southern comfort.

no, not the whiskey blend but the musical talents of patty griffin. ever heard of her? i hadn't until just last night.

i had the immense pleasure of hearing her spunky yet mellow tunes for the first time in concert at the historic warner theatre. my good friend susan fernandez (a fellow anglo girl with a distinctly latin surname - love it!) is a fiercely devoted fan of hers and invited me to share the fun and help her celebrate her upcoming birthday. so after enjoying a delish dinner at chef geoff's, we skipped across 13th street, straight into the show. not entirely sure what to expect i prepared myself for the new experience.

in front of a packed out and energetic audience, musician scott miller opened for the little lady. a native from the mountainous shenandoah region of roanoke, va, and a w&m grad, this kid had the stuff! i was so impressed - his expansive octave-to-octave range, accompanied with the acoustic guitar as the harmonica chimed in, just gave me goosebumps. sooo good! i knew if the cover was this fantastic, the star of the show had to be fabulous.

after a quick intermission, the lights dimmed and the spotlight set as patty took the stage... with her fiery reddish brown hair, flowing green skirt and dorothy-"follow the yellow brick road"-red 5" high heels - whew! starting off at the piano, she first performed a beautiful rendition of a french lullaby that her grandmother use to sing. her down-to-earth approach and genuine spirit captivated the audience immediately. for the next 2 hours or so she dazzled and wooed us with her deep lyrics, warming voice and soulful passion. however my favorite song of the night was her one and only love song...that she wrote to her dog (some dog!) - "heavenly day". so happy, so free.

so if you are looking for some new music to chill out to, i recommend checking this pair out. you won't be disappointed. for me it was a refreshing break from my current pop-punk phase :)