Echoes of Melody and Stories: Suzanne Vega at the Cabot
Music lovers filled the seats of the 100+ year old Cabot for a night of captivating melodies.
‘I’m glad I’m not flying all alone’ - Suzanne Vega (Flying with Angels)
Music lovers filled the seats of the 100+ year old Cabot for a night of captivating melodies with Suzanne Vega, an American singer-songwriter who performs folk-inspired music. Vega has performed professionally since the early 1980s, releasing her debut album in 1985. Her love for music shone through her songs and every instrumental chord.
It was a pleasure to witness Vega’s illuminating concert, surrounded by a crowd of her eager fans. Vega was excited to be performing in Beverly, MA, the second show of her East Coast tour, having played in Nashua, Tennessee, the night before. She held deep gratitude for the audience, who, she remarked, without them, live theater wouldn’t be possible.
While donning her signature black hat with her raven attire, Vega started her concert with ‘The Queen and the Soldier,’ while playing the guitar. Her musical partners, Jerry Leonard and Stephanie Winters, accompanied on electric guitar, piano, and cello. They each blended terrific rhythm to Vega’s songs.
Vega has a smooth and distinct singing voice, powerfully conveying every word in her songs. She is also a talented guitar player. At the end of each of her songs, Vega concluded with a riveting final chord strike that reverberated the singer’s passions against the acoustic walls of the Cabot Theater.
Most of Vega’s music explores relationships, identity, and social issues. I liked the lyrics in her song ‘Gypsy,’ which incorporated the meaningful words, ‘destiny,’ and ‘change.’ A lyric that spoke to me was, ‘changing my writing on the wall.’ It reflects how ideas or ourselves change over time.
Other songs included ‘99.9 F,’ ‘Old Things,’ and ‘Left of Centre.’ Vega shared a couple of new songs she’d been working on, like one titled ‘Alley.’
My personal favorite of the evening was ‘Flying with Angels,’ the title track of her new album. As Vega described it, the song reflects caregivers and the struggle to help someone else. The lyric, “I’m glad I’m not flying all alone,” spoke to me because no matter how much we struggle, we conquer situations together.
In every concert comes a story. As I have come to enjoy concerts more, the storytelling is my favorite part. It’s a chance to learn about the singer's story and inspiration for their songs. Nobody ever knows how a singer’s success transpired, maybe following similar pathways as someone else.
“So, you know Bob Dylan?” Vega started off one of her stories, followed by a tidal wave of intrigue from the audience. Vega’s song ‘Chambermaid’ was inspired by Dylan’s 1966 song, ‘I Want You.’ She was inspired by the chambermaid character and immediately thought up her whole life story in ninety minutes.
The ‘what if’ element in any story always intrigues me, and Vega uses it well for ‘Chambermaid.’ So many lyrics resonated with me at the concert, especially this one, “Don’t forget to write.” That’s the most important part about keeping passions alive. You can make a song or a story about anything.
Vega’s concert generated beautiful lighting designs throughout the evening. Coloring transpired the moods of songs and also a symbolic image. The designs may have only represented various shapes, but to me, the graphics resembled a butterfly or an angel’s wings, symbolising Vega’s themes about change.
Attendees were energetic throughout the concert, shouting out title suggestions. The audience gave Vega one of the greatest standing ovations. “You’re what makes entertainment happen,” Vega said to everyone with the highest gratitude. Suzanne Vega’s concert at the Cabot made for a thrilling evening for attendees.
About the Creator
Marielle Sabbag
Writing has been my passion since I was 11 years old. I love creating stories from fiction, poetry, fanfiction. I enjoy writing movie reviews. I would love to become a creative writing teacher and leave the world inspiring minds.
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Comments (1)
Beautifully written and shared so much enjoyed to read You I felt like a part of the journey with Vega songs and story and so many intuitive signs and languages in between Thank You for sharing 🌞🌕🌸