Jimmie Dale Gilmore

For the past few years, Jimmie Dale Gilmore has put his energies into a reunion with the bandmates he'd left behind some 35 years ago. The Flatlanders included Gilmore, Joe Ely and Butch Hancock, all of whom have had solo careers of some acclaim. Bringing the band back together for a pair of new albums and some touring (which, unfortunately, never reached St. Louis) was a dream come true for fans of all three singer/songwriters.

But with the gain of a legendary group came the loss of focus on the individual. Gilmore in particular seemed to have hit a creative peak with his 2000 album One Endless Night. That record set Gilmore's distinctive tenor, with his long words and phrases held across several wavering notes, to work on a series of country, folk and rock songs which matched his skills perfectly.

Now, with a break in the Flatlanders' schedule, Gilmore is recording a new album of songs his dad loved, and he's touring with a single guitar-playing partner, Rob Gjersoe. This should allow him to pull out virtually any song that strikes his fancy on a given night. Jimmie Dale Gilmore is one of our national treasures, a country-music singer as good as any who's ever put mouth to microphone.

Tickets are $20-$22; call 314-781-4200 for more information.