With a career-spanning collection of gold and platinum hits and ten Number 1 singles Jake Owen has ascended to stardom as a mainstay country staple. Known for his laid-back style and genre defining hits like ‘Barefoot Blue Jean Night,’ ‘American Country Love Song,’ and ‘Alone with You,’ Owen has been one of the most requested artists when fans have been asked by the organisers of the C2C festival which person or band would they like to have on at the festival – low and behold, they asked and they listened as Owen appeared on a UK stage for the very first time in his career!
It was clear from the start that Jake Owen felt like he had something to prove to a new set of fans in a country he hadn’t played in before. His performance was full of passion and power and he was so present in the moment that, as can happen at the very best of live shows, the set transcended the arena in which it was set and a kind of communal inclusivity happened that meant his performance seemed to last forever and yet was not nearly long enough.
Opening with a double salvo hit of ‘The One That Got Away’ and ‘Anywhere With You,’ Owen was full of smiles and slick moves, working the stage like the seasoned professional he is. He mentioned that his very first live album had been released the day before and what pride he puts into his live shows and that was very evident from the way he easily made the huge space that is the O2 arena feel like a small bar, tucked away from the Nashville Broadway crowds. Owen’s personality shone through in every song meaning tracks like ‘Yee Haw’ and ‘American Country Love Song’ were delivered with a verve and intensity that was impossible to resist.
‘Days of Gold’ was a particular highlight at four tracks in and seemed to take the level of intensity up a notch with its rapid fire lyrics expertly delivered and the stage awash in beachy colours and images from the huge video screens. Owen stepped out from behind his guitar for the first time and danced and stalked the stage like a whirling dervish, from one side to the next and back again, determined to engage every last person in the crowd. When it arrived, ‘Down to the Honky Tonk’ elevated proceedings even further with at least 80% of the people who had been resisting the impulse to dance succumbing to Owen’s infectious charms. An extended band jam session full of electric and steel guitar made the arena feel like Santa’s Pub as 15,000 people went honky tonking together with Owen in the master of ceremonies role.
Scattered throughout this uptempo and intense set were some beautifully delivered ballads. Live, with the power of a full band behind him, Jake Owen’s ballads like ‘Homemade’ and ‘Alone With You’ feel more akin to something like Bon Jovi circa 1988 than they do Hank Jr and Brooks and Dunn. The former came replete with a Richie Sambora-esque guitar solo and a stunning delivery from Owen and the rest of the band whilst ‘Alone With You’ had a delightful Bluesy, extended guitar intro and the segue into ‘Stand By Me’ at the end of it was a genius move which saw the O2 arena united in song and lit by thousands and thousands of phones in a communal moment like felt like we were being taken to church.
‘Beachin’ was another highlight with its cool Floridian vibes. Owen’s use of the video screens to augment his songs was second to none in this performance and whilst I will say it stopped short of being something like an art installation, there were times when the screens combined with the music and the performance came across as something so moving and immersive that it’s a wonder that Disney or Universal Studios haven’t come knocking at his door for the rights to some sort of ride or experience at their Orlando playgrounds!
‘On the Boat Again’ kept the beach vibes rolling in fine style before a mid-set double whammy special event which saw Owen play his pandemic-written ‘I Want My CMT’, a tribute to the artists of the 90s written around the riff to Dire Strait’s ‘Money for Nothing.’ With 80s leaning video parodies of famous shows and films playing on the screens this felt like something unique and special that the UK crowd was being allowed access to. This was followed by a cracking cover of Hank Williams’ Jr ‘O.D’d in Denver’ which Owen delivered with all the style and flair of Bocephus himself, smiling and grinning at the crowd throughout. This was one of the times it was obvious how present Owen was in this performance, changing the lyrics of Denver to London a couple of times, something he did throughout the show which was a real mark of how much effort he was putting in to entertaining the crowd.
An intense climax saw ‘Eight Second Ride,’ an emotional ‘Made For You’, ‘American Country Love Song’ and ‘Barefoot Blue Jean Night’ bring this iconic and special set to a close. ‘Eight Second Ride’ saw Owen throwing himself into the crowd at the side of the stage, taking selfies and fist bumping the delighted audience whilst ‘Made For You’ was described as a bittersweet moment by Owen as he told a story about how his long term keyboard player had left the band to become a teacher in Arizona but as soon as he heard about the European shows he’d asked if he could come back for a limited run of shows. The pair played the song, bathed in white lights and the O2 crowd sang along obligingly, secretly wiping the odd tear from their eyes, arms around their loved ones and phone lights in the air.
There was no other way that Jake Owen was going to close down this show with anything but ‘Barefoot Blue Jean Night’ and what a singalong anthem this song was. Another sign of Owen’s engagement and presence came when he delivered the ‘sweet tea’l lyric in a perfect ‘Downtown Abbey’ style British accent but it was the ‘oh oh ohs’ and wonderful anthemic chorus that carried this song home and left the crowd equally sated and yet not wanting this mesmerising and iconic performance to end.
In the history of the C2C festival, people talk about Chris Stapleton, Keith Urban, Eric Church and Luke Combs’ sets as being amongst the best that there has ever been but Jake Owen’s London set was as good, if not better, than anyone of those. Slick, professional and expertly delivered it was dripping in soul and passion too, and there wasn’t a single person in the crowd who wasn’t engaged, effected or emotionally touched by it. It will be a travesty if he waits another decade to follow up on the impact he made in the UK this weekend and let’s hope that doesn’t happen! He came. He saw. He conquered.
Track List: 1. The One That Got Away 2. Anywhere With You 3. Yee Haw 4. Days of Gold 5. Homemade 6. Beachin 7. Alone With You / Stand By Me 8. Down to the Honky Tonk 9. On the Boat Again 10. I Want My CMT 11. O.D.’d in Dever 12. Best Thing Since Backroads 13. Eight Second Ride 14. Made for You 15. American Country Love Song 16. Barefoot Blue Jean Night Venue: O2 Arena London Date: Saturday 9th March 2024
