Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen have known each other for 46 years so if one drinks from the others bottled water, no big deal. The fact that they are still playing together is a testament to not only their personalities, but also to the obvious affection they have for each other and the music they love.
Hillman was, of course, one of the founding members of the seminal rock/country rock group the Byrds, but maybe he really grew up after a dose of Steven Stills' in Manassas, God-know-what with Gram Parsons as a Flying Burrito Brother and with Pedersen in one of the most underrated country bands ever: The Desert Rose Band. Whatever happened, somewhere along the way he learned to flat-out play a mandolin and 6 string guitar. Then you team him up with Pedersen who played and sang harmony on just about every album I bought in the 70's and 80's and, as they say, it just don't get any better than that. They pick, they grin, they sing harmony with each other and then they actually look like they are having fun doing it.
According to Hillman, they make up their show as they go, so the 25 song set featured a lot of songs you just knew they had to play to keep peace with their audience ("Tambourine Man"," Eight Miles High", "Turn, Turn, Turn" "Do You Wanna Be a Rock and Roll Star" and "Have You Seen Her Face" from the Byrds), Pedersen's best known song from his collaboration with Emmylou Harris ("If I could Only Win Your Love" - Herb sang harmony on that cut but apparently wasn't credited with it) and his 70's solo album, Southwest ("Wait a Minute"). Manassas was represented with "So Begins the Task" and "It Doesn't Matter", The Desert Rose Band by "Story of Love" and Buck Owens/Dwight Yoakam with the "Streets of Bakersfield. The rest of the songs were a mixture of gospel, bluegrass and country and showed up when Hillman felt they should.
Songs they have played before and should have this time too: "Missing You", "Love Reunited", "Change Partners", "Our Baby's Gone" but who am I to quibble with Chris' set list picking abilities?
The Ark is a great venue to see a pairing such as them, small, comfortable as an old shoe and run by some really dedicated people who recognize that the soul needs to fill up on some good music played by good musicians now and again. I would highly recommend Chris and Herb and I travel far and wide to see them whenever I need a little boost, but if they aren't in town, I bet you anything they wouldn't mind if you found someone else to scratch that good music itch.
