Monday’s concert at Packard Music Hall was a study in contrasts.

Melissa Etheridge and Joss Stone, who played Warren as one of the first stops on a joint tour, probably have a lot of overlap in their record collections, but they take those influences in different directions.

The two shows couldn’t have looked more different.

Stone was wearing a flowing white and beige dress, and two musicians and three backing singers who accompanied her initially were dressed all in white.

The lighting followed the lead of the clothing, stark beams of white light that were striking against the black backdrop.

She remained seated for the first half of the 70-minute set — for good reason.

“At the time of booking these shows, I didn’t realize I’d be making a person at the same time,” the visibly pregnant Stone told the audience.

It might not have been part of the original plan, but the setup created an intimacy in the 71-year old theater.

It was as if Stone was singing to the audience in her living room.

After a half-hour intermission. Etheridge and her three-piece band turned the venue into a roadhouse.

Decked out all in black from her leather pants to her cowboy hat, Etheridge closed the night with a rousing 90-minute set that spanned from her 1988 debut to her most recent release.

The only bursts of color were from Etheridge’s assortment of guitars (even if the most-used might have been a black-bodied 12-string) and the blue and red stage lights.

Both artists have a lot of blues and soul influences — Etheridge sang Albert King’s “Born Under a Bad Sign” while Stone covered Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You” on Monday. Etheridge mostly channels those influences into her impressive body of original songs.

Stone, who first gained attention as a teen 22 years ago with a preternatural gift for interpreting classics and undiscovered gems, has written some of her own material, but her set was dominated by songs made famous by a diverse range of artists, including Alison Krauss, Tom Petty, James Brown, Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, James Bay and The Chi-Lites.

Etheridge didn’t ignore her hits. “I Want to Come Over,” “Come to My Window,” “I’m the Only One” and “Bring Me Some Water” all got enthusiastic responses from the crowd. She also played her most recent song, “A Burning Woman,” which was inspired by her correspondence with inmates in a women’s prison in her native Kansas. She had the audience singing along with the song’s profane chorus.

The highlight of the night might have been “Shriner’s Park,” a story about a relationship with a teenage “friend.” It was made all the more poignant by the story she shared before it about the song’s inspiration. The friend didn’t show up one night, and she didn’t hear from her again. Years later she found out the girl’s parents weren’t happy about some of her choices and sent her away to be “fixed.”

For the unabashed Bruce Springsteen fan, “Shriner’s Park” may be Etheridge’s “Backstreets.”

Stone’s voice was beautiful and expressive throughout. Too often acts traveling with multiple backing singers use them to echo the lead vocal in case the star can’t hit that high note. With Stone those three singers always were a complement, never a crutch. She didn’t need it.

Eventually, the chairs were removed and Stone’s band expanded to six players and three backup singers. The energy level increased, but it also got a little more kitschy and Vegas-y in the process, especially when the backing singers took lead vocal turns on wedding reception standards like “Get Down Tonight” and “We Are Family” for the finale.

It was undeniably fun, but I missed the intimacy of the first half of the set.

Etheridge and Stone delivered two different but equally satisfying performances for concertgoers.

Andy Gray is the entertainment editor of Ticket. Write to him at agray@tribtoday.com.