Live Review and Gallery: Andrew Bird’s Gezelligheid • Fourth Presbyterian Church • Chicago
Andrew Bird’s Gezelligheid
Fourth Presbyterian Church
Chicago, IL
December 13, 2024
Review and photos by Jeff Elbel
Thanks to Andrew Bird, Chicagoans have known since 2009 that “gezelligheid” is a Dutch term that loosely translates to “coziness.” On Friday, Bird concluded a seven-night string of his Gezelligheid concerts celebrating the season in the beautiful setting of the gothic Fourth Presbyterian Church along the Magnificent Mile. According to Bird, this was the 14th season and the 51st Gezelligheid performance in Chicago, where the events helped to usher in the dark winter months. The singer, violinist, and whistler may no longer live locally (“I did 36 years here,” he told the locals in attendance), but the event has found its forever home here following attempts to share the experience elsewhere. “Los Angeles,” said Bird. “What were we thinking?”
Bird admitted that he was more nervous about Friday’s final Gezelligheid concert than he had been for the prior six nights, feeling that he had to do justice to a special run full of goodwill and intoxicating collaboration. Bird’s primary partner was longtime collaborator Alan Hampton, who played double bass and guitar and offered rich harmony on songs, including “Underlands” from 2022’s Inside Problems with its understated R&B rhythm. The song featured Bird’s typically expressive and whimsical lyrics, which described settling into an environment that’s “not exactly heaven.” “I’d say ‘bout half as nice,” he sang. Bird’s otherworldly whistling and sparkling glockenspiel colored “Anonanimal” from 2009’s Noble Beast.
Song selections for the night rewarded devoted fans who could return for more than one concert, with variety planned from night to night. There was plenty of variety within the evening itself, too. Fare included afro-pop inspired instrumentals, Bird’s captivating original pop songs, jazz standards including Cole Porter’s “You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To,” Christmas fare, revealing favorites including Bob Dylan’s “Oh, Sister,” and wry interpolations including “Green Wine” – a mashup of The Handsome Family’s dysfunctional holiday song “So Much Wine” with the traditional “Greensleeves.”
Highlights included a delightful medley of Vince Guaraldi’s memorable soundtrack for A Charlie Brown Christmas. Hampton’s nimble bass groove provided the foundation for Bird’s swooping and cartwheeling violin during “Skating.” Extended solos spilled over with ebullient jazz and sly blues notes, as well as virtuoso classical flourishes.
Bird welcomed old friend and Chicago mainstay Nora O’Connor to augment the latter half of the set with stirring harmony and duet vocals. Bird, O’Connor, and Hampton gathered around a single mic to share rich harmony for songs, including the melancholy “Lull.” When Bird became momentarily tangled in the song’s second verse and glanced at his singing partner, O’Connor encouraged him with a supportive double thumbs-up and beaming smile. The pair’s voices intertwined and climbed into the vaulted rafters as Bird toyed with his original melody and bent it into new shapes with jazz-style improvisation.
The trio created a magical blend during “Sisyphus” from 2019’s My Finest Work Yet. Bird and O’Connor traded verses on Glen Campbell’s “Gentle on My Mind” while Hampton played tumbling fingerstyle guitar. Bird admitted to suffering from a head cold following “Give it Away,” but his supple singing had shown no evidence. “Music is a healing force,” he said. The main set concluded with the love letter to Chicago “Pulaski at Night.” Bird thanked his collaborators and crew, admitting that he would be sad to see everyone go. “This is something I look forward to every year,” he said.
The trio returned for an encore joined by opening act Mary Lattimore who played her grand harp during an emotive cover of Stevie Nicks’ “Crystal” from 1973’s Buckingham Nicks album. Bird offered thanks to all for coming, mentioning those who had made a holiday tradition of coming annually. He mentioned that seeing many of the same faces in the room and behind the scenes each year made him reflect on the speed and passage of time. “Tables and Chairs” followed, with its tale of happily rebooting after the apocalypse. The song’s air of celebration peaked with the revelation that “there will be snacks.”
As the concert concluded with a reassuring rendition of The Handsome Family’s “Don’t Be Scared,” Bird and his partners left the stage with waves and warm smiles. Local Specimen Audio builder Ian Schneller’s distinctive flower-shaped Janus speakers continued to spin and send a harmonic chord bouncing around the church’s limestone walls. The air was filled with enveloping and soothing ambient sound as people exited, carrying the warm sensation as protection against the cold outside on Michigan Avenue.
Category: Live Reviews
