Fans in central NC had much anticipation heading into this show. The band was originally scheduled to play in April 2020, but COVID changed all of our plans. We were all stoked when this performance was rescheduled. Lincoln Theatre is one of the best places to catch bands on the rise before they hit the big time. Indications point to POTR one day headlining amphitheaters - so go see them in theaters while you can!
Lukas Nelson has the whole package: great songwriter, singer, guitar shredder, performer and heart-throb. His longtime bandmates are the perfect complement to his talents and I've never seen them have a bad show.
The show kicked off appropriately with "Start to Go" from their 2010 debut album. Followed up by "Perennial Bloom (Back to You)" off of their newest release A Few Stars Apart. The sound was dialed in perfectly and the band sounded great!
"Fool Me Once" and "Four Letter Word" followed from 2017's self-titled Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real album (which topped my favorite album list that year). It was packed with great songs and superb production. The album made it to #2 on the US Country Music Charts and was how the band was introduced to wider audience. I'm always pleased to hear any of those songs and the band obliged by performing many this night. It seems several hundred others in the crowd felt the same as we could hear lots of folks singing along. Lukas even dropped back and had the crowd sing a few choruses of "Find Yourself".
The set also included "Carolina". A go to when performing in our state. Lukas sings "Lord I love you Carolina, I like your beaches and your beer...your waves and your women." "If my baby doesn't love me, I'm going to Carolina tonight".
The set ended with the spacey and blissful "Set Me Down on a Cloud". After a short break the bass player, Corey McCormick, came out and treated us to a funky bass solo. The rest of the band soon joined in on a energetic version of "Wildest Dreams" followed by "Entirely Different Stars" and "Turn Off the News (and Build a Garden)". After which the band exited the stage except for Lukas, who gave us a solo rendition of "a song I sometimes play with my father". It was "Just Breathe" by Pearl Jam.
The band came back out for another encore and Lukas took a turn on the acoustic piano for "Smile". He then strapped on his guitar, introduced the band, and then they played a great version of The Rolling Stones "Get Off of My Cloud". I nice nod to the longtime rockers who's drummer, Charlie Watts, recently passed.
I trip out into the cosmos followed with "Drum Fantasy Dance" and then the finale was the very rocking, kind of a theme song for the band, "Something Real". "Give me something real baby!" Promise of the Real always deliver!
SETLIST:
Start to Go
Perennial Bloom (Back to You)
Fool Me Once
Four Letter Word
Piano Explosion of Goodness
Handle
Just Outside of Austin
Leave 'Em Behind
A Few Stars Apart
Throwing Away Your Love
Forget About Georgia
Carolina
Die Alone
Find Yourself
Set Me Down on a Cloud
Encore: Bass solo
Wildest Dreams
Entirely Different Stars
Turn Off the News (and Build a Garden)
Just Breathe (solo)
Encore 2:
Smile
Band intro
Get Off of My Cloud
Drum Fantasy Dance
Something Real
- by Lee Crumpton
- Photos by Jerry Friend
