By Brooke Billick | Americana Highways
With a music career exceeding three decades, Keb’ Mo’ (his moniker short for Kevin Moore) has amassed 5 Grammy awards and 14 Grammy nominations. Originally starting out writing songs for bands like Jefferson Airplane, his self-titled release, Keb’ Mo’ in 1994 launched his solo career and brought him immediate fame.
Shawn Colvin is a virtuoso in her own right, earning 3 Grammy awards for her music over the years. With over a dozen albums and compilations, her fan base as a singer-songwriter is huge. Known for her winsome voice and guitar playing, Colvin weaves tales of personal trials and challenges that reflect truly personal and intimate experiences.
Their performance was rescheduled from fall of 2024, after Keb’ Mo’ underwent surgery to repair a leaking heart valve. From all appearances during this energetic show, Keb’ Mo’ has recovered nicely.
The show opened with Keb’ Mo’ and Shawn Colvin sharing the stage performing “Bring It On Home,” the Sonny Boy Williamson song made famous by Sam Cooke. Singing side by side, their voices came together with wonderfully warm harmonies.
Joined on the stage for several songs early in the set, Keb’ Mo’ and Shawn Colvin regarded each other with the warmth and respect of old friends and colleagues. Keb’ Mo’ commented on the influence Shawn Colvin has had on his career and music. He remembered back to the 1994 release of his self-titled first album and how he drove his Toyota Corolla to a record shop where he bought one of Colvin’s records.
Settling into the performance felt like donning your favorite pair of well-worn shoes or that special coat. Comfortable, warm and soft, like you were always meant to be there.
Keb’ Mo’ left the stage leaving Colvin to perform several solos. She jokingly told the crowd she would promptly bring the mood down in the house.
With her confident strumming, Colvin sang “Sunny Came Home.” Self-described as a murder ballad, the song portrays a woman who burns down her house to escape her troubled past. Colvin’s voice perfectly conveys the hurt and anguish of the story.
Shawn Colvin has long been known for displaying her vulnerability and emotions. Raw and ragged, her lyrics plumb the depths of the human soul revealing its bare essence. All of this was on display during her songs highlighted with the emotion showing in her singing.
In contrast, Keb’ Mo’s music is easygoing and friendly. His lyrics are largely uplifting and reflect on the beauty of life, the human spirit, and personal redemption through love. In that regard, the juxtaposition of the two singers and their distinct differences added to the emotional dimension of the show.
“Sunny and Warm” aptly demonstrated Keb’ Mo’s innate optimism. Combining a jaunty melody and lyrics, the song characterized the hope and joy of the singer in attracting an admiring eye and the prospect of a wonderful love.
Keb’ Mo’ has said he just wants to be remembered for telling good stories and providing positive vibes. With his music and singing style at times defying characterization, Keb’ Mo’ warmed the hearts of his audience with his mellow voice and easygoing manner. There were plenty of stories and banter between songs as Keb’ Mo’ relayed his experiences on the road and his life lessons.
Shawn Colvin joined Keb’ Mo’ back on stage for the sweet ballad “One Friend.” Again, with perfectly blended harmonies, the two sung about the need to have just one steady friend to stand by through life’s trials and tribulations.
With a blues beat, Keb’ Mo’ launched into “Somebody Hurt You.” The song was a perfect corollary to “One Friend.” With an easy flow and style and Keb’ Mo’s nimble finger picking on the guitar, the singer promises to step in for someone he loves and pledging that “Oh but, ain’t nobody every gonna hurt you no more.”
The next song up, “Government Cheese,” felt like an ode to the humble pleasures of life. Eschewing fanciness like Bolognese, and with promises to find a full-time job, the singer rejoices in his mac n’ cheese being made with simple government cheese.
Listening to Keb’ Mo’ is truly a pleasure, particularly for one newly introduced to his music. His vocal range and timbre are simply silky and luxurious. And, on stage, he woos the crowd like a prospective groom charming his perhaps reluctant in-laws!
“Life is Beautiful” was just one of Keb’ Mo’ songs celebrating the joy of living. One of his classics, the song brought smiles to his audience as they joined in the chorus “Life is beautiful, life is wondrous/Every star above is shining just for us.”
Next up was the fast-paced ditty “The Old Me Better.” She made him a brand-new man suitable for marriage, but he’s expressing his regrets for his old self—“I was a lot more fun/I liked the old me better, didn’t take crap from anyone/Well I’d sleep all day, party all night/Did whatever I wanted whatever I liked liked the old me better.“
Saying that his next song was “retribution for songs like that,” Keb’ Mo’ launched into his bluesy classic “All Dressed Up.” Slowing down the pace, Keb’ Mo’ sang about the heartaches of betrayed love.
Keb’ Mo’ brought out his National Reso Rocket resonator guitar for the first two songs of his encore “She Just Wants to Dance” and “Better Man.” The bright, sharp sound of the resonator added a special quality to the songs. “She Just Wants to Dance” was a honky-tonk number punctuated by a particularly lively keyboard accompaniment.
Keb’ Mo’s finale, “Marvelous to Me,” was the perfect coda to the evening and perfectly represented his outlook on life. Regardless of the troubles he’s had in the past, they all fade away and “the future looks marvelous to me.”
A word about the venue. The Warner Grand Theater is an acoustic showcase in Milwaukee. Originally built in 1930 by Warner Brothers as a grand movie theater that offered Milwaukee residents an escape from their troubles during the Depression. The theater closed in 1995 and sat unused for 20 years until 2016, when the theater underwent a multi-million-dollar restoration to its original art deco design as the new home for the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. With its state-of-the-art acoustics and original art deco details, the Warner was the perfect place to host Keb’ Mo’ and Shawn Colvin.
Keb’ Mo’ and Shawn Colvin will continue to tour together through 2025 as well as have separate tours. For Keb’ Mo’s tour dates, including a number of dates with Taj Mahal, visit https://kebmo.com/. Shawn Colvin’s tour dates can be found here: https://www.shawncolvinmusic.com/tour.
Enjoy our previous interview of Keb’ Mo’ here: Interview: Keb’ Mo’ on Honorary Degree from Williams College, Family, Plastic, and New Album “Oklahoma”
Keb’ Mo’/Shawn Colvin Setlist
Warner Grand Theater, Milwaukee 3/18/2025
BRING IT ON HOME—SONNY BOY WILLIAMSON II/SAM COOKE COVER
POLAROIDS
SUNNY CAME HOME
SUNNY AND WARM
GET OUT
ONE FRIEND
SOMEBODY HURT YOU
GOVERNMENT CHEESE
LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL
THE OLD ME BETTER
ALL DRESSED UP
MORE THAN ONE WAY HOME
RITA
THE WORST IS YET TO COME
I REMEMBER YOU
ENCORE
SHE JUST WANTS TO DANCE
BETTER MAN
MARVELOUS TO ME
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