Morgan still has room to improve

Lorrie Morgan is working to stake her claim as heir apparent to the title of first lady of country music.

As Morgan showed a near-capacity crowd Sunday afternoon at the Augusta Civic Center, she has many of the necessary tools, including a striking physical presence, an exquisite, precise voice, and star confidence.

But in her 80-minute set, Morgan also revealed that she needs a bit more showmanship and a wider range of material to enter the stratosphere largely occupied now by Reba McEntire.

To Morgan’s credit, songs performed from her next album “War Paint,” including “This Is My Night to Howl” and “1-800-Used-To-Be,” showed a more uptempo, even rockin’ side of Morgan.

As expected, Morgan performed many of her hits, including “Half Enough,” “We Both Walk,” and “What Part of No (Don’t You Understand).” But the set was ballad-heavy, with such songs as “I Guess You Had to Be There,” “Evening Up the Odds,” “Something in Red” and “A Picture of Me Without You.”

Sharing the sex-appeal spotlight at Sunday’s concert was second act Sammy Kershaw, who kept fervent female fans shouting.

Kershaw flirted with all his might, displaying the rascally qualities of one of his heroes, Bugs Bunny. He honored two other heroes with songs, George Jones (their duet “I Never Bit a Bullet Like This Before”) and the late Ronnie Van Zandt of Lynyrd Skynyrd (“I Know a Little”).

The Louisiana native exhibited some of the showmanship and spark that Morgan needed, with his frenetic guitar playing and repartee with the audience.

He also exhausted much of his repertoire, performing hits “Cadillac Style,” “Don’t Go Near the Water,” “Haunted Heart,” “I Can’t Reach Her Anymore” and “Queen of My Double-Wide Trailer.”

For his encore, Kershaw, a race-car enthusiast, dedicated his version of James Taylor’s “Fire and Rain” to drivers Alan Kulwicki, Davey Allison and Neal Bonnett, all recently killed in crashes.

Opening the evening was Lucerne resident Joan Kennedy, one of Canada’s favorite country artists. The energetic performer displayed a surprisingly powerful voice during her 30-minute set.

Kennedy played an eight-song set featuring songs from her two MCA albums “Candle in the Window” and “Higher Ground.” She showed that, with the right breaks, she can make it just as big in the United States.