Billy Bragg at Water Street Music Hall on Saturday October 12, 2024 in Rochester, New York

“He’s a screaming liberal,” said the lady directly behind my seat referencing singer-songwriter Billy Bragg. I turned my head around jumping right into her conversation and said “Me too.” Bragg brought his Roaring Forty USA Tour to Kodak Center on Saturday October 13, 2024 for a show that felt at times like a pep talk.

The Steven Page Trio kicked things off. Page former lead vocalist of Barenaked Ladies was joined by fellow Canadians Craig Northey on electric guitar and Cellist Kevin Fox. It was a chill pop introduction to some of Page’s solo material along with hearing a few of the BNL hits such as “It’s All Been Done.”

Billy Bragg was on next. He worked the room like a folk singer sharing plenty of stories. He talked about unions. And of empathy. One of the things he spoke about was the last time he performed in Rochester. It was in 1989 at a venue called Red Creek and it was the night he lost his voice. Bragg amusingly called that show Red Croak and it was also the night that his manager confided to him by saying “Billy, nobody comes to your shows to hear you sing.” He was probably half right.

Onstage Bragg switched back and forth between an electric and acoustic guitar and was accompanied by keyboard player JJ Stoney on several occasions. He was having fun. Bragg played many of the songs that made him famous including “A New England” which had the audience singing the chorus. He performed selections from his career spanning catalog for more than two hours. One of the highlights was “Way Down Yonder In The Minor Key” a song from his excellent Woody Guthrie tribute album that he recorded with Wilco. It was the first song of his encore and I could see heads bobbing towards the front. 

A singer-songwriter armed with only a guitar and his wits is a tough gig in terms of staying relevant. It’s a road much traveled. It’s a fickle industry. And you could lose your voice for more than just one night. Bragg has stayed relevant for 40 years thus the name of the tour. His message seemed to be particularly relevant in this scary election year that is seemingly devoid of empathy. Timing is everything. It was a feel good show that I think everyone in the audience needed to hear.

By Roman Jones. Photo credit: Roman Divezur