Ray LaMontagne - Live at the Beacon Theatre

Wow!  What can be said about Ray LaMontagne’s solo acoustic sold-out opening night show, the first of 3 shows, at New York’s Beacon Theater?  This singer/songwriter has a gravely/raspy voice that will make you weak in the knees.  When he sang, silence filled the legendary theater so the crowd could soak up every single word.  In between songs, the soft-spoken LaMontagne told stories of his idols such as Elvis Costello and Justin Townes Earle.  Those stories gave the audience a chance to shout out their favorite songs and express their love and admiration for Ray LaMontagne.  His embarassment at these cat calls was more than precious.  A fun fact about Ray:  he was working a 65-hour a week shift in a shoe factory when he heard a song on the radio by Stephen Stills (of Crosby Stills and Nash) and decided to quit his job and become a full-time singer.  That’s a quality that I admire tremendously.

He hit the stage at 9 pm and sang for a solid two hours.  He played songs such as “Jolene,” “Loretta,” “Let It Be Me,” “Shelter,” “Trouble,” “Sweet Baby,” a Lucinda Williams cover, “You Are the Best Thing,” and the Bee Gees/Janis Joplin classic “To Love Somebody.”

See some more pictures of Ray LaMontagne after the jump.

Ray Ray Ray!

You don't know what it's like to love somebody.

Ray LaMontagne singing "Jolene"

Share/Save