The Chicks
Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
October 8, 2022

For some musicians, a political stance comes gradually. The Beatles, for example, went on from their pop beginnings to steer the "peace and love" movement of the late '60s. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Charlie Daniels extolled the virtues of being a "Long Haired Country Boy" in 1974 before stoking the gay panic of "Uneasy Rider '88."

For Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire, and Emily Strayer, it took one night.

In March, 2003, the (then) Dixie Chicks were one of the most popular acts in the world. At a London concert, Maines criticized the War in Iraq and said the band was "ashamed" to be from the same state as President George W. Bush. Blacklists, boycotts, and death threats followed.

For those keeping notes, the damage done to the Chicks' careers is about as clear an example of this "cancel culture" we keep hearing about (but rarely see actual evidence of). Many country stations to this day refuse to play their music. All for expressing an opinion.

But if last night's show at the Pavilion proved anything, it's that the Chicks still aren't backing down. If anything, they've turned the volume of their activism to 11.

You didn't need a better indicator of that than last night's surprise(?) guest. The roar went up during the Chicks' bumper reel (videos by groundbreaking female artists such as the Runaways, Heart, and Tina Turner) and the word quickly flashed through the crowd that none other than Beto O'Rourke was there.
The gubernatorial candidate took a while to get to his seat, stopping to take photos with anyone who asked (there were a lot). He finally did, and the Chicks opened the show with "Sin Wagon," "Gaslighter," "Texas Man," and "Julianna Calm Down," songs that helped set the show's tone: a near-perfect balance of rage, joy, and introspection.

That anger threatened to boil over after Maines pointed out a sign in the crowd suggesting the band should run for Governor. She offered that they could be vice-governors to O'Rourke. When some boos were heard, she doubled down, asking one apparently annoyed audience member, "Do you have a mother? Do you have sisters? Do you have a daughter? Do you have a girlfriend?"

A couple of gentlemen in the next section over from me were losing their got-damn minds over this. It reminded me of people at Springsteen shows who still — still! — get upset when the Boss gets political. My dudes, why the hell are you even here?

Lest you think the show was all polemic, fear not. The group, and their backing band (which includes Maines' father, the legendary Lloyd Maines, and her son Slade ... "You can never have too many Maines") tore through a good chunk of the Chicks' discography, including a selection of older hits where the entire ensemble came downstage to play a mini-set consisting of "Lubbock or Leave It," "Cowboy Take Me Away," "Long Time Gone," and "Landslide."
But the floor-to-ceiling video stage monitors were put to their best use when focusing the band's anger, whether at the now-divorced husbands that inspired Gaslighter — such as the uncomfortable "Tights on My Boat" or the withering "Sleep At Night" — or highlighting the evisceration of women's rights and violence against African-Americans that inspired the searing "March March."

And maybe none of this works if the Chicks weren't consummate musicians, if Natalie Maines couldn't still absolutely wail, and if they hadn't tapped into what feels like an entire generation of women who've decided, after the loss of body autonomy, that enough is enough. The smattering of boos last night didn't come close to drowning out the roars of approval when Maines said, "If you have a female in your life you care about, vote Beto."

I review a fair amount of shows, and plenty of acts are perfectly competent from a musical perspective, but few can fuse virtuosity with righteous anger like the Chicks. If you were at last night's show and didn't appreciate their present form, one forged in the crucible of public vilification and personal trials, then you haven't been paying attention, and I’m having a hard time comprehending why you were there in the first place.

And according to Maines, we were louder than last night’s show. Suck it, Austin.

Personal Bias: This isn't the same group I saw in a tent outside the HLSR in 1997. I just wish I could find that program they autographed.

The Crowd: "Lotta chicks here." - Banky, Chasing Amy

Overheard In The Crowd: "Keep booing, dipshits! They've already got your money!"

Random Notebook Dump: "I wouldn't trade places with [Adrian Pasdar] right now for all the whiskey in Ireland."
SET LIST
Sin Wagon
Gaslighter
Texas Man
Julianna Calm Down
The Long Way Around
My Best Friend’s Weddings
Sleep at Night
Travelin' Soldier (Bruce Robison cover)
Wide Open Spaces
Tights on My Boat
Lubbock or Leave It
Cowboy Take Me Away
Long Time Gone/Daddy Lessons
Landslide (Fleetwood Mac cover)
Truth #2 (with Patty Griffin)
March March
For Her
White Trash Wedding
Everybody Loves You
Young Man
Not Ready to Make Nice
Goodbye Earl