Gabrielle Giffords's Set List: A Critical Appraisal

Gabrielle Giffords: An eclectic, but marred, set list

She's walking, talking and, according to an e-mail from her mother obtained by the Houston Chronicle, she's playing to the hilt her role of "Little Miss Overachiever."

She's also singing. It's an important step in recovering from brain injuries, we're told.

So what should you expect from a Gabrielle Giffords concert? The set list so far:

1. "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star"
An offbeat opener...gives a nice nod to her astronaut husband, of course. We're imagining she gave it a throaty torch-song treatment: "How I wonder what you are," indeed. Not where you are, not who you are, but what you are. Deep. (The answer, by the way: fiery gas.)

2. "Happy Birthday to You"
Look, we all know Giffords is being incredibly strong and brave and undaunted and all that, but it must be said: This is pretty much the same freaking song as "Twinkle, Twinkle." This is like the Kinks doing "You Really Got Me" and following it up with "All Day and All of the Night." Mix it up a little, please. (At least she didn't do "The Alphabet Song," which is the same tune.)

3. "I Can't Give You Anything But Love"
We like this -- a surprising, semi-obscure choice from the Great American Songbook. And one that Rod Stewart hasn't ruined yet, either.

4. "Deep in the Heart of Texas"
Inevitable, we suppose. But it's a little-known medical fact: This song has long been used to measure the progress of brain-injury patients. When, like everyone else, they get bored to death with it by the third verse, they are clearly on the road to recovery.