POP MUSIC REVIEWS : Harris Predictably Unpredictable

Emmylou Harris is nowhere to be found on the charts, but the audience at the late show Tuesday at the Crazy Horse Steak House still treated her and her band, the Nash Ramblers, as if they were the very heart of country music. As usual, Harris’ voice conveyed every nuance of ache or joy the songs potentially held.

Harris rarely plays what one might expect. Tuesday’s show was predictable only in its unpredictability as she explored some of the byways of her career, opening with a propulsive version of “Mystery Train” and including Steve Earle’s “Guitar Town” and Delbert McClinton’s “Two More Bottles of Wine.”

By going acoustic four years ago, Harris might have risked limiting the range of her material. But on numbers such as Rodney Crowell’s “I Ain’t Living Long Like This,” the band showed it could rock furiously, while on softer selections such as “Pancho and Lefty,” “Beneath Still Waters” and “Green Pastures” the group left an uncluttered landscape for Harris’ vocals to soar over.

As much evident pleasure as Harris puts into her singing, she seemed happiest Tuesday when she sat partially obscured on the drum riser watching her band stretch out on the instrumental “Lee Highway” where they passed off solos that flew fast, inventive and funny.

* Harris appears Monday at the Crazy Horse, 1580 Brookhollow, Santa Ana, 7 and 10 p.m. $33.50. (714) 549-1512.