I See Hawks In L.A. at Claremont Folk Music Center, 5-31-25 Concert Review

I See Hawks In L.A. performing "Hope Against Hope"

It's always a good time when the Hawks get together for a gig. And what made last night's sold-out show even more magnificent was the fact that Rick Shea & Tony Gilkyson were opening. That's one hell of a great double bill, and certainly worth the drive out to Claremont. The Folk Music Center is a famed family-run store, hosting a respected music series. This was my first time there, and I immediately liked the place. There was a wonderful, relaxed and friendly vibe, and lots of cool percussion instruments (all of which I want to own, especially that giant drum over the entrance to the backstage area). And there were physical tickets! Remember physical tickets? Right, those little souvenirs of the concerts we all attended. Now most venues charge insane fees (with no explanations) and don't even provide actual tickets. The tickets, by the way, were only twenty dollars. Yes, that's right: physical tickets and a price that took us back to the glory days of concert-going.

The show was scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m., and at 7:27, Rick Shea and Tony Gilkyson took the stage. "This is going to be a fun night," Rick said, exactly what those of us in the audience were thinking. The duo opened with "A Week In Winnemucca," one of Rick's songs (they would alternate throughout the set). The line that always stands out to me is "The locals kept their distance, yeah, but not for very long." Tony delivered a very cool lead, and then after that song told the crowd, "Rick and I kind of regard this place as a home away from home." The place has that kind of welcoming vibe, no question. Tony then chose "Big Red Six," but had to stop for a moment to address someone in the back of the room who was being incredibly loud and disruptive. He did it firmly, but kindly, and the show continued. Rick delivered some good stuff during the song, sometimes playing a sort of bass line, sometimes taking wonderful leads. A nice version of Rick's "Mexicali Train" followed, and then Tony's "The Everyman," which was a fun, totally delightful number. Tony switched to electric guitar for Rick's "Mariachi Hotel," which is always a favorite of mine. Such a cool song! In introducing "Well Traveled Man," Tony said, "This is a song about the aging process, and all the denial that goes into the aging process," which got a laugh from the crowd, most of us having been doing a bit of aging (and denying) ourselves. "I ain't old, I'm a well traveled man," Tony sang. Rick then delivered a newer song, "An Irishman's A Laborer At Heart," a song that got me thinking of my dad, and featured some pretty guitar work. It's a really good song, and Tony said it was a hard one to follow. He chose to do it with "Death In Arkansas." They wrapped up the set with "Big Rain Is Comin' Mama" and "Man About Town," the latter a song written by Tony's father. "No time for fears, no time for regrets/No time for dreams that linger yet." Their set ended at 8:15 p.m.

"Raised By Hippies"

Ten minutes later, the Hawks were ready to go. How was that switch achieved so quickly? Well, there was no pedal steel this time, and Victoria's drum kit consisted of just the snare. So there was a sort of stripped down sound, which was wonderful. The band kicked off the set with "Hope Against Hope," such a beautiful way to get things started. It was an especially pretty rendition. I love Paul Marshall's bass part, particularly toward the end. And Dan Wistrom delivered some wonderful stuff on guitar during that jam. While Tony Gilkyson had mentioned that the music store was a sort of home away from home, Rob Waller expressed a similar sentiment, mentioning that his kids used to come here, that this place was "the number one field trip for the kids." He told the crowd he loved being in that room with all the instruments. The band then launched into "Raised By Hippies," which a good, positive energy. The line "Reagan was president, they didn't know what to do" makes me laugh every time. And, hey, who knows what to do these days when a much worse bastard occupies the White House? The band delivered some absolutely phenomenal harmonies on the song's final line. Then in "White Cross," they sang, "Good times didn't suit me/I had to taste the pain," lines that also strike us in these dark days. This song featured some outstanding guitar work by Dan Wistrom, receiving some deserved applause. That was followed by "Poour Me." Oh yes, who hasn't been needing a little more wine lately? I love this song, and the "bad burrito" line always makes me smile. The rendition last night had such a sweet-sounding final moment.

"Live And Never Learn"

For "Live And Never Learn," Dan switched to a Weissenborn guitar, an instrument he showed a few of us before the concert. A beautiful instrument, like a hundred years old. Perhaps it was due to the presence of that instrument, but the band delivered a really good rendition of the song last night. They followed that with "Grapevine." Two album title tracks in a row. Victoria Jacobs then sang lead on "Hills On Fire," first telling the crowd, "I thought this song was pretty apropos right now." She delivered an absolutely wonderful vocal performance. After that, Rob announced, "We're gonna try one we haven't done in a while." Dan added, "I've never done it." And they went into "Harvest," a song from the Grapevine album. It was so good to hear it again. I'm not sure how long it had been since the band last played it, but I think the last time I heard it was maybe two years before the pandemic, which is like thirty years ago. Paul Marshall then sang lead on "Salvation." "Here's a song about a very magical journey," he said, introducing the song, then asked, "How do I start this?" Once it was started, it became a beautiful rendition, perhaps the best I've heard the band do. It was a highlight of the set, for sure. Dan brought out the mandolin for "Might've Been Me," a song that produced smiles all around.

"The River Knows"

Rick Shea and Tony Gilkyson joined the Hawks for the final two songs of the set, Rick on mandolin and Tony on electric guitar. The stage was quite small, undoubtedly the main factor in Victoria's decision to limit herself to just the snare drum, and so there was some shifting necessary in order to fit Rick and Tony in there. "We're gonna get all the clowns in this car," Rob commented while everyone adjusted. Victoria said, "Twister, we're playing Twister up here." Once everybody was ready, the band went into "The River Knows," a song from the Mystery Drug album. Rick plays pedal steel on the album version of that song, by the way. Everyone got a chance to lead, including Paul on bass. It was fantastic. They then wrapped up the set with the crowd-pleasing "Humboldt." "Spark it up and let it out!" Rick also joined them on mandolin for the encore, explaining Tony's absence, "Tony already took his shoes off." The encore was a delightful, uplifting rendition of "Good And Foolish Times." Like I said, it's always a good time when the Hawks play. The show ended at 9:39 p.m.

I See Hawks In L.A. Set List

1. Hope Against Hope
2. Raised By Hippies
3. White Cross
4. Poour Me
5. Live And Never Learn
6. Grapevine
7. Hills On Fire
8. Harvest
9. Salvation
10. Might've Been Me
11. The River Knows
12. Humboldt

Encore

1. Good And Foolish Times

Here are some more photos from the show:

"Big Red Six"

"Mariachi Hotel"

"Grapevine"

 

"Hills On Fire"

"The River Knows"

"Humboldt"

 

"Humboldt"

 

The Folk Music Center is located at 220 Yale Ave., in Claremont, California.