A Family Affair: The Weepies

There was a rule in the Tannen home that, according to Greg, little brother of Steve who is one of the tag-team duo that is the Weepies, every child had to pick up an instrument and learn it – no drums though.

That’s one way to engender a musically-inclined family, and this penchant for music has sparked the career of both Tannens, who, this past Saturday, depicted these musical talents at Town Hall in NYC in front of what seemed like 1,000 of their closest family and friends. In celebration of the Weepies’ first album in five years, the band teamed up with Greg Tannen, who opened for the married duo – Steve and his wife Deb Talan – to put together a jam-packed, “two days” of music – according to Steve.

Ok, it may have not run for two days, but the band did play around 30 songs, inflecting their sweet married badinage in between tracks, establishing the soothing feel that we were all actually in their living room, minus the crying kids! That is what made the concert so delightful. It was such a warm, personal environment. I almost felt like taking off my shoes and putting my feet up; although, I’m sure the people in front would have not liked that. Throughout the show, Steve and Deb picked out people in the crowd who they knew, and during the changeover from Greg’s opening act to the Weepies I heard numerous people by our seats talk about how they have known Deb and Steve for many years. To top it off, the Tannen parents were in the audience taking in the show. When I put family affair into the title of a post, I do not lie!

The music, though, is what made the show. The Weepies have always warmed the cockles of my heart’s ears. Let that imagery sink in for a second. Their dulcet 2-minute ditties are rich with soft acoustic melodies and effortless harmonies. Talan’s vocals are quirky and original, and they match well with Tannen’s more traditional, soft croon. The new material is a bit of a change of their early stuff, creating more instrument-rich music with some more complex sounds. It’s just nice to hear the Weepies making some more music. All in all, the concert made me smile, and isn’t that what a performance is often supposed to do. It was just enjoyable listening to the tunes, and the family aspect made the show that much more comfortable.

Let’s listen to a little live performance. Here are the Weepies performing “The World Spins Madly On,” which is the song that initially turned me on to the band, at the Oregon Zoo in 2011. Enjoy!