Duff McKagan Brings a Little Tenderness to Austin's Historic Scoot Inn

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Duff McKagan with Shooter Jennings
Historic Scoot Inn, Austin, TX
June 10, 2019

Review by Jim Chapin
Photography Suzanne Cordeiro

There were a lot of Guns and Roses t-shirts at the Duff McKagan show at Austin’s Scoot Inn. Sadly for them, the show had little resemblance to a G’n’R concert and more in common with a country-rock showdown. And that is not a bad thing. Not at all. This show was a unique opportunity to see another side of the bass player from one of the world’s biggest rock groups.

McKagan did play a few Guns and Roses tunes, but they were songs not necessarily known to the general audience. Instead, he pulled some deep tracks from the band’s 1991 album “Use Your Illusion I.” These songs fit perfectly in style and tone and served as semi-familiar touchstones among the night’s many new songs. The band’s 17-song set consisted of all 11 songs from “Tenderness,” along with some well-selected covers, including Mad Season’s “River of Deceit” and a rousing rendition of “Clampdown” by The Clash.

Opener Shooter Jennings’ band backed McKagan, and they served up a tight mix of country and rock that took the songs off Duff’s recently released album “Tenderness” and sent them into overdrive. Drummer Jamie Douglass and bass player Ted Russell Kamp kept the groove on lockdown, while guitarist/pedal steel player John Schreffler laid down some delicious licks and solid rhythm. Shooter held down keyboard duties, dishing up raucous piano and gospel organ flourishes. Aubrey Richmond added the perfect icing on the musical case with her magnificent fiddle playing and beautiful vocals. Halfway through the set, Duff brought out local guitar-slinger Jesse Dayton, who provided some rockabilly-tinged pyrotechnics to a couple of tunes. Duff spent the night alternating between acoustic and electric guitar, smiling from ear to ear.

McKagan’s vocals are not the strongest, but no one seemed to care. And for whatever his singing lacked, he more than made up for with his lyrics and attitude. His songs eschew the typical country subject matter of beer, women, and trucks and are instead topical and relevant. He tackles some pretty heavy subject matter. “Last September” takes a stark look at the #MeToo movement and what it means to be a real man. “Parkland” addresses gun violence, mentioning the all-too-frequent school shootings by name. And of course, in true GnR fashion, he isn’t afraid to liberally sprinkle curse words into his lyrics to make a point.

Duff closed with “Deepest Shade,” a beautiful song from Seattle musician Mark Lanegan. Standing on the edge of the speaker, he leaned out into the audience to get as close to them as possible as he sang the lyrics, “My love I give to you.” You could sense that he meant what he sang. Duff McKagan is the real deal, and his authenticity shines bright.

Whether or not the crowd was expecting the country lean, they left with wide, toothy smiles. Duff will be back in that Austin area in October when Guns and Roses headline the ACL festival.

Shooter Jennings opened the show with a formidable set that showed him in fine form. Alternating between keyboards and guitar, the son of Waylon snarled and growled through a tremendous selection of his more recent material that commanded the audience’s attention. Though many had never seen Shooter or experienced his eclectic brand of outlaw country, I guarantee you that they left as fans.

DUFF MCKAGAN SETLIST: You Ain’t the First (Guns N’ Roses), Breaking Rocks, Tenderness, Chip Away, Feel, Wasted Heart, River of Deceit (Mad Season), Dust N’ Bones (Guns N’ Roses), Last September, It’s Not Too Late, Falling Down, Cold Outside, Parkland, Clampdown (The Clash), Dead Horse (Guns N’ Roses), Don’t Look Behind You, Deepest Shade (Mark Lanegan)

SHOOTER JENNINGS SETLIST: Bound Ta Git Down, Denim and Diamonds, All of This Could Have Been Yours, Steady at the Wheel, Don’t Feed the Animals, Rhinestone Eyes, Born Again, Leave Those Memories Alone, Gunslinger, White Trash Song, Rock N Roll Suicide (David Bowie)

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