The best place to be
in Erwin, Tennessee

We’d had lots of rain in east Tennessee the days before my gig at Union Street Tap Room in Erwin, Tennessee. And then on the Friday of the gig, the weather turned cold, and snow fell on and off all day.

Leesa and I were on the way to Erwin, driving from our house and intending to pick up HWY 81 at the end of Arnold Road. But when we arrived at the intersection of Arnold and 81, the road from there to Erwin was closed. So, we had to turn around and go back through Johnson City and around I-26.

We got to Union Street in time to set up the equipment and for me to begin at 8:00, but the rerouting took up the time I’d intended to use in writing up a list of songs for the two-hour set. For that reason, I don’t have a set list to provide.

One thing different about this show from most previous ones is that I included several more cover tunes. In fact, for the first two-thirds of the performance, I alternated covers and originals, and for the last third, I probably mixed originals/covers at about 3/1.

Although I don’t remember the order exactly, here are most of the songs I did for the night:

  • “No Surrender” (Bruce Springsteen)
  • “Dizzy from the Distance”
  • “Wildfire” (Michael Martin Murphy)
  • “She’s a Wild One”
  • “Year of the Cat” (Al Stewart)
  • “Fiesta”
  • “Into the Mystic” (Van Morrison)
  • “The Jaws of Modern Romance”
  • “Genesis Road”
  • “Heart of Gold” (Neil Young)
  • “Empty Islands”
  • “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)” (Looking Glass)
  • “Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” (U2)
  • “Pride (In the Name of Love)” (U2)
  • “The Street I Live On”
  • “Best I’ve Ever Seen”
  • “Jamboree”
  • “The Weight” (The Band)
  • “Lean on Me” (Bill Withers)
  • “The Bells of Vimperk”
  • “You’ve Got Something I Need”
  • “There Was Always a Train”
  • “Rain on the River”
  • “Homecoming”

That’s 24 songs, which works out to $6.25 per song.