Ever since his magical sophomore album, “Can You Fly,” New York’s Freedy Johnston, a Rolling Stone “Songwriter of the Year,” has effortlessly merged a folksinger’s focus on detail with a popstar’s sense of melody. It’s a combination few can muster, much less put across onstage the way Johnston—a native Kansan who bought his first guitar by mail order—does anytime he steps on the boards. Don’t Forget, “Bad Reputation” was a Billboard Top 100 Hit when that was a real thing. I recall electrifying nights in the West Village, and I expect the same here at Lucky Dog.
