Emmylou Harris conveyed the spirit of the "Three Girls and their Buddy" tour by performing "When We're Gone Long Gone" Friday at Clowes Hall.

The song, written and recorded in the late 1980s by rarely celebrated country duo the O'Kanes, claims "the love that we shared and the way that we cared" are all that matter in the big picture.

A wealth of empathy and affection flowed among Harris, Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin and Buddy Miller as the musicians shared the stage and swapped tunes for more than two hours.

Formatted in the style of the "Songwriters" tour that brought John Hiatt, Lyle Lovett, Joe Ely and Guy Clark to the same venue in January 2007, the "Three Girls and their Buddy" production used collaboration to improve on last year's model.

While the four guys either performed solo or sat idly by, nearly every number from Harris, Griffin and Colvin featured vocal harmonies and Miller's perceptive guitar accents.

Harris labeled the short tour of a dozen or so dates as "just about the best" of her career -- high praise from the matriarch of country-rock, alt-country, Americana and any other label applied to the music she makes.

On a night defined by teamwork, Harris portrayed the role of mentor and coach. She dedicated "Love & Happiness," a song built upon best wishes, to her aunt, uncle and cousins who were in attendance.

Her definitively elegant and gentle voice sounded frayed from time to time, but Harris had no problem contrasting and complementing Miller's rough-and-tumble vocals.

Miller and Griffin might be described as the team's flashy stars, as he worked a blues-gospel axis with evangelical zeal and she revved up rockabilly thrills.

Meanwhile, Colvin's contributions can't be overlooked. She offered unvarnished tales of heartbreak through "These Four Walls" and "The Facts About Jimmy." She also coaxed the most moments when all four musicians performed at once: Harris and Griffin sang high harmonies while Miller tucked trembling electric guitar lines just below her voice.

A decent portion of concert's appeal was found in off-the-cuff banter shared among the musicians.

Conversations turned from astrology to finding homes for cats and dogs to possibly working up a version of Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made for Walking."

And far from being a showcase for personal songwriting achievements, the evening was packed with leftfield covers. Perhaps no other concert in history has boasted tunes popularized by the Band, the O'Kanes, Johnnie & Jack, John Hiatt, Porter Wagoner and Lonnie Johnson.

But, aside from perhaps Colvin's meandering version of the Band's "Acadian Driftwood," everything matched a tapestry that Harris helped create and her friends still perpetuate.