Okkervil River played the second of three shows at Bowery Ballroom last night amid a tour celebrating the 10th anniversary of their breakthrough concept album Black Sheep Boy. A dream concert for fans of the group, the band played Black Sheep Boy and Black Sheep Boy Appendix in full with frontman and lyricist Will Sheff playing a few earlier acoustic songs that informed the writing of Black Sheep Boy to open the night.

Making the event even more special was the return of Jonathan Meiburg. An early member of Okkervil River, Meiburg left in 2008 to concentrate on his other project Shearwater. Sheff’s girlfriend Beth Wawerna (Bird of Youth) also joined in, singing the duet on “Get Big” and providing back up vocals on other songs.

As always, Sheff delivered an earnest and impassioned performance. There were a few wonderful moments that dotted the evening. During the acoustic portion, Sheff admitted to being a little rusty on one particular song and requested the audience not sing along so that the hamster wheel in head could concentrate on turning out the chords.

Okkervil River’s special tour will be accompanied by the release the Black Sheep Boy 10th Anniversary Edition. Dropping December 4 via Jagjaguwar, the three-LP set combines the classic Black Sheep Boy album and its counterpart the Black Sheep Boy Appendix with an all-new unreleased album of covers entitled There Swims A Swan. The new LP contains full-band recordings made six months prior to the release of Black Sheep Boy that served as inspiration for Sheff. In the mix are songs popularized by such artists as Lead Belly, Big Bill Broonzy, and the Louvin Brothers. You can take a listen to a track off of the new album, “I’m In Love With Susan Smith”, below. The album is available for pre-order here.

Jagjaguwar has also leaked a three-part video that tracks the making of Black Sheep Boy. Sheff and gang are shown learning, recording and finishing the record. Watch below.

Okkervil River play their final night at Bowery Ballroom tonight and then hit up Boston before heading west. The tour schedule is below as well as a couple of photos from last night shows.

Okkervil River 10th Anniversary Black Sheep Boy Tour
Mon. Nov. 23 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
Tues. Nov. 24 – Boston, MA @ Royale
Sun. Dec. 13 – Austin, TX @ Cactus Cafe
Mon. Dec. 14 – Seattle, WA @ Columbia City Theater
Tues. Dec. 15 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
Wed. Dec. 16 – San Francisco, CA @ Swedish American Hall
Fri. Dec. 18 – San Francisco, CA @ Swedish American Hall SOLD OUT
Sat. Dec. 19 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Masonic Lodge SOLD OUT
Sun. Dec. 20 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Masonic Lodge

Photos by Mindy Bond