Rent Party Pays in Full

The gorgeous twilight on June 11 was about to give way to a cool evening, but still bathed the Elks Club with abundant yellow sunshine.

"I wish the sun would go down; it's killing my rock 'n roll vibe," begged Chris Dickson, rent Party bandlord and show organizer. The fading star soon dropped behind South Mountain and the party was on.

Pre-show, headliner Willie Nile weaved among the gathering crowd, relaxed and talkative and behaving like a regular. He then eagerly took a seat to hear opening act Christine Santelli. "I didn't exactly study my instrument…my guitar teacher told me I was the worst student ever!" admitted Santelli as she immediately set out to demonstrate the success she's had self-taught. With a solo acoustic set of pain and perseverance, she delivered a moving string of powerful, cautionary tales.

"She's the real deal," Nile whispered to me, truly entranced.

"Ode to Bill" was a "paean to guitar playin' man Bill Perry," sung with guts and raw emotion—an unabashed warning to avoid life's traps and pitfalls. "Good Day for a Hangin'" featured another gushing vocal performance and a fearless exploration into life's dark recesses:

"I have waited for that Greyhound bus to make that stop-

I have waited for the other shoe to drop…"

Santelli embraced the crowd, mixing a brilliant smile with moody pouts and soft vocal caresses. Nile's elbow made contact with my ribs as he moved to take the stage: "Check out that pickin'!" he hissed.

Nile quickly took over the show with his prowling, stomping trio (Frankie Lee, kick drum & snare; Johnny Pisano, bass), creating a sound fueled by generous energy and outstanding songwriting skills that have placed him in the ranks of Hiatt and Springsteen for decades.

His songs chronicle winding journeys through bad breaks and hard knocks, and songs of gratitude and appreciation. Alone or with partners, he triumphs with brass balls optimism, communicating that we can make it if we try, but I'm gonna kick your ass if you get in our way.

"Sometimes I'm on my way, sometimes there's Hell to pay…"

The trio charged through a cross section of tunes from Nile's records old and new; from his 1992 release "Hard Times in America" though last year's "House of Guitars" and his soon to be released album, "The Innocent Ones."

Midway through the set, he got the Elks Club jumping with a thundering cover of Percy Mayfield's' "Hit the Road, Jack," inciting the obliging crowd to wail along. Nile called up Christine Santelli to drive the choruses, and brought the house down as he jumped from stage to chair to amplifier.

He followed with the deeply retrospective ballad "On the Road to Calvary," written for close friend, deceased songwriter Jeff Buckley:

I saw St. Christopher walking downtown on main
With Black Madonna fingers holding a flame

I saw an eagle rising out of the blue
I heard a car crash it reminded me of you

You carry me across the mighty river
You lift me up above the raging sea
You give me all this love you deliver            
Straight to my back porch on the road to calvary"

Jarring and beautiful was Nile's tribute to 9/11, "Cell Phones Ringing (in the Pockets of the Dead)," inspired by a headline Nile saw about the train bombings in Madrid. "Vagabond Moon" featured Pisano's penetrating bass licks and a driving bridge. All evening, Nile frequently stepped away to feature his fellow musicians, and added Santelli to his set several times.

Not satisfied, the sold-out Rent Partiers demanded an encore, and Nile blew 'em out with The Ramones classic "I Wanna Be Sedated," sending a dizzy, energized crowd into the night.

It was a top-notch Rent Party bill and a fitting close to a successful performance season at the Elks.