NESP Forum

One of his best songs all night was “Soul Thing,” which originally appeared on “Under the Radar,” his second self-produced album from the days when, he remembers, he was lucky to sell 20 CDs a night after a gig in a bar.

“Soul Thing,” which, like many of the other tunes Thursday night, was featured on his debut 2006 platinumselling album, is an get-upand- dance narrative of what his music isn’t — not jazz, not country, but “a soul thing.” The melody incorporates classic jazz and blues riffs, expertly produced by his band, and had the crowd singing along. It’s a cleverly written song, and Hicks has been performing it for so long that it seems to come from somewhere deep inside.

He appeared alone for the encore, sitting on a tall stool and singing the tender “The Fall,” a song he wrote when he was 19 that alludes to a complicated emotional link — “I climbed the ladder, baby, and you took the fall.”

He seems even thinner than he was on last season's finale a few months ago. Despite the famous gray hair, he looks and seems much younger than his 30 years.

I might have been one of the only contestants he's ever gone up against where I think he was in a no-win situation. I think people got mad that he would say something [bad] like that about me, which created controversy and stirred the pot, and I think people kind of went with me when he said something good about me. It was a pretty lucky situation to be in.

but if I show up in Oklahoma City on a Friday night, I'm going to get away with having some beers and hanging out. With the hat on, though. Hat always has to be on, and I get tired of wearing hats. That's a trade off I don't like.