Sometimes the best moments happen when the crowd hasn’t arrived yet. The day Keenan O’Meara walked onto the stage at Amsterdam’s Paradiso for soundcheck, the historic venue was empty. The American songwriter (and filmmaker) from the Catskills was in town supporting I’m With Her (who also recorded a session with us), and after a quick soundcheck, we jumped at the chance to capture something on that stage.
The timing couldn’t have been better. That quiet space between soundcheck and showtime, when the venue is yours alone and the pressure of performance hasn’t quite settled in yet. Keenan O’Meara played me three songs: his original Devil Never Said His Name (of which Sam Evian commented: ‘one of my favs but also they all my favs’), a tender reimagining of Counting Crows’ A Long December, and a delicate take on Adrianne Lenker and Buck Meek’s Kerina.
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Originals
A Long December (Counting Crows)
Tidal | Apple Music
Kerina (Adrianne Lenker & Buck Meek)
Tidal | Apple Music
Keenan O’Meara
Credits
Filmed & edited by Matthijs van der Ven.
Audio recorded by Tim Reitnouer & mixed by Matthijs van der Ven.
Location
Paradiso
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Thanks
Sara Watkins
Sarah Jarosz
Aoife O’Donovan
Tim Reitnouer
Jody March
Everyone at Paradiso
Zach Hundley
There is no better way to discover music than watching great musicians cover the songs they love. The Influences has been producing these videos ever since 2008.
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