Reviews: Kenny Rogers, GRiZ, Delta Goodrem, Bob Dylan, Sturgill Simpson, Ms. Lauryn Hill

Kenny Rogers @ London Palladium in London, England, Nov. 10 – “’Lucille,’ from 1977, saw the ladies in the audience stand and sway as one. ‘For God’s sake quit swaying. You look like a room full of Ray Charles’s,’ Rogers quipped, referring to his hero. But it was ‘The Gambler’ that had the Palladium singing along word-perfectly.” – James Hall / The Telegraph

GRiZ @ Stage AE in Pittsburgh, Pa., Nov. 9 – “Dropping samples from ‘The Lion King’s’ ‘Hakuna Matata,’ Michael Jackson’s ‘The Way You Make Me Feel’ and Kool & the Gang’s ‘Get Down On It,’ the night felt like a three-hour end of the world dance party and perfectly aligned with GRiZ’s mantra of ‘show love, spread love.’” – Courtney Linder / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Delta Goodrem @ Perth Arena in Perth, Australia, Nov. 8 – “’This is a completely free space,’ she said as she sang and danced – barefoot – with abandon to the joyful strains of ‘Sitting on Top of the World.’ Some of her chart- topping hits were slightly reinvented and the reworkings were a nice change of pace, such as the Spanish-tinged ‘Not Me, Not I’ and the dance- pop version of ‘Predictable.’” – Ross McRae / The West Australian

Bob Dylan @ Belk Theater in Charlotte, N.C., Nov. 6 – “Every number was reorchestrated or reimagined. Lyrics varied from the printed texts. Familiar melodies darted in and out of songs, like silvery fish glimpsed through a dark river. He has rethought all of his material and expects you to think harder about it, too.” – Lawrence Toppman / The Charlotte Observer

Sturgill Simpson @ Knitting Factory Concert House in Spokane, Wash., Nov. 9 – “The show kicked off with high-flyin’ ‘Sitting Here Without You,’ which showed off Simpson’s brass section to full effect, even taking things to an almost jazz band-type level.” – Laura Johnson / Pacific Northwest Inlander

Ms. Lauryn Hill @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver, British Columbia, Nov. 8 – “Ms. Lauryn Hill isn’t using the honorific by accident. She’s demanding respect through language. That strength of purpose is reflected by her on-stage presence. James Brown in culottes, conducting her band with ferocious intensity and ensuring every note was to her liking seemed more important than playing to the crowd. A concert, especially on nights like this, is not the same as a party. This is her art. It deserves to be delivered as close to perfection as possible.” – Robert Collins / CTV News