“Hello, Ohio,” Gavin DeGraw said through a smile as he sat down at the piano and burst into a stripped-down rendition of “Chariot.”
DeGraw played a two-hour show with no opening act on Saturday night in the Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium. DeGraw, flanked by a percussionist and guitarist, packed his Raw Tour with singalong hits, covers and new singles.
DeGraw emphasized the fact that this tour was particularly stripped down.
“It’s called the Raw Tour for a reason,” he said, “There’s no laptop computers on our stage, there’s no auto-tune and there’s no bulls--t.”
The crowd, a mixture of students and residents of Athens and surrounding towns, was on its feet for the majority of the show.
“I like that they could make such a big sound with just the three instruments,” Stephanie Tenney, who has seen DeGraw perform before, said. “He’s got an amazing voice. It’s unique, and you get to hear all the real stuff when they’re not using all the other equipment.”
Blue and purple lights flashed as DeGraw played “Making Love with the Radio On,” “Annalee” and “She Sets the City On Fire” from his latest release, Something Worth Saving.
“You may not know the lyrics to this one cause it’s off the new record, but don’t feel bad, I hardly know them either,” DeGraw joked before playing his tribute to a free spirit, “Kite Like Girl.”
DeGraw also included plenty of fan favorites like, “In Love With a Girl,” “Follow Through,” “Best I Ever Had” and “Soldier.”
Before playing “Soldier,” DeGraw asked all military personnel to stand and thanked them for their service.
The late Tom Petty’s “Won’t Back Down” and Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come” also made an appearance on the setlist.
In a jean jacket and baseball cap, DeGraw played the entire show at the grand piano, pausing only to engage the crowd. He shared stories and jokes in between songs and went into the crowd to pose for photos with fans while singing.
DeGraw gave his bandmates credit multiple times throughout the show, and gave them each a spotlighted bow at the end.
“I liked the acoustic guitar and having a grand piano on stage,” David Tenney said. “The three-piece made it more interesting than just a full band.”
DeGraw closed the show with “Not Over You,” a heartache-filled ballad that saw success on the radio.
His encore featured 2003’s sentimental ballad “Belief,” followed by a massive singalong to “I Don’t Want to Be,” TV drama One Tree Hill’s theme song and DeGraw’s biggest Billboard hit.
“Everybody joined together in singing his song — that was my favorite part,” Chloe Jeon, who was seeing DeGraw for the first time, said.
