Richman’s Intimate Set Proves the Passion Lives : Alternative, Not Angry, He and Drummer Shine

Though he never packed the angry punch of his more riled-up contemporaries, Jonathan Richman certainly helped fan the flames of the punk revolution in the mid-1970s.

His fiercely minimal folk-pop-rock attack and decidedly unassuming attitude made him every bit as radical as the Sex Pistols.

Unlike his noisier brethren, however, Richman and his quirky acoustic musings have never really been in danger of being co-opted by the mainstream. They still aren’t, despite a memorable appearance in the box-office hit “There’s Something About Mary” in which Richman and drummer Tommy Larkins served as a kind of post-modern Greek chorus for Ben Stiller’s romantic misadventures.

The singer-guitarist’s performance Saturday night at the Foothill in Signal Hill was less a concert than a musical get-together between a couple of hundred close friends.

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Accompanied by Larkins, Richman ran through a colorful set that encompassed material old and new, warm and wacky. Concise, folksy tunes about the ups and downs of love alternated with funkier, drawn-out numbers recounting more complex social scenarios. The prospect of protracted jamming between an acoustic guitarist and a drummer with a minimal kit might seem bleak, but it yielded some of the most engaging numbers of the night.

A master storyteller, Richman worked his way through musical sagas--both serious (“Let Her Go Into the Darkness”) and silly (“I Was Dancing in the Lesbian Bar”)--with aplomb. He deftly combined smartly crafted lyrics, eloquent guitar work and sassy interpretive dance moves to bring his tales to life.

Whatever the mood, Larkins provided just the right measure of rhythmic oomph, from elastic dance grooves to a straightforward four-by-four. Spurred on by the duo’s unassuming enthusiasm, the audience responded in kind, accenting the beat with some vigorous hand-clapping and providing exuberant backing vocals now and again--notably during an abbreviated rendition of Richman’s classic “Roadrunner.”

At times, especially during more sardonic moments, such as “Pablo Picasso,” Richman brought to mind a kinder, gentler (and much scruffier) Tom Lehrer, though he’s far too earnest and fond of whimsy to remain satirical for long. The heartfelt melodies are always a breezy complement to equally heartfelt lyrical sentiments.

After more than 20 years plying his trade, it’s only natural that Richman delivers songs with instinctive ease. What’s remarkable is that he hasn’t lost the genuine down-to-earth warmth that gives his music its soul.