Billy Bragg Live at The Northampton Box Office

I just popped over to catch a secret in-store performance by Billy Bragg at the Northampton Box Office. There were about 20 people in the little wooden room and Billy stood up on the small-stage/window-sill with Main Street traffic slipping by behind him. It was a nice little slice of something different on a foggy afternoon. He played three songs, one by Woody Guthrie, one from his new album, and "The New Brunette".

It's amazing how strange it is to hear such a familiar voice come out of an actual person rather than a speaker, especially with a guy like Bragg whose songs are often recorded with just guitar and voice. When he sang the name "Shirley" form the New Brunette, I felt like I've known him my entire life. I'm not going to his concert tonight since I'll be playing with the Hallucinajasons at the Bourgeois Heroes CD Release show a few blocks away. That's cool, I'd always rather be playing music than seeing someone else play music.