The lovely Jewel came to the Seneca Niagara casino this past Saturday night in the midst of her current Greatest Hits tour. Accompanied by a bevy of Taylor acoustic guitars, Jewel took the stage at 8:05pm before a sold out crowd.
After a few numbers, Jewel asked for audience participation shouting out “What do you want to hear next?” As this was the precedent for most of the night. Jewel didn’t work off a set list and really was organic in her process for the entire performance. Jewel and “organic” seem to go hand in hand. Even though she fortified her career by writing some memorable pop tunes “Who Will Save Your Soul?”, “Foolish Games,” and “Standing Still” to name a few, she was never one that followed that steady diet of becoming a pop princess.
This evening was about storytelling. Jewel was funny and loveable as she told stories about her early days as a hitchhiker, playing bars with her dad at age 8 and shoplifting to continue to eat. These and other stories are what Jewel has put into her songs. She dedicated “Adrian” to a mom who plays this to her son on a daily basis , sadly, he has been on life support for over a decade. Another story Jewel shared was when she was vacationing in the mountains with her then boyfriend Ty Murray at the time of the 9/11 attacks. “We had no clue what happened and when we were driving back we saw all of these flags at half mast and then to turn on the radio to hear we were attacked was surreal quipped Jewel.” The DJ went on to play a song for our country she continued on. That song was the next song she performed for the entranced audience, entitled “Hands.”
Jewel did play the electric guitar on one track titled, “Haunted.” She continued to take requests throughout and played her favorite song , “Catch a Cold.” She joked that this may be the best, most complete song she has ever written. In true tongue and cheek fashion, her fans got the joke and she went on to play the very short minute and half number. Of course it wouldn’t be a Jewel show without her showcasing her yodeling skills as she closed the set with “Chime Bells.”
It’s been well over 6 and a half years since Jewel has played the area. Now with a year and half old baby and a husband at home, I’m not sure what Jewels intentions are on future tours or albums, but let’s hope she doesn’t stay away this long again, as she turned in a great overall performance this evening in the Falls.
Set List:
Near You Always
Absence of Fear
Life Uncommon
The New Wild West
Little Sister
Hands
Standing Still
Haunted
Adrian
Violet Eyes
Morning Song
Perfectly Clear
Satisfied
Catch a Cold
1000 Miles Away
Intuition
Foolish Games
Two Hearts Breaking
You Were Meant for Me
Who Will Save Your Soul?
Encore:
My Father’s Daughter
Chime Bells (Yodel)
We would like to thank Tony Astran from the Seneca Niagara Casino for allowing BackstageAxxess.com to review the show.
