Paolo Nutini Shines at the 9:30 Club

Paolo Nutini, 9:30 Club, Washington D.C.,
October 4

Recommended beverage: Wolaver’s India Pale Ale

Just when ya think there’s no new, refreshing sound in today’s music, along comes a bloke like Paolo Nutini. His rich, soulful voice is a joy, both on CD and live, and is well-advanced for his years: The Scotsman is only 20. One thing that can be said about Nutini’s show comes from his very own lyrics: “Everybody’s smiling; it’s so inviting.”

At this show, the mop-topped, fresh-faced Nutini rolled through much of his debut album, These Streets, opting to play his hit “New Shoes” as the second song of the night. Most entertaining was his brilliant, original, reggae-tinged cover of the 19th-century African spiritual, "Trouble So Hard," which Moby also had adapted in his song, “Natural Blues.” Sowing his appreciation for American roots and perhaps Midnight Cowboy, another great cover of the evening was Harry Nilsson “Everybody’s Talking.”

While there’s no trace of country or folk elements on Nutini's debut album, he concluded the show with a new song that had great country flair to it, “Funky Cigarette,” that had folks dancing, and that's no easy feat in this town. His experimenting successfully with different genres shows the versatility and promise of this young, talented artist.

Opening the show was Indiana boy Jon McClaughlin who played piano-infused rock, reminiscent of early Ben Folds minus the angry lyrics. His good looks had the ladies swooning, prompting the Scottish bloke behind me to comment, “yah I can see why ‘the birds’ like him.” This is another guy with a bright future.

Paolo Nutini