10. The tour includes two dates at Brooklyn Paramount. He is supported presently by keyboardist Bobby Emmett, bassist Dominic Davis and drummer Patrick Keeler.

Performing only under blue lights, White employs no distractions on stage – no overhead projections, light shows, smoke or fire. Ticketholders are required to store cell phones and cameras in locked pouches for a diversion-free environment. At Brooklyn Paramount, even the LED screens which advertise upcoming concerts during the intermissions were gone.

White typically does not prepare a printed set list, nor does he repeat repertoires, choosing to improvise his shows while in progress. As a result, audiences never really know what they will get from his live performances. White and his band start jams that fill and lead into song after song. He seldom pauses his guitar wizardry long enough to speak to his audience.

At the second of his two nights at Brooklyn Paramount on July 12, all the above held true once again. White and his musicians took the stage promptly at 9 p.m. They began this performance with an extended jam that ultimately fed into “That’s How I’m Feeling” from White’s 2024 album, No Name. This led into the White Stripes’ “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground.” Over the course of an hour and a half, the quartet performed almost half of Frozen Charlotte, including the three singles that preceded the album’s release, "G.O.D. and the Broken Ribs", "Derecho Demonico" and "Dollar Bill." The set also featured an array of vintage songs from his solo catalog, a few selections from the White Stripes and the Raconteurs, and a handful of scattered impromptu and untitled jams.

White’s blues-riff-based guitar mastery remained constantly in the spotlight, so much that the audience absorbing all the spontaneous leads was a dizzying challenge. Frequently switching guitars, even in the middle of songs, he played ferocious, jagged bends on his six strings. He created a choppy, staccato sound by rapid "stutter picking" and fret-hand muting, sometimes abruptly cutting his leads, seemingly mid-stream, for a jarring effect. His unique guitar methods proved to be a masterclass in creativity.

Despite the venue’s extraordinary sound system, however, White’s vocal articulation was more about angst-powered style than clarity. Unless the listeners were familiar with his lyrics, his singing was largely incomprehensible. Only on the tempered “Neighbors Blues” were the words to his composition easily discernible.

In the end, White’s performance was a high-octane crowd-pleasing event. Yet, with all technology locked into pouches, the public was unable to capture photographs and videos as a future resource. You had to be there. Fortunately, White’s handlers have provided The Manhattan Beat with photographs taken by his tour photographer, David James Swanson.

Setlist

1. (Intro jam)
2. That's How I'm Feeling
3. Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground (The White Stripes song)
4. Derecho Demonico
5. Dollar Bill
6. It's Rough on Rats (If You're Asking)
7. Love Interruption
8. Broken Boy Soldier (The Raconteurs song)
9. Neighbors Blues
10. Missing Pieces
11. All Your Love (I Miss Loving) (Otis Rush & His Band cover)
12. I'm Slowly Turning Into You (The White Stripes song)
13. High Ball Stepper
14. What's the Trick?
15. Carolina Drama (The Raconteurs song)

Encore

1. (Encore jam)
2. Lazaretto
3. G.O.D. and the Broken Ribs
4. Nobody Knows
5. There's Nobody There
6. Ball and Biscuit (The White Stripes song)
7. Underground
8. Seven Nation Army (The White Stripes song)

Related Articles

Jack White Rocks Brooklyn at the Kings Theatre (2025)

Jack White at Warsaw, Brooklyn (2018)

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The Manhattan Beat covers New York City's live music circuit. All articles are written by Everynight Charley Crespo. All photographs are taken by Everynight Charley Crespo, except when noted otherwise.

For a list of Manhattan venues that are presenting live music regularly, swing the desktop cursor to the right of the home page and click on the pop-up tab "Where to Find Live Music."

For a more complete listing of upcoming performances in the New York City area, visit The Manhattan Beat's July calendar.