As I stood watching one of the roadies casting his fishing lure into the water from the top of the drum riser about an hour before show time, a husky and strangely familiar voice from behind me asked, "So, is it still raining?" I turned around to say that the last few traces of rain seemed to be moving off, and found myself face to face with Melissa Etheridge [ tickets ].

We were both standing there Sunday night (6/29) on the shore of a pond that surrounds the rustic stage at Danbury, CT's Ives Concert Park--and I knew we were both thinking the same thing. Validating my suspicion, Etheridge spoke first.

"Last time I was here four years ago we had an incredible storm."

I recalled the show, and how the spunky songwriter was working so hard to keep the crowd, in between prolific apologies to the dwindling legion of fans that could barely see the stage for the sheets of rain that were pounding the venue.

And, on this night, as the last traces of rain clouds moved eastward and the first few audience members set up their blankets and lawn chairs, the Oscar and Grammy winner hung back for a few moments chatting quietly. Etheridge mentioned she was still getting her full voice back after battling a cold, and that, although her "Revival Tour" was just a few gigs into a summer-long run, the sets were coming together nicely.

Then, as quickly as she appeared, Etheridge shuffled off to her dressing room to prepare for the show. Little did I know that the quiet, almost hushed conversation would be in such stark contrast to the nearly three-hour set Etheridge was prepping.

What a revival it was!

After sharing a highly critical take on the artist for her turn at last summer's Live Earth--where she paced and ranted almost as much as she sang--it was great to roll out of the Ives show totally satisfied after the final encore.

In the ensuing year since Live Earth, Etheridge has found a perfect balance, delivering a fantastic musical performance while seasoning the pot with a dash of astute political commentary; sprinkling in a few deeply personal stories about her life, her loves, her cancer; topping it all off with a hopeful message reflecting her newfound appreciation of life and the planet we all share.

When she wasn't dodging between full-tilt rock and roll and introspective ballads, Etheridge was true to her revival theme, engaging the crowd without any of the self-absorbed preachiness I was anticipating. Instead, she used the stage as a pulpit, her songs as hymns, and her guitar as a staff, propping up all but a couple of songs with those trademark jangling 12-string rhythms.

For the first time in 20 years of seeing her live, Etheridge appeared much more focused on being part of a band than the star out in front of a contingent of faceless backing musicians. On at least three occasions, she bowed to her fellow players--veteran drummer Fritz Lewak, bassist Mark Browne, keyboard/guitarist Paul Trudeau and the stellar Philip Sayce on lead guitar--referring to them as "the greatest band in the world."

On the intimate ballad side of the program, highlights of the show included "You Can Sleep While I Drive," from her sophomore effort, "Brave and Crazy"; a touching take on "Angels Would Fall," her cancer-recovery theme; "I Run for Life"; and a seamless transition from "2001" into her Oscar winning, "I Need to Wake Up," from Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth."

Leading into the medium tempo mega-hit "I Want to Come Over," Etheridge recalled one of the periods in her life when she was looking for love.

"Well, I found one," she related to hoots and hollers from the crowd. Then, turning with a wink, she warned, "But be careful what you're looking for--because you may get it, with all the drama that comes with it."

"I'm the Only One" was a sultry powerhouse, with Sayce cutting loose for all he was worth, taking the straight-ahead rocker and subtly shifting it to a jammy blues feel towards the end. While he staked out his place on the stage, the guitarist was lured into a couple of moments of brilliant interplay with Etheridge, one of which came when she dragged him over in front of the PA stack and used the neck of her guitar as a slide on the frets of his guitar.

Later in the set, amid another blistering solo during "Open Your Mind," Etheridge suddenly bent over and Sayce was right there rubbing his guitar across her backside--a simple enough trick that brought screaming feedback from both his amplifier stack and the crowd.

Choosing another opportunity to mix the old and new, Etheridge crooned the wonderful "Message to Myself" from her latest offering, "The Awakening," mixing into a too-abbreviated sample from "Come to My Window."

Then, after thanking her fans for not only spending their hard-earned money on a ticket, but also for the gas to drive to the show, Etheridge closed with her breakthrough rocker "Like the Way I Do."

Etheridge's "Revival Tour" will continue hopscotching across the country into September with two-night stands in New York City (July 9, 10), Lowell, MA, (July 18, 19) and Chicago (Aug. 7, 8). Looking way ahead, Etheridge was just announced as a headliner at the Sugarbush Music Festival & Women's Cultural Fair in Indian Wells, CA, April 4, 2009.

Click here to see photos from the show.