Among a particular school of songwriters, Rodney Crowell is country music royalty. His place in the Nashville firmament was secured by not only the run of number one singles he scored in 1988-89 (all from his album Diamonds & Dirt), but also his work with Emmylou Harris and lesser known masterpieces like “Voilà, An American Dream” and “Stars on the Water.” With that pedigree, Crowell should be headlining a much bigger venue than the Alberta Rose Theatre. But rather than gripe about that, let’s instead revel in the fact that we’ll get to experience his intimate songs in an appropriately intimate setting.

by Robert Ham