O.C. POP MUSIC REVIEW : Carlene Carter Works Out Kinks

How do you get to the Greek Theatre?

Practice. Practice. Practice. . . .

Carlene Carter took that paraphrasing of an old joke literally in the first of her two sets Monday night at the Crazy Horse Steak House, turning in a show that is best described as a work-in-progress, albeit a mostly delightful one even at this raw, early stage.

Tonight, Carter is scheduled to be at the Greek in Los Angeles, opening for Mary Chapin Carpenter. Monday’s sets were the singer’s first official gig with a newly assembled band, and she was candid about their potential raggedness.

“We’re here to entertain you, but we’re also here to practice,” Carter told the audience at the outset.

She wasn’t kidding.

From the start, technical problems hampered the show. Earphones and monitors were on the fritz; lighting was only sporadically on target, and the sound mix was uneven.

Then there was Carter, who admitted that she’d never felt so out of sorts on stage. She told the audience that she’d arrived at the club without her hair dryer and makeup, forcing her to “run to the mall to get some eye liner and some concealer.”

All of which could explain why the set started a good 30 minutes late and only lasted a Ray Charles-like 55 minutes.

The bad-hair-and-earphones day also appeared to have some effect on Carter’s vocal performance; she tripped up a few times, forgetting lyrics and straying on some notes. Then, toward the end of the set, she thoroughly confused the band by calling for the wrong song.

In spite of it all, the show was a joy.

Why? Because Carter is near impossible not to like.

Decked out in a bright blue mini skirt and crop top, black leather vest and cowboy boots, the 39-year-old singer whirled and bounced around stage like a teen-ager. Between virtually every one of the set’s 11 songs, she offered personable, unrehearsed commentary and anecdotes, so the whole affair wound up feeling like a pickup gig in somebody’s barn.

As has been amply noted, this daughter of country music stars Carl Smith and June Carter Cash also got the family talent gene, so even when the keyboards and drums were cranked up loud enough to drown out the Three Tenors--and they did indeed overpower her singing on “I Love You ‘Cause I Want To” and “Come on Back”--what little could be heard of her vocals was a delight.

Plus, there were some genuinely wonderful moments when most everything seemed to click. “Me and the Wildwood Rose”--Carter’s musical remembrance poem to another country legend, her grandma Maybelle Carter--is a sure winner that she includes in every show. The band backed off some for this song, smartly allowing its sweet, poignant lyrics and folksy melody to dominate softly.

The same was true of “Unbreakable Heart,” which Carter playfully labeled “another wrist-slashing song.” In concert, Benmont Tench’s aching ballad loses much of the clarity and complex, wispy vocals heard on the version that highlights Carter’s “Little Love Letters” album, but it is a supremely lovely work nonetheless.

Carter’s current touring band features Hellecasters’ guitarist Will Ray, bassist Jim Hanson, keyboardist Hawk Wolinski and drummer Michael Clarke. They lacked the cohesiveness of her last road band, which was led by NRBQ guitarist Al Anderson. But Hanson delivered some impressive high harmonies, and Ray and Wolinski each turned in stretches of standout finger work.

Carter’s next album, due in August, will be titled “Little Acts of Treason.” She offered a few glimpses of it in concert here, including the first single, “Love Like This.” The song features some pretty harmonies but is otherwise without distinction.

Far more likable among the new selections were “He Will Be Mine” and “Come Here, You.” The first is an up-tempo rocker that barely skirts country, with Beatle-esque guitar riffs that make it a natural for the dance charts. The second is a sassy, brassy tune--perfect for this sassy, brassy singer. It’s pumped along by fat, bluesy keyboards and doo-wop backing vocals.

“You’re so cool for puttin’ up with our stuff,” Carter gratefully told the crowd at the close of the show, just before a rousing encore of “I Fell in Love.”

Well, yeah. But even in raw form, her stuff is better than most folks’.