Country music icon Tanya Tucker gave us a night to remember at ACL Live
Legendary country singer Tanya Tucker reminded us that they just don't make 'em like her anymore on Monday night during her Austin City Limits TV taping.
We lost count of the number of standing ovations she got. Tucker taking a shot of tequila from an audience member seems like a dream sequence now. It was the first show this writer has been to where she needed fellow audience members to shut the heck up — Tucker's voice exists no where else and I needed to hear it fully without chatter or singing along. (I know, what a buzz kill.)
Tucker, who you know even if you don't know her — she gave us the hit "Delta Dawn" when she was just a teenager — sailed through 12 songs during her taping for the 49th season of the show. Here's what we took away from the performance:
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Tucker makes us feel like Texas.
As she breezed through hits like "If Your Heart Ain't Busy Tonight" and "Hangin In," we felt the same kind of comfort a sweeping Texas sunset provides. Although Tucker has been an icon for decades now, it felt like we were watching her for the first time, getting to experience her tough and sweet voice all over again.
Tucker is from Seminole, Texas, and although she hadn't been at ACL Live since 1986, you'd never know it. She was at ease on the iconic stage in black cowboy boots and a bejeweled denim jacket with fringe hanging off the back.
During "Texas (When I Die)," it was like we were standing inside a Texas state flag. The crowd, many in rhinestones, boots and cowboy hats, were on their feet, cheering Tucker on as she held up the "Hook 'Em Horns" hand sign.
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"Delta Dawn" is still Tucker's favorite song to perform.
Tucker closed out the show with her 1972 hit "Delta Dawn." Before she started to sing, Tucker said the song was still her favorite to perform.
As Tucker laid into the first lyric, "Delta Dawn, what's that flower you have on," audience members got up one my one. The person in front of us had their arms outstretched toward the sky like they were in church. The whole auditorium was singing along.
When Tucker held her silver-rhinestoned microphone out toward the crowd, without missing a beat, everyone sang: "Delta Dawn, what's that flower you have on/ Could it be a faded rose from days gone by?/ And did I hear you say he was meeting you here today/ To take you to his mansion in the sky?"
Tucker smiled the way you would if hundreds of people were singing the words you wrote decades ago.
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If Tucker decides to give up singing for some reason, she should be a comedian.
All artists have to do banter during their shows, and it's usually nice. But we especially loved Tucker.
We laughed when she choked back a shot of tequila from an audience member and said: "Get some of my tequila off the bus. We'll pass the bottle around." We laughed when she said "Shut up, I'm singing" for a reason we didn't write down and can't remember. We laughed when she talked about how old she is (even though she's only 64) and told us she used to be able to get her legs up on her shoulders.
She squatted down low as she sang, she shook her shoulders, and put her hat on her knee as she introduced her band.
Her mannerisms and sneaky smile had us laughing at every turn.
She's a legend for a reason.
You know those moments when you have to remind yourself to remember what's happening because it's really important? Tucker's show was one of those. We were so engrossed in her singing that we forgot to remember the big moment happening in front of us — Tanya Tucker was here! Live!
This writer does not claim to know everything about music and music history, but what I do know is this: Tucker is incomparable.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Tanya Tucker, country music legend, sang 12 hits at ACL Live taping
