Marcia Ball and CJ Chenier, February 29, 2024, The Armory, Fort Collins

by Tim Van Schmidt

At first I didn’t really get it.

I went to the Armory to see Marcia Ball – one of my personal favorites – on February 29 with supporting act CJ Chenier and the Red Hot Louisiana Band. In my mind Ball was the headliner, but was a little confused when she took the stage first.

I got what I came for right away – Ball’s upbeat blues, steeped in Down South rhythms. Her piano rolled, guitar and sax rocked, and Ball’s thin, world-wise vocals came right out of the middle. Ball even did a Subdudes song, which probably pleased John Magnie, who I spied in the crowd.

I could have gone home at that point, but was glad I didn’t.

Then CJ Chenier took the stage with his lean yet dynamic band. It wasn’t long before the Armory became a zydeco dance hall and there was definitely a pulse in the room, even if it did take a little cajoling from the band to get the crowd up and moving. But move they did to that rich, happy kinetic music from Louisiana.

Don’t get me wrong – Ball’s set had plenty of energy too, but Chenier and band just tore the evening loose. The Armory got it right putting Ball on first and I saw a lot of happy music-lovers at the end of that show. Leap Day indeed.