Date of show: March 4, 2014
Written by: Chiara DiAngelo
Carleton Stone celebrated the release of his latest album Draws Blood with a stripped down simple and intimate affair at the Dakota Tavern. An early show with no opener, Stone took the stage with just his acoustic guitar and East Coast charm to accompany him. While the album is written as a lyrical tribute to his writing partner, the late Jay Smith (Matt Mays), surrounded by friends it was not a heavy-hearted evening in the least. Stone got “the sad out of the way” early on, playing the album’s title track – also the final song he wrote with Smith – third. Lightening the mood afterwards, Stone filled the spaces between songs with humorous anecdotes about the stories behind them, whether it was trying to get a friend laid or girls in general. He even managed to call album co-producer Jason Collett a butthead at one point for not being in attendance.
Partway through, the soulful crooner was joined on stage by a few more friends, including another of his writing partners, Emma-Lee on backup vocals. It was surprising to learn that the incredibly sexy “Between the Sheets” was written the first day they met – now that’s some immediate chemistry!
While it was great to be introduced to his new material and get reacquainted with the tracks from his 2011 self-titled release, one of the best surprises was a Killers-Nirvana mashup that got thrown into the middle of one of his older songs. I would not have immediately expected those two bands to exist in Stone’s repertoire! The set ended with the emotionally-laden and heartbreaking album closer, “Pick Me Up, Dust Me Off,” a duet with Emma-Lee that you couldn’t not feel right down to the innermost depths of your heart.
While we didn’t buy Stone a shot this time around, someone did bring him tequila shots on stage and he expressed the desire to keep them coming for the rest of the night. With an early end to the show, there was plenty of time for the album release celebrations to extend – and much deserved!
buying shots for bands 
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