File Friday night's concert at the Southgate House under “best western music.”

        So says Texas singer-songwriter Robert Earl Keen, the star of the sold-out show, who together with his wonderful four-man band put on a 90-minute performance turning the Newport club into equal parts folkie listening room, honky-tonk beer joint and Lone Star swing dance hall.

        The best Texas singers, from Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings to Joe Ely and Mr. Keen, incorporate all those aesthetics. The best songs in the set had a little bit of it all, too.

        Like “This Old Porch,” a song dating back to the days when he was part of a crew of Austin up-and-comers along with Lyle Lovett and Nanci Griffith. In the middle of the tune he gave a rambling monologue that included a review of an unnamed Italian restaurant across the street from the Southgate where he dined earlier (“The food was pretty OK,” he opined). He went on to reference those days with Mr. Lovett, which worked its way into an explanation of his music.

        “Country,” he said is how he once described his sound when strangers discovered he's a singer. He then continued to say he has since come up with the “best western” label, and it's a good one.

        The guitar player, Rich Brotherton, went a long way to proving him right. Mr. Brotherton switched between electric and acoustic guitars all night. His Tex-Mex-flavored acoustic lead runs paired with Mr. Keen's rich narrative writing style recalled Mr. Nelson's best stuff. And when Mr. Brotherton strapped on the electric, the honky tonk was open.

        The show's momentum slowly worked upward, ending with a gritty take of the standard “Hand Me Down My Walking Cane,” with Mr. Brotherton playing acoustic slide, and the encore of Mr. Keen's signature “The Road Goes On Forever,” a 10-minute double-time two-step tour de force.

        The opener Lonesome Bob was just as good. The Nashville alt-country singer has a baritone as rich as his songwriting, which ran the spectrum from the comical “I Get Smarter Every Drink,” the crowd's favorite, to the lovelorn and rocking “Do You Think About Me?,” which the Waco Brothers featured as the title track to one of their albums.

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Robert Earl Keen's 'best western' no boast
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