You gotta love Lyle’s versatility

David Renzi

Friday, Aug. 9, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

The music of Lyle Lovett is a marriage of seemingly anomalous elements that mingle and somehow coalesce into a compatible hybrid.

He has songs in his repertoire that adhere strictly to one form or another, of course. But just as often he follows a "little bit of this, a little bit of that" recipe, and in doing so creates his own sound, which he presented Wednesday night at The Joint inside the Hard Rock hotel-casino.

The instrumentation of his Large Band has its roots in disparate musical camps and reflects the eclectic tastes of its leader, who loves to mix and match, yet somehow prevents the whole thing from sounding diffuse. It allows Lovett to move easily in and out of musical styles through simple addition and subtraction.

The steel guitar and fiddle are pure country-western, with the emphasis on the right side of the hyphen. The horn section plays jazz riffs and shouts big-band style. There's a gospel quartet for signifyin'. There's hints of Cajun and folk. The blues are ever-present, and swing elements run along a Texas-to-Kansas City path -- Bob Wills meets Count Basie.

Strains of each style can run through a given tune, allowing Lovett the pleasure of defying categorization. At heart, though, he's probably just (to quote from one of his songs) a "long, tall Texan with a 10-gallon hat." And 5-gallon hair. The "Eraserhead" coif that defined his look for so long isn't half the hive it used to be.

Lovett's musical sensibilities change from song to song. One minute he's a forlorn country crooner (Why do I do the things that make you cry. Will I lose your love to another), the next he's a quirky cad with mixed-up priorities (I caught you lookin', so mister you don't have to act so surprised, you can have my girl but don't touch my hat).

He packed 23 songs into a nearly two-hour, encore-included concert, which ended the way it began: Lovett singing alone on stage, strumming an acoustic guitar, illuminated by a single beam of light.

After Lovett's opening solo spot, the Large Band launched into "Blues Walk," a brisk swing instrumental that featured each member. In fact, the band members were given numerous, albeit brief solo spaces throughout.

One of the highlights of the show was a mistake. Lovett, perhaps halfway through "Judgment Day," forgot the words and stopped cold.

"Thank you very much," he told the audience, explaining the brain cramp this way: "This is the very first night we've all played together ... and I got so excited I forgot what the hell I was doing."

But the audience didn't. It applauded, just as it did throughout the show.