Willie Nile Brings Solo Tour to Midtown

On April 18th, Willie Nile brought his solo act to Midtown in Grand Rapids, MI. In a first-of-its-kind for Nile, he is currently on a five-state, two-and-a-half week tour in support of his new live-album, “Live at Daryl’s House Club” which dropped on April 12th.

Instead of his usual full-band, Nile is touring with just a guitar, a piano, and an incredible catalog of music that spans his four decade career in music. Nile’s gift for storytelling is on full-display in this show, which is reminiscent of a VH1 Storytellers episode. Providing stories and insights into the music of his long-career, the audience was treated to an intimate performance of some of his most storied songs, deep cuts, and even new tracks.

Nile kicked off the 12-song set with the song, “Every Time the World Turns Around,” from his record Beautiful Wreck of the World. The song, which he originally wrote for George Harrison, provided a great introduction to the evening..

What followed over the next 90-minutes, was a wonderful journey through his long catalog and the incredible stories that produced those songs. Throughout his set, Nile was funny, veracious, and effusive as he told stories about life in New York, his friends and family, and the causes that are near to him. These stories built up to brilliant songs such as “Life on Bleeker Street,” “Looking for Someone,” and “Under this Roof.”

The show had several stand out moments. The first was his performance of “Looking for Someone,” a song co-written by the late Andrew Dorff. Nile gave a fantastic performance of this song after he recounted the story of how the song was written in a back-and-forth session between Dorff and Nile. One of the highlights of this story was his admiration of the song’s lyric: “There’s a bottle of whisky on a window ledge, I wanna be a painting, I don’t wanna be a sketch,” which was written by Dorff. It was obvious that Nile is still astounded at the beauty of that lyric.

Another moment that stood out was when Nile told the story about the impetus of a newly written song and how he had recently played it for his 106-year-old father. After performing the song, Nile even attempted to call his dad to talk with the crowd. While he ultimately wasn’t able to get him on the phone, it was a sweet moment hearing Nile tell stories about his father with whom he still has a close relationship.

Nile wrapped up the set with a rousing performance of “House of a Thousand Guitars,” an ode to rock and roll and those guitarists that defined the genre, and “On the Road to Calvary.”

This show all-in-all was a very special experience. Having the opportunity to experience such a unique show made for a great evening for those loyal fans in attendance. It’s safe to say that after all of these decades, Nile and his career are painting, not a sketch.

You can see more photos from the show in the gallery below. You can find more about Willie Nile on Instagram @willie_nile and on Facebook by searching Willie Nile. You can catch Nile on tour throughout the summer. Find dates coming near you at https://willienile.com/shows/.