Shindell Shines at Sanctuary Concert

From songs about sitting in traffic to stray cows and stubborn mules, New Jersey native Richard Shindell played to an adoring and packed house on Saturday night at the Chatham Presbyterian Church.

Shindell, who is from Lakehurst and now lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina, opened with his song “Transit,” about a New Jersey traffic jam on a Friday at 5 p.m. His altered lyric of “Ashcroft Republicans” to “Democrats and Republicans, but mostly Republicans” drew a big laugh from the audience, and the light-hearted feeling continued throughout the concert, the latest in the church's popular Sanctuary Concert series.

Shindell spoke about his life in Buenos Aires, where street protests are so much a part of life that morning television newscasts routinely show what streets are blocked by protesters. He discussed living near a dairy farm, where stray cows are also a part of life.

His song “Stray Cow Blues,” along with “Get Up, Clara” about a stubborn mule, continued the comical tone of the evening, which was sobered by songs such as Bruce Springsteen’s classic “4th of July, Asbury Park,” commonly called “Sandy.”

Shindell’s skill as a performer became evident when he was able to transition a laughing audience into respectful silence as he sang “Your Guitar,” a moving tribute to songwriter Stephen Bruton. Shindell explained that he had never met Bruton, who died in 2009, but had come into possession of his guitar. The song is haunting. It feels almost like eavesdropping on Shindell as he tells Bruton how his guitar responds to his stranger’s hands, and how the resulting song flowed “out of your guitar.”

The highlight of the evening came when Shendell began the opening notes of “Fishing,” a protest song told from the point of view of an INS officer talking with an illegal immigrant. “Fishing” gave Shindell’s career a boost when Joan Baez recorded it in 1997. She also recorded his songs “Reunion Hill” and “Money for Floods,” and invited Shindell to perform on her 1997-98 tour.

Shindell, the performer who has been called “a master of subtle narrative” by The Wall Street Journal, “a master builder of songs” by The Boston Globe, and has been described as having “the voice of a master” by The Los Angeles Daily News, gave his fans what they came for Saturday night.

His opening act, Mad Agnes, was also an audience favorite. The trio, comprised of Margo Hennebach, Adrienne Jones and Mark Saunders, did a 40-minute set that included songs from their new album, “Hush,” although they announced they would soon be disbanding.

Songs such as the visual “Running in England,” and a light-hearted nod to their band’s breakup with a rollicking, pun-filled song about breaking up over breakfast.