"I lived in Boston for four years and I was never here. Call it what you will. But I'm glad tonight is the first night." On Friday night, Josh Ritter began his set in Boston's most esteemed concert hall (lined with statuary of "huge, intimidating, partially-clad figures") by singing about his native Midwest: "Idaho," Illinois in "Best for the Best," and the whole region as "story we made up to erase" in "Other Side."

Ritter began alone, with just his acoustic guitar, his wistful nice-boy-from-Idaho voice, and his most subdued black suit, later accompanied by his usual band and a couple dozen new musicians: conducted by Boston Pops arranger (and former Symphony Hall bartender) Sean O'Loughlin, the chamber-sized orchestra sometimes embellished and occasionally improved Ritter's dashing folk-rock. "Other Side" scaled a wall of sound triumphantly; "Girl In The War" was dazzling (but was every one of those Disneyesque flourishes necessary?); "Temptation of Adam," with the Pops extending the brassy orchestral intro from the studio recording, retained its usual tartness.

During a few songs, the Pops' musicians rested and, during "To The Dogs Or Whoever," watched with amusement as bassist Zack Hickman molested the drum kit. At one point, Ritter passed the mic to former Poet Laureate (and current BU faculty) Robert Pinsky, who had just rushed over from the airport to read two aquatic love poems.

"Thin Blue Flame," heavily indebted to Ritter's recent collaboration with Hilary Hahn, was stripped of everything but acoustic guitar and violin. The thunder and brimstone of the recorded version, and the cacophonous jamming that usually concludes live performances of this song were usurped by sparseness that somehow made the whole thing—an epic laundry list of political anxieties, hopes, and theological speculations—more harrowing. This rightfully got the first of several standing ovations that punctuated the evening. (We think the violinist meant to shake Ritter's hand when it was over, but he got a bear hug instead.)

"If you've ever wanted to sing at Symphony Hall, this is your chance. You've got booze, the lights are low," he said to the usual Pops attendees (the adorable older couples, the nuclear family units with their youngest daughters in tulle princess dresses) and the many less-usual attendees (the hoodie-wearing young men at the table in front of Bostonist's, who had started the evening by ordering two beers each and invested in a bottle of champagne before the night was over), as well as his family and his band's families. Never having been here before, Josh Ritter may not have realized that there's a singalong at pretty much every Pops concert ever—the remarkable thing about Friday night's chorus for "Empty Hearts" was that such a motley audience was there to pitch in.

Set List:
Idaho
Best For The Best
Other Side
Rumors ("My orchestra is gigantic / This thing could sink the Titanic")
Girl In The War
Wolves
Monster Ballads
Thin Blue Flame
The Temptation of Adam
To The Dogs Or Whoever
Right Moves
Two poems by Robert Pinsky
Bone of Song
Kathleen

Encore:
Wildfires
Empty Hearts

Top: Zack Hickman, Zack Hickman's moustache, Sam Kassirer (who got to play a huge, real piano), and Josh Ritter, taking their bows. Middle: A huge, intimidating, partially-clad figure. Bottom: A light fixture.

Fancy McCulture-Pants is owed several Manhattans.