No one can say Ian Tyson's concert in Prince George was just like all the others.
The legendary musician and Canadian cultural figure gave local audiences a set of surprises Saturday night at Vanier Hall. Most of them were pleasant, but he saved up some disappointment for the end. Even that, though, had its own charms.
The first surprise of the night was just seeing him come out and take his place on stage. Tyson is an old man and it certainly shows. His wizened frame and aged shuffle are a wide contrast from the swarthy television Tyson who spearheaded the folk music super-fad of the 1960s and the western-cowboy revival of the 1980s.
There was always something regal and progressive about those versions of Ian Tyson. He was always an embodiment of the cutting edge even in his portrayal of old-time themes like the cowboy. Perhaps it was because he didn't just wear the gear, he did the job of horseman and rancher.
Maybe his years growing up in rural British Columbia (Duncan), pursuing an arts-based profession (graphic designer) forged a personality that was, at its core, independent.
Those traits still radiate from him. His vocabulary is strong, his conversation is connected to the here and now even in his dialogue about history and stories of old. So again, and here is the next surprise, Tyson is still leading edge. He dares us, by his presence on stage at the age of 81, to disrespect our elders. He's ready for that fight. He is a former sex symbol, a matinee idol now deep into his personal evening, and yet he is capable of modernism and puts his experience to direct use.
Which leads to the next surprise in the series. His voice is very good. It's not excellent, but the pre-concert press was absolutely correct about how surgery on his vocal folds had restored his broken singing tool. He was sounding just awful in recent years, and even before he did overt damage during a particular concert awhile back, his voice was already sliding into the pits. Not now. Yes, his two accompanists did a brilliant job of carrying some of the sweet vocal weight, but Tyson sounded like Tyson. He didn't have a lot of muscular oomph but for an octogenarian he certainly held his own and did himself proud.
Usually, when a musical veteran arrives, they come promoting a new album and almost begrudgingly perform the older hits that built their fan base in the first place.
The next Tyson surprise was the strong material from the past dozen years standing up well with the mega-popular songs of his first dozen years in the business. His new ballad to the Alberta floods was a first class song, as well as a good nonfiction story.
"The flood devastated our little town (High River, Alberta) three years ago this month," Tyson said. "It was OK upstream where we are, but the river goes through a series of canyons then down on the prairie the banks are only a couple of feet high so when the water rises, it can go anywhere it wants to go."
Looking over his Saturday set list, This Is My Sky (2005) stands well with La Primera (1999) which stands well with Navajo Rug (1987) which stands well with Someday Soon (1964) a song I had never heard Tyson perform in concert despite seeing him multiple times in the past. It was a treat to hear his own version of that hit that I had only ever heard women (Sylvia Tyson, Suzy Bogguss, Judy Collins) perform although I know men have covered it as well (Moe Bandy, The Kingston Trio and others).
Getting that rare treat sort of made up for the last surprise of the evening. During one section of the concert, he chatted a bit with the audience, took a couple of requests, and promised one fan "we will finish with Summer Wages" when she requested that old favourite. Indeed nearly everyone was waiting for it, and also Four Strong Winds and Cowboy Pride and some of his other particularly popular tunes. But when he finished singing The Gift, his insightful ode to western painter Charlie Russell, he abruptly said good night and walked off stage. The audience, anticipating the usual moment to call for an encore and receive the biggest, best songs of all, were stunned and disappointed when the house lights came on and his absence became an exit.
Normally, that would make me angry.
When people shell out a painful amount of money (these tickets were more than $60 each), they deserve to order off the menu.
However, nothing untoward happened in the audience, nothing technical went afoul, and his mood had been friendly (he openly celebrated American Pharaoh winning the Triple Crown earlier that day, which he and his band watched on television). So all I could do was chalk his departure up to age. Either something physical suddenly took place, or he was mentally seized by the urge. In either case, at 81 years old, and the living embodiment of all the wonderful things younger generations owe to and can learn from the older ones, the whole night could only be deemed a success.
It would be hard to imagine Tyson ever coming back to Prince George to perform, but if he does, I think I'll try to be there. If anything, it will bring surprises.
