Chuck Prophet/Paul Cebar; February 26, 2010; Fitzgerald’s, Berwyn

I don’t get to see Chuck Prophet anywhere near as often as I would like. It would seem his Madison fan base would support a couple shows a year, but yet he hasn’t been to town since October ’07. His first Chicago show in support of Let Freedom Ring was the same weekend as the Wrens string of New Jersey shows. And you know which one I chose. Luckily, here he was not even three months later at the always-charming Fitzgerald’s.

Let Freedom Ring was released in October and came packaged with a mask stamped with an eagle logo. It was shortly after the swine flu paranoid frenzy had swept the nation, but I didn’t realize the true significance until tonight. He had decided to record his next record in Mexico City and had found a studio in the mountain city which he claimed was “state of the art,” he laughed before adding, “at one time.” There were a host of problems during the recording, the worst of them random interruptions in power several times a day. He was recording with a group of musicians from the States that he claimed he was paying with IOUs. As they neared the end of the recording, swine flu broke and it looked like they weren’t going to be allowed back into the States. As with all scares, this one too blew over, but it was enough to bring out the masks. Throughout the set he shared the stories behind the songs or just stories, always super cool with an impeccably fine-tuned sense of humor.

Freedom turned out to be one of the best records of last year, finishing high on my best of list. An instantly likeable blend of ballads and rockers, it may be his most consistent to date. Thankfully the creepy children’s choir which made his last release Soap & Water a little weird at times is absent this time around. The title song was one of the highlights in a set that covered the breadth of his career all the way back to his days in Green on Red, which explains how even though I own his last five releases there was still a lot of songs I didn’t know. With some artists that would make the set less enjoyable, not for Prophet, he made every song my new favorite. Even the ones I did know appeared in different form than the recorded version. Freedom’s “Hot Talk” and “I Bow Down and Pray to Every Woman I See,” one of his many songs in praise of the fairer sex, featured radically different arrangements, which kept the set interesting. His stellar band never missed a step, and Prophet’s guitar battles with James DePrato gave off sparks.

As always, a key part of the show is his interaction with his wife, the adorable Stephanie Finch. Obviously still very much in love, the couple has an effortless and enviable stage rapport. One of the sweetest moments of the evening was the pretty duet on Waylon Jennings’ “We Had It All” that they sang “mouth to mouth,” at the same microphone. In order to make it a more pleasant experience for Finch, Prophet took a few squirts of breath spray before they began. In addition to being the prettiest part if his band, she also has her own material and took center stage with a guitar to showcase one of her songs. Surprisingly the biggest “hit” of Prophet’s career, “Summertime Thing,” rather than a set ending jam, was played by him solo with audience participation. Nice. Though we could never quite figure out if he wanted us to sing along with him or do backing vocals on the chorus. They returned for two encores, the first featured the spirited “Balinese Dancer” and Alex Chilton’s ridiculously catchy “Bangkok,” while the last song was the slow, pretty “No Other Love,” which worked as a lullaby after two exhilarating hours of solid music.

I do wish Prophet came to Madison more, but since he doesn’t, it's worth the drive to Chicago.

Paul Cebar


Chuck Prophet