Lyle Lovett & His Large Band Seduce New York

What is immediately striking about a Lyle Lovett show is not the perfect performances or impeccable production but rather, the lengths Lovett goes to engage and entertain his audience with humorous anecdotes and rehearsed bits with his band. As an audience member, you come away floored by his incredible, yet unassuming, stage presence but also, with a warmth towards Lovett and the 'Large' band of friends he has assembled on stage, whom he insists on introducing multiple times.

Oh, and the music isn't half bad either. Throughout his show Wednesday at New York's Beacon Theater, Lovett introduced many songs from his new album, 'Natural Forces,' all of which integrated beautifully with the rest of his catalogue. The humorous new tune 'Pantry' was the crowd pleaser of the evening, sung in old bluegrass fashion with all the musicians around a single microphone. Lovett informed the audience that the song was written with longtime girlfriend April Kimble and sprouted from their mutual love of food and the Food Network. Another highlight was the Lovett-penned title song off the new album, 'Natural Forces.' The charismatic singer told the tale of how he wrote the song while sitting watching football one Sunday. Amongst the beer commercials were advertisements for the local news and the stories they were about to run on the war in the Middle East. It's a hopeful song in which Lovett thanks the soldiers and says he hopes he's "worth fighting for."

Lovett is on tour through the end of November all along the Eastern seaboard and Canada, ending with two performances back home in Texas on Nov. 24 and 25.