Big and bold (not forgetting bouncy, brassy and sassy), Wynonna Judd is perhaps the least affected country music star to have graced an Irish stage. Surrounded by nine intuitive backing musicians and singers, her show is part revue, part fan-club gathering.
She sings with a lack of pretension and a surfeit of emotion and if you thought signing autographs and shaking hands on stage was cheesy enough, Wynonna talking to a fan on a mobile phone (they couldn't make the gig, but they wanted a natter nonetheless) takes the proverbial biscuit.
If all this were done with your typical genuine Nashville insincerity you'd want to go home and disinfect yourself in the repertoire of Hank Williams, but Wynonna transcends the usual cliches by being no one else but herself.
Her roots are in traditional country music and she treats the audience to a selection of fine solo material and that of The Judds, her immensely successful partnership with her mother Naomi. While the latter songs - including Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout The Good Old Days) and Love Can Build A Bridge - are sophisticated tear-jerkers, the former, culled mostly from her solo albums New Day Dawning and The Other Side, form a resourceful country/soul/rhythm 'n' blues hybrid. The stirring fusion isn't subtle, but works very well, Which is, when you come to think of it, kinda like Wynonna Judd herself.
