Saturday, May 20, 2017
Dave Keyes with Popa Chubby in Beverly
Good friend Dave has been playing great music his whole life, but I don't get much of a chance to see him. So when I heard he was playing at 9 Allis in Beverly on 5/19 with Popa Chubby, I was very psyched. His tracks with Popa Chubby are excellent.
W&L were able to get there also, though delayed by life and traffic. This is one of the worst times of year for traffic around Boston and getting North on 128 can be difficult. 9 Allis is a nice, small room and Dave and Popa were joined by a bassist and drummer. They played two great sets of electric blues with some great contributions from all the guys.
Dave came by the table when he could, and we had a nice chat with him at the merch table afterwards, then back into the night and home to our mostly demoed house.
Friday, May 19, 2017
DSO Take 5 at Wilbur
Dark Star Orchestra keeps coming around, and we keep going to see them. As mentioned many times, seeing them is just incredible fun and is nowhere near getting old for me. They announced another, all-over-the-country, year-long tour for 2017 (they've played more gigs than the original GD did, which is astounding), including of course a date (Thursday, 5/18) at Boston's Wilbur Theater. We got tickets as soon as they went on sale, Sarah's and my 5th time seeing DSO at the Wilbur, 11th overall.
Traffic was beyond incomprehensibly bad going into the city. We stopped dead on Soldiers Field in Allston and I could see the Turnpike was not a good option. Got off at the BU Bridge and tried the Cambridge side, but that was the first in a sequence of bad decisions ... there was no good way to get anywhere in Boston on that suddenly hot, bright day. I had to do some serious coaching of myself ("You've seen worse," "You might be a little late, but you'll see DSO tonight," "It's graduation season, this is good for Boston") to stay calmed down and finally was able to bust through and crawl over the Longfellow Bridge into Boston and then quickly up to Beacon Hill. Met Sarah and Dave and we walked over to Jacob Wirths, where we had a rookie waiter with no clue, but we refused to be hassled. This was quite a challenging day in some ways, but we were going to see DSO at the Wilbur (which was surrounded by construction, we had to cross Tremont multiple times).
Oh well, we got there and ended up entering just in time to get spots belly-up to the stage in the "Skip Zone." Geez did we breathe sighs of relief. And the evening was just as much fun as ever! One great thing was that as we were leaving Wirth's, Tom from HTR Construction was at the next table and stood up to talk with us. Tom's a great guy and in a different world we'd be working with him now. Great to talk with him and to meet his friend Louise.
And another fun thing was that when we got up to the rail, naturally we fanatics up there introduced ourselves, and the guy next to me (a famous R&B artist and spectacular dancer in his own right from Southern Vermont) and I recognized each other. We both stroked our chins trying to remember where we'd met before, and compared all kinds of notes about what concerts we'd been to, what our impressions had been, and where we normally stood. As it turned out, we couldn't have met at this concert, and were standing in different places at that one, etc. We were stymied.
Then I mentioned how we liked to go to P&F concerts in Port Chester, we touched on the madness of traffic in the NYC area (traffic!), and I mentioned how you could sneak up to Port Chester by dropping down through CT and staying in Armonk, "Armonk?" he said, "We stay at the Quality Inn in Armonk." Lightning hit me, "We stay at the Quality Inn in Armonk too, that's where I recognize you from!" The lighting spread to him and he concurred, and we cracked up. We both thought we'd been sly and discovered an unknown spot! Now hordes of Deadheads will be descending on Armonk.
Anyway, there we were at the front of the stage and we were all (well, those of us who obsess about these things) anticipating an early seventies show from the stage setup. Someone pointed out that the GD had only played twice on 5/18, and that one of those concerts had been in 1972, on the Europe Tour. And that's what we got, a stellar re-creation of the Dead's stop at the Kongreßsaal Deutsches Museum in Munich on 5/18/1972, Here's the setlist:
Set 1:
Truckin'
Sugaree
Mr. Charlie
Jack Straw
Tennessee Jed
Chinatown Shuffle
Black-Throated Wind
China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider
El Paso
It Hurts Me Too
You Win Again
Playing In The Band
Good Lovin'
Casey Jones
Set 2:
Sittin' On Top Of The World
Me And My Uncle
Ramble On Rose
Beat It On Down The Line
Dark Star > Morning Dew > Drums > Sugar Magnolia
Encore:
Sing Me Back Home
One More Saturday Night
The show was sold out, and Dino got the day off, along with it being an easy day for Lisa, just playing harp on It Hurts Me Too and singing harmony on Playing, Sugar Mags, and the encore.
So there we were, in front of Skip with RobB and keyboard on our right, RobE 15 feet or so away in the center of the stage, and Jeff off over on the left. The under-stage speakers were rippling our pants and we were back with the guys in Europe in 1972 with an amazing first set of adventurous rock and roll that just went on and on and on.
Jeff seemed a bit tired, as he has at times lately, and was perhaps the weakest player that night, though he sure ramped it up for Dew. But RobK was as spot-on as ever, RobE was brilliant as always, and RobB played beautiful keyboards all night, over and over. We did not want him to stop. Always true to the canon however, he did not sing and RobE was as literal as ever, apparently forgetting lyrics in the same spots Bobby had.
And as with the other 10 times we'd seen DSO, this was such fun! We were rocking like it was 1972 and the music was excellent. We were dancing at the edge of the stage, and we'd turn around and see a PACKED Wilbur Theater, all full of people writhing and reeling. Everyone knew all the words, all the phrases, all the emotion, and we were all sharing it together.
As mentioned, Lisa finally made an appearance towards the end of the first set and she looked at me like a stone when I held up 10 fingers to her, quizzically. She played some rockin' harp on It Hurts Me Too. Then she moseyed up to her mike next to RobE and this time when I held up 10 fingers to her she grinned at me and nodded. Time for Playing, and then time for the 1972 Good Lovin' and a perfunctory Casey Jones to close the set. Yay!!!
Milled around, saved seats (well, places) for each other, grabbed bathroom breaks and another beer, and then it was time for the second set. Dave wasn't looking at his phone and we were left thinking it was 1972 sometime (I favored pre-Europe), but then they started up again and it was time for more excellence.
A long second set with Dark Star into Dew and an encore of Sing Me Back Home? Yes please. Don't blame me for abbreviating the second set, I'd just be repetitive describing how great RobB was, how authentic RobE was, and how much this stuff means to us. I wasn't yet listening the the Dead in 1972, but they were out there shaping my world.
Finally time to trickle out of the Wilbur, and we got going. Lots of stuff going on out in the theater district that night, but we got up to the Common, over to Beacon Hill, and back home in short order. Well perhaps short, but I didn't get to bed until 1:30 or so. As RobK had said when he talked about the show they were re-creating, it was a long night!
Traffic was beyond incomprehensibly bad going into the city. We stopped dead on Soldiers Field in Allston and I could see the Turnpike was not a good option. Got off at the BU Bridge and tried the Cambridge side, but that was the first in a sequence of bad decisions ... there was no good way to get anywhere in Boston on that suddenly hot, bright day. I had to do some serious coaching of myself ("You've seen worse," "You might be a little late, but you'll see DSO tonight," "It's graduation season, this is good for Boston") to stay calmed down and finally was able to bust through and crawl over the Longfellow Bridge into Boston and then quickly up to Beacon Hill. Met Sarah and Dave and we walked over to Jacob Wirths, where we had a rookie waiter with no clue, but we refused to be hassled. This was quite a challenging day in some ways, but we were going to see DSO at the Wilbur (which was surrounded by construction, we had to cross Tremont multiple times).
Oh well, we got there and ended up entering just in time to get spots belly-up to the stage in the "Skip Zone." Geez did we breathe sighs of relief. And the evening was just as much fun as ever! One great thing was that as we were leaving Wirth's, Tom from HTR Construction was at the next table and stood up to talk with us. Tom's a great guy and in a different world we'd be working with him now. Great to talk with him and to meet his friend Louise.
And another fun thing was that when we got up to the rail, naturally we fanatics up there introduced ourselves, and the guy next to me (a famous R&B artist and spectacular dancer in his own right from Southern Vermont) and I recognized each other. We both stroked our chins trying to remember where we'd met before, and compared all kinds of notes about what concerts we'd been to, what our impressions had been, and where we normally stood. As it turned out, we couldn't have met at this concert, and were standing in different places at that one, etc. We were stymied.
Then I mentioned how we liked to go to P&F concerts in Port Chester, we touched on the madness of traffic in the NYC area (traffic!), and I mentioned how you could sneak up to Port Chester by dropping down through CT and staying in Armonk, "Armonk?" he said, "We stay at the Quality Inn in Armonk." Lightning hit me, "We stay at the Quality Inn in Armonk too, that's where I recognize you from!" The lighting spread to him and he concurred, and we cracked up. We both thought we'd been sly and discovered an unknown spot! Now hordes of Deadheads will be descending on Armonk.
Anyway, there we were at the front of the stage and we were all (well, those of us who obsess about these things) anticipating an early seventies show from the stage setup. Someone pointed out that the GD had only played twice on 5/18, and that one of those concerts had been in 1972, on the Europe Tour. And that's what we got, a stellar re-creation of the Dead's stop at the Kongreßsaal Deutsches Museum in Munich on 5/18/1972, Here's the setlist:
Set 1:
Truckin'
Sugaree
Mr. Charlie
Jack Straw
Tennessee Jed
Chinatown Shuffle
Black-Throated Wind
China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider
El Paso
It Hurts Me Too
You Win Again
Playing In The Band
Good Lovin'
Casey Jones
Set 2:
Sittin' On Top Of The World
Me And My Uncle
Ramble On Rose
Beat It On Down The Line
Dark Star > Morning Dew > Drums > Sugar Magnolia
Encore:
Sing Me Back Home
One More Saturday Night
So there we were, in front of Skip with RobB and keyboard on our right, RobE 15 feet or so away in the center of the stage, and Jeff off over on the left. The under-stage speakers were rippling our pants and we were back with the guys in Europe in 1972 with an amazing first set of adventurous rock and roll that just went on and on and on.
Jeff seemed a bit tired, as he has at times lately, and was perhaps the weakest player that night, though he sure ramped it up for Dew. But RobK was as spot-on as ever, RobE was brilliant as always, and RobB played beautiful keyboards all night, over and over. We did not want him to stop. Always true to the canon however, he did not sing and RobE was as literal as ever, apparently forgetting lyrics in the same spots Bobby had.
And as with the other 10 times we'd seen DSO, this was such fun! We were rocking like it was 1972 and the music was excellent. We were dancing at the edge of the stage, and we'd turn around and see a PACKED Wilbur Theater, all full of people writhing and reeling. Everyone knew all the words, all the phrases, all the emotion, and we were all sharing it together.
As mentioned, Lisa finally made an appearance towards the end of the first set and she looked at me like a stone when I held up 10 fingers to her, quizzically. She played some rockin' harp on It Hurts Me Too. Then she moseyed up to her mike next to RobE and this time when I held up 10 fingers to her she grinned at me and nodded. Time for Playing, and then time for the 1972 Good Lovin' and a perfunctory Casey Jones to close the set. Yay!!!
Milled around, saved seats (well, places) for each other, grabbed bathroom breaks and another beer, and then it was time for the second set. Dave wasn't looking at his phone and we were left thinking it was 1972 sometime (I favored pre-Europe), but then they started up again and it was time for more excellence.
A long second set with Dark Star into Dew and an encore of Sing Me Back Home? Yes please. Don't blame me for abbreviating the second set, I'd just be repetitive describing how great RobB was, how authentic RobE was, and how much this stuff means to us. I wasn't yet listening the the Dead in 1972, but they were out there shaping my world.
Finally time to trickle out of the Wilbur, and we got going. Lots of stuff going on out in the theater district that night, but we got up to the Common, over to Beacon Hill, and back home in short order. Well perhaps short, but I didn't get to bed until 1:30 or so. As RobK had said when he talked about the show they were re-creating, it was a long night!
Sunday, May 14, 2017
Justin Townes Earle and The Sadies at Sinclair
We're trying to cut down on concerts a bit, but the tracks I've heard from Justin Townes Earle's soon-to-be-released record (Kids In the Street) are just fantastic. And when I recently saw some things by him on YouTube, including the video of one of the great new tracks (Maybe a Moment), and his recent turn on PBS's Tiny Desk Concert series, I realized that I'd be a fool to miss him at The Sinclair on Saturday, May 13. So we got tickets,
Had plenty to do at home that Saturday, and after a quick dinner we headed into Cambridge on another cold and rainy evening in a long, cold, and rainy Spring. We scored a great parking place at the Cambridge Common and got into the club in time to grab spots right in front of the soundboard and hear most of Sammy Brue's opening set. He's a bit of a bluesy singer-songwriter with powerful guitar technique, good opener.
The the next opener came on, The Sadies, who are also backing up Justin on this tour. Dallas (guitar, keyboards, and harmonicas) and Travis (guitar, fiddle, and mandolin) Good from Toronto are excellent multi-instrumentalists, and Sean Dean (bass) and Mike Belitsky (drums) are a fine rhythm section. They've been around for a while and have backed up musicians like Neko Case, John Doe, Neil Young, and many others. They played a great, rock with a tinge of country, set. At times they were reminiscent of Los Straitjackets and at times the Bottle Rockets. Some great guitar runs, some great songs, and one of the spookiest covers of Pretty Polly you'll ever hear. They also sported some fine duds.
Then another short break and Justin came out, in a stylish sport coat himself, as well as his trademark Coke-bottle glasses. Justin's long-time accompanist Paul Niehaus joined them on lead guitar, while Dallas moved to piano/organ. They did not disappoint! The subtle brilliance that I'd heard on record over the years (also seen him twice before) and recently on YouTube was on display. If you've never heard Justin's voice, very slightly off-beat style, and Hank Williams-honest guitar, you need to go see him right away. Or watch this.
Justin had his tenor guitar, and The Sadies and Niehaus were a beat-perfect back-up band. When we'd seen him before, Justin was all over the place, changing his mind about what song he was going to do in the middle of the intro, etc. It's amazing Niehaus hasn't walked out on him yet. But this time he was very much the professional musician and took pains to make sure the band was with him, and they sure were.
They covered a large number of the tracks from the new record (which was at the merch table), but also played some of the incredible opus Justin has already compiled at age 35. It was another case of him taking the entire audience to a different planet where we all grooved on his every note and swayed to his band. The Sinclair was sold-out and Sarah reported lots of very disappointed people being turned away at the box office when she stepped out for a smoke.
The middle-aged guys next to us knew Justin's work as well as I did, and though the crowd besides us was predominately young, it was apparently another case of them wanting to hear Justin T.F. Earle rather than just go out for a rock act on a Saturday night. Very actively listening crowd during the songs and very rowdy crowd between songs, while Justin looked a little embarrassed but devilish ("You liked that? Try this!") in his charming way.
Here's the setlist:
Champagne Corolla
Maybe a Moment
One More Night in Brooklyn
What's She Crying For
Move Over Mama
Black Eyed Suzy
Nothing's Gonna Change the Way You Feel About Me Now
15-25
They Killed John Henry
Mama's Eyes
Gold Watch and Chain
Christchurch Woman
Trouble Is
Farther From Me
Ain't Waitin'
White Gardenias
What Do You Do When You're Lonesome
Short Hair Woman
Encore:
Faded Valentine
Harlem River Blues
He opened with two of the most killer tracks from the new record, did some classics, did a mini-solo/acoustic set (John Henry, Mama's Eyes, and the Carter's Gold Watch and Chain), and finished with another string of great new songs mixed with stuff like Ain't Waitin'.
After Mama's Eyes, someone shouted out, "That's great, 'cause tomorrow's Mothers Day you know!" I think Justin knew that. And when he hit the first chords of Ain't Waitin', someone else yelled out, "Fried chicken!," which cracked him up so much he almost lost where he was. And when he introduced White Gardenias with, "This is for Billy Holiday," we and the guys next to us melted.
Fantastic stuff, very short break between the set and the encore, and then he closed it with the singalong Harlem River Blues. I think Justin had a good, mellow night, and we all did too. He's really, really, good.
Still spitting a bit when we got out, helped a lost but well-dressed older Chinese couple find their bearings on Cambridge Common, and then a short drive back home.
Had plenty to do at home that Saturday, and after a quick dinner we headed into Cambridge on another cold and rainy evening in a long, cold, and rainy Spring. We scored a great parking place at the Cambridge Common and got into the club in time to grab spots right in front of the soundboard and hear most of Sammy Brue's opening set. He's a bit of a bluesy singer-songwriter with powerful guitar technique, good opener.
The the next opener came on, The Sadies, who are also backing up Justin on this tour. Dallas (guitar, keyboards, and harmonicas) and Travis (guitar, fiddle, and mandolin) Good from Toronto are excellent multi-instrumentalists, and Sean Dean (bass) and Mike Belitsky (drums) are a fine rhythm section. They've been around for a while and have backed up musicians like Neko Case, John Doe, Neil Young, and many others. They played a great, rock with a tinge of country, set. At times they were reminiscent of Los Straitjackets and at times the Bottle Rockets. Some great guitar runs, some great songs, and one of the spookiest covers of Pretty Polly you'll ever hear. They also sported some fine duds.
Then another short break and Justin came out, in a stylish sport coat himself, as well as his trademark Coke-bottle glasses. Justin's long-time accompanist Paul Niehaus joined them on lead guitar, while Dallas moved to piano/organ. They did not disappoint! The subtle brilliance that I'd heard on record over the years (also seen him twice before) and recently on YouTube was on display. If you've never heard Justin's voice, very slightly off-beat style, and Hank Williams-honest guitar, you need to go see him right away. Or watch this.
Justin had his tenor guitar, and The Sadies and Niehaus were a beat-perfect back-up band. When we'd seen him before, Justin was all over the place, changing his mind about what song he was going to do in the middle of the intro, etc. It's amazing Niehaus hasn't walked out on him yet. But this time he was very much the professional musician and took pains to make sure the band was with him, and they sure were.
They covered a large number of the tracks from the new record (which was at the merch table), but also played some of the incredible opus Justin has already compiled at age 35. It was another case of him taking the entire audience to a different planet where we all grooved on his every note and swayed to his band. The Sinclair was sold-out and Sarah reported lots of very disappointed people being turned away at the box office when she stepped out for a smoke.
The middle-aged guys next to us knew Justin's work as well as I did, and though the crowd besides us was predominately young, it was apparently another case of them wanting to hear Justin T.F. Earle rather than just go out for a rock act on a Saturday night. Very actively listening crowd during the songs and very rowdy crowd between songs, while Justin looked a little embarrassed but devilish ("You liked that? Try this!") in his charming way.
Here's the setlist:
Champagne Corolla
Maybe a Moment
One More Night in Brooklyn
What's She Crying For
Move Over Mama
Black Eyed Suzy
Nothing's Gonna Change the Way You Feel About Me Now
15-25
They Killed John Henry
Mama's Eyes
Gold Watch and Chain
Christchurch Woman
Trouble Is
Farther From Me
Ain't Waitin'
White Gardenias
What Do You Do When You're Lonesome
Short Hair Woman
Encore:
Faded Valentine
Harlem River Blues
He opened with two of the most killer tracks from the new record, did some classics, did a mini-solo/acoustic set (John Henry, Mama's Eyes, and the Carter's Gold Watch and Chain), and finished with another string of great new songs mixed with stuff like Ain't Waitin'.
After Mama's Eyes, someone shouted out, "That's great, 'cause tomorrow's Mothers Day you know!" I think Justin knew that. And when he hit the first chords of Ain't Waitin', someone else yelled out, "Fried chicken!," which cracked him up so much he almost lost where he was. And when he introduced White Gardenias with, "This is for Billy Holiday," we and the guys next to us melted.
Fantastic stuff, very short break between the set and the encore, and then he closed it with the singalong Harlem River Blues. I think Justin had a good, mellow night, and we all did too. He's really, really, good.
Still spitting a bit when we got out, helped a lost but well-dressed older Chinese couple find their bearings on Cambridge Common, and then a short drive back home.
Thursday, May 11, 2017
Lucinda Williams at Berklee
We've somehow managed to miss Lucinda Williams the last few times she's been in town, but being on a Berklee Performance Center mailing list finally paid off when we heard she'd be coming back one more time. We got pretty good seats and everyone I talked to was shocked to hear about the appearance ... it was not well publicized, though the hall was finally filled from what I could tell.
Did the BPC thing of parking in the Dalton Street Garage and meeting up at Bukowski's ... as empty after work (Wednesday May 10th) as I've ever seen it. We had a few beers at the bar and then checked out the Boston Burger Company on Boylston for dinner ... pretty good! Got to our seats about 15 minutes before the show, and it started right on time.
Lucinda had a minimal band (for her) this time: Stuart Mathis on guitar and harmonica (with a rack of 8(?) guitars, including what looked and sounded like a 12-string Stratocaster(!)), Butch Norton on drums, and David Sutton on bass. They were great, but the real story of course was Lucinda's incredible songs and her brilliant ability to emote. She had us all in the palm of her hand from the get-go and the crowd reaction throughout the show was pretty rowdy. People started whooping, whistling, and jumping to their feet and shouting early on, and there were a whole lot of people doing it. I think Lucinda was ready to wind down on the last date of her tour and thought that a college hall in staid Boston would afford her the chance to do it. But we all showed our love and appreciation early and she responded with a great show.
The setlist was just fantastic. Not only did she do some of her stellar recent songs, she dug way back in her catalog and pulled out some things I thought I'd never see her play. Can't remember the order, but she did:
Passionate Kisses
Pineola
Can't Let Go
Prove My Love
Drunken Angel
Side Of the Road
Sweet Old World
West Memphis
Lake Charles
Bitter Memory
Essence
Righteously
Get Right With God
Unsuffer Me
Joy
... and lots more.
My jaw was on the floor! I think Side Of the Road is one of the best songs ever and I couldn't believe she pulled it out of her bag (complete with the mysterious fourth verse ... what does she mean by that?). And to have her cover both Passionate Kisses and Sweet Old World, that were so successfully covered (by Mary-Chapin Carpenter and Emmylou Harris respectively) was another unexpected treat.
But the most amazing, show-stopping, emotional, riotous moments, were when she just killed Essence and finished her encore with Joy. The BPC staff probably were on the verge of getting out a firehose to try to calm down the people who were reacting wildly, jumping up and down, to Lucinda's dialog with fate, sexuality, and recalcitrant lovers.
As delighted as we were, Lucinda was apparently just as delighted. Bless her heart, she grabbed the mike and tried to tell us (even more about) how she felt. She said, "I'm 64 years old and so thrilled that people are still loving my songs and that I can go out and perform them." Or something like that ... it was hard to hear her over the shouting crowd.
Wow! Another great concert and then a pretty uneventful drive home down a Wednesday-night Boylston Street, over Berkeley to Storrow Drive, and then home on the highway. We saw no ghosts on the highway ... they were probably all listening to Lucinda.
Did the BPC thing of parking in the Dalton Street Garage and meeting up at Bukowski's ... as empty after work (Wednesday May 10th) as I've ever seen it. We had a few beers at the bar and then checked out the Boston Burger Company on Boylston for dinner ... pretty good! Got to our seats about 15 minutes before the show, and it started right on time.
Lucinda had a minimal band (for her) this time: Stuart Mathis on guitar and harmonica (with a rack of 8(?) guitars, including what looked and sounded like a 12-string Stratocaster(!)), Butch Norton on drums, and David Sutton on bass. They were great, but the real story of course was Lucinda's incredible songs and her brilliant ability to emote. She had us all in the palm of her hand from the get-go and the crowd reaction throughout the show was pretty rowdy. People started whooping, whistling, and jumping to their feet and shouting early on, and there were a whole lot of people doing it. I think Lucinda was ready to wind down on the last date of her tour and thought that a college hall in staid Boston would afford her the chance to do it. But we all showed our love and appreciation early and she responded with a great show.
The setlist was just fantastic. Not only did she do some of her stellar recent songs, she dug way back in her catalog and pulled out some things I thought I'd never see her play. Can't remember the order, but she did:
Passionate Kisses
Pineola
Can't Let Go
Prove My Love
Drunken Angel
Side Of the Road
Sweet Old World
West Memphis
Lake Charles
Bitter Memory
Essence
Righteously
Get Right With God
Unsuffer Me
Joy
... and lots more.
My jaw was on the floor! I think Side Of the Road is one of the best songs ever and I couldn't believe she pulled it out of her bag (complete with the mysterious fourth verse ... what does she mean by that?). And to have her cover both Passionate Kisses and Sweet Old World, that were so successfully covered (by Mary-Chapin Carpenter and Emmylou Harris respectively) was another unexpected treat.
But the most amazing, show-stopping, emotional, riotous moments, were when she just killed Essence and finished her encore with Joy. The BPC staff probably were on the verge of getting out a firehose to try to calm down the people who were reacting wildly, jumping up and down, to Lucinda's dialog with fate, sexuality, and recalcitrant lovers.
As delighted as we were, Lucinda was apparently just as delighted. Bless her heart, she grabbed the mike and tried to tell us (even more about) how she felt. She said, "I'm 64 years old and so thrilled that people are still loving my songs and that I can go out and perform them." Or something like that ... it was hard to hear her over the shouting crowd.
Wow! Another great concert and then a pretty uneventful drive home down a Wednesday-night Boylston Street, over Berkeley to Storrow Drive, and then home on the highway. We saw no ghosts on the highway ... they were probably all listening to Lucinda.
Friday, April 21, 2017
GDMUATM 2017
Not a very original selection for the annual Grateful Dead Meet Up At the Movies for 2017, but a really good one nonetheless: on the 40th anniversary of its release, the original Grateful Dead Movie, that had been recorded in 1974 and released in 1977. I was there back in the seventies when it was released (possibly on one of my first "dates" with my wife, whom I had just met), and I've seen it maybe five times since then. But one more time, in a movie theater with great seats, a great sound system (as always, I could have used a bit more volume), and lots of GD people had me very psyched.
Oh, and it was 4/20 too! I cruised into the city at the end of the afternoon, probably getting to Alewife or so by 4:20, though I did not celebrate. Got a great parking space right on Brookline Ave. and waited a short time for Sarah and Dave at a really dark Yard House. We got dinner there, dumped stuff in the car, and then walked the couple of blocks over to the Regal Fenway Stadium 13 complex for the picture.
The crowd was late arriving but I believe all seats were full by soon after the start of the pre-features, which included a documentary on people recalling the Cornell (May 1977) concert, which is about to be released, and a teaser for the Long Strange Trip documentary, which is also about to be released. A very busy anniversary for the Dead world!
The movie started and was as good as ever. I've avidly seen it enough times that I can recall many, many details, and there were no fresh insights or criticisms that appeared in my mind. I just enjoyed it! The music is fantastic, great camera work, great production, and great crowd interludes. Garcia really nailed it; check out the Wikipedia article for details about the cutting edge he was dancing on.
I actually got a little tired at the end, on a Thursday of an exhausting week. I love the second disc of the movie but they didn't show it (the production was well over three hours anyway) and it may have been wasted on us.
Walking out I spied a young hipster with a *great* GD jacket, covered with album cover patches, dancing bears, snatches of lyrics, etc. I complimented him on it outside and realized he was very young, perhaps Dave's age. He was glad someone complimented him on his jacket and delighted to meet someone who had been there for the original release back in 1977. I recalled that I'd seen it somewhere around that area of the city, but I'm not sure where. He's a recent convert and probably a good one!
Jumped in the car, no problem getting Dave down to Charles, and then back home for a slightly delayed bedtime.
Oh, and it was 4/20 too! I cruised into the city at the end of the afternoon, probably getting to Alewife or so by 4:20, though I did not celebrate. Got a great parking space right on Brookline Ave. and waited a short time for Sarah and Dave at a really dark Yard House. We got dinner there, dumped stuff in the car, and then walked the couple of blocks over to the Regal Fenway Stadium 13 complex for the picture.
The crowd was late arriving but I believe all seats were full by soon after the start of the pre-features, which included a documentary on people recalling the Cornell (May 1977) concert, which is about to be released, and a teaser for the Long Strange Trip documentary, which is also about to be released. A very busy anniversary for the Dead world!
The movie started and was as good as ever. I've avidly seen it enough times that I can recall many, many details, and there were no fresh insights or criticisms that appeared in my mind. I just enjoyed it! The music is fantastic, great camera work, great production, and great crowd interludes. Garcia really nailed it; check out the Wikipedia article for details about the cutting edge he was dancing on.
I actually got a little tired at the end, on a Thursday of an exhausting week. I love the second disc of the movie but they didn't show it (the production was well over three hours anyway) and it may have been wasted on us.
Walking out I spied a young hipster with a *great* GD jacket, covered with album cover patches, dancing bears, snatches of lyrics, etc. I complimented him on it outside and realized he was very young, perhaps Dave's age. He was glad someone complimented him on his jacket and delighted to meet someone who had been there for the original release back in 1977. I recalled that I'd seen it somewhere around that area of the city, but I'm not sure where. He's a recent convert and probably a good one!
Jumped in the car, no problem getting Dave down to Charles, and then back home for a slightly delayed bedtime.
Saturday, April 8, 2017
Ricky Skaggs in Beverly
Another musician with an extensive pedigree knocked off our life list! Ricky Skaggs (two years older than me) rarely makes it up to New England, but he was announced in the great lineup the Cabot Theater in Beverly has featured over the past bit (4/7/17), and we were really psyched to go!
But ... the tickets were *really* expensive, expensive enough to make us say, "Uh, we can do a massive interior redesign for that!" And we sadly opted not to go. But luckily, Cousin Kate at ZBC got a bunch of tickets to give away and I was lucky enough to cop a pair ... I think I had to be the 12th caller for that pair and was able to time it correctly. Lots of people wanted those tickets.
But when we got to the theater, after a *long* struggle through traffic for me and a short walk from the (new) train station for Sarah to dinner at Gulu-Gulu, and a short drive up to the Cabot where we parked on the same side street we'd parked on before, and a climb up to our third-row seats in the balcony (nice seats from ZBC!), we realized that the place was not at all sold out. They should have priced the tickets lower, I bet a lot of people had the same reaction we had to the prices. The balcony was probably a fourth full at most, though what we could see of the orchestra was pretty full.
The Cabot is a fun, mellow place and we grabbed a beer and hung out in the un-crowded balcony, admiring the classic but touched-up theater. I was afraid the speaker stacks on the sides of the stage would not reach the balcony well enough, and it did take them a bit to get the sound right. But they really did and it was a fine evening of music.
Girls Guns and Glory opened and entertained with some great honky-tonk and Ward Hayden soul for an hour. Highlights were The Wine Went Bad and Empty Bottles. They also covered Hank's You Win Again (or is that a Dead song?) and Nick Lowe's What's So Funny About Peace Love and Understanding? They're an excellent local band and Ward Hayden is the real thing.
Then they reset the stage for a bluegrass show, the crowd filled in a bit, another beer was procured and there was time for us all to get excited ... our neighbor had never seen Ricky before and was as psyched as we were. I first became aware of him as Emmylou's fiddler in the original Hot Band, and was a real fan of him in my most country phase back in the eighties. I was amazed how many of his eighties country vinyl records I have, and I don't often get amazed by my record collection.
Ricky came out with his latest incarnation of the Kentucky Thunder band: long-time members Paul Brewster and Dennis Parker on guitars and EXCELLENT harmonies (and I mean excellent), Jake Workman on amazing lead acoustic guitar, Russ Carson on banjo, Scott Mulvahill on bass, and young Berklee product Mike Barnett on world-class fiddle. Ricky played mandolin of course, and of course out-played them all ... though it was close at times.
Ricky also entertained with some stories and some digs at the guys, also just a few tasteful references to his being saved. And they really played everything you would have hoped they'd play. There were Bill Monroe classics like Rawhide and Wheel Hoss, Flatt and Scruggs classics like If I Should Wander Back Tonight, Jimmy Martin, etc.
But they also did a few of Ricky's hits, including the one song I probably most wanted to hear, his cover of Larry Cordle's Highway 40 Blues. Ricky released this on Highways and Heartaches back in 1983 and I remember listening to it many times, loving the rhythm and the loping style.
Time after time I was caught off guard by the excellence of the harmonies Brewster and Parker were laying down, with Mulvahill contributing a bit on the low end. Ricky had forgotten his in-ear monitors back at the hotel and was using ones he wasn't quite used to, so sometimes didn't go after it the way he might have if he was more comfortable. But Brewster and Parker could have made anyone sound good, and when the lead singer was R. Skaggs the resulting sound was just startlingly good. It was hard to believe that three guys on a stage, not looking like they were working too hard, could make these sounds.
And there was some great work on the strings going on as well. As mentioned, Jake Workman was fantastic, ripping off acrobatic leads on the guitar that had the whole hall whooping and hollering. Barnett was an artistic wonder on fiddle, managing to be cerebral in the middle of a crackerjack bluegrass band, And of course what bluegrass is often about is setting up the star, and when it came time for Ricky's runs on mandolin, the crowd sat forward in their seats and were rewarded over and over with measures of bluegrass goodness.
Ricky wound down with some ballads, including his own, wonderful, Halfway Home Cafe. This could be his entry in the "greatest country song" contest, though I'm sure there will be a lot of entries to come. That's the thing about Skaggs, he's ensconced in the lineage of the greats, and makes you think that there will always be young, hungry stars coming up (Sierra Hull, Sarah Jarosz, etc.) who will be nurtured by the established bluegrass greats and keep the tradition going ... and will add to the canon.
Ran into Cousin Kate herself and Mager on the sidewalk after the show for some quick recapping, and then dashed on home and in bed by a bit after midnight.
But ... the tickets were *really* expensive, expensive enough to make us say, "Uh, we can do a massive interior redesign for that!" And we sadly opted not to go. But luckily, Cousin Kate at ZBC got a bunch of tickets to give away and I was lucky enough to cop a pair ... I think I had to be the 12th caller for that pair and was able to time it correctly. Lots of people wanted those tickets.
But when we got to the theater, after a *long* struggle through traffic for me and a short walk from the (new) train station for Sarah to dinner at Gulu-Gulu, and a short drive up to the Cabot where we parked on the same side street we'd parked on before, and a climb up to our third-row seats in the balcony (nice seats from ZBC!), we realized that the place was not at all sold out. They should have priced the tickets lower, I bet a lot of people had the same reaction we had to the prices. The balcony was probably a fourth full at most, though what we could see of the orchestra was pretty full.
The Cabot is a fun, mellow place and we grabbed a beer and hung out in the un-crowded balcony, admiring the classic but touched-up theater. I was afraid the speaker stacks on the sides of the stage would not reach the balcony well enough, and it did take them a bit to get the sound right. But they really did and it was a fine evening of music.
Girls Guns and Glory opened and entertained with some great honky-tonk and Ward Hayden soul for an hour. Highlights were The Wine Went Bad and Empty Bottles. They also covered Hank's You Win Again (or is that a Dead song?) and Nick Lowe's What's So Funny About Peace Love and Understanding? They're an excellent local band and Ward Hayden is the real thing.
Then they reset the stage for a bluegrass show, the crowd filled in a bit, another beer was procured and there was time for us all to get excited ... our neighbor had never seen Ricky before and was as psyched as we were. I first became aware of him as Emmylou's fiddler in the original Hot Band, and was a real fan of him in my most country phase back in the eighties. I was amazed how many of his eighties country vinyl records I have, and I don't often get amazed by my record collection.
Ricky came out with his latest incarnation of the Kentucky Thunder band: long-time members Paul Brewster and Dennis Parker on guitars and EXCELLENT harmonies (and I mean excellent), Jake Workman on amazing lead acoustic guitar, Russ Carson on banjo, Scott Mulvahill on bass, and young Berklee product Mike Barnett on world-class fiddle. Ricky played mandolin of course, and of course out-played them all ... though it was close at times.
Ricky also entertained with some stories and some digs at the guys, also just a few tasteful references to his being saved. And they really played everything you would have hoped they'd play. There were Bill Monroe classics like Rawhide and Wheel Hoss, Flatt and Scruggs classics like If I Should Wander Back Tonight, Jimmy Martin, etc.
But they also did a few of Ricky's hits, including the one song I probably most wanted to hear, his cover of Larry Cordle's Highway 40 Blues. Ricky released this on Highways and Heartaches back in 1983 and I remember listening to it many times, loving the rhythm and the loping style.
Time after time I was caught off guard by the excellence of the harmonies Brewster and Parker were laying down, with Mulvahill contributing a bit on the low end. Ricky had forgotten his in-ear monitors back at the hotel and was using ones he wasn't quite used to, so sometimes didn't go after it the way he might have if he was more comfortable. But Brewster and Parker could have made anyone sound good, and when the lead singer was R. Skaggs the resulting sound was just startlingly good. It was hard to believe that three guys on a stage, not looking like they were working too hard, could make these sounds.
And there was some great work on the strings going on as well. As mentioned, Jake Workman was fantastic, ripping off acrobatic leads on the guitar that had the whole hall whooping and hollering. Barnett was an artistic wonder on fiddle, managing to be cerebral in the middle of a crackerjack bluegrass band, And of course what bluegrass is often about is setting up the star, and when it came time for Ricky's runs on mandolin, the crowd sat forward in their seats and were rewarded over and over with measures of bluegrass goodness.
Ricky wound down with some ballads, including his own, wonderful, Halfway Home Cafe. This could be his entry in the "greatest country song" contest, though I'm sure there will be a lot of entries to come. That's the thing about Skaggs, he's ensconced in the lineage of the greats, and makes you think that there will always be young, hungry stars coming up (Sierra Hull, Sarah Jarosz, etc.) who will be nurtured by the established bluegrass greats and keep the tradition going ... and will add to the canon.
Ran into Cousin Kate herself and Mager on the sidewalk after the show for some quick recapping, and then dashed on home and in bed by a bit after midnight.
Friday, February 17, 2017
Lake Street Dive Back in College
We somehow found out that Lake Street Dive would be the featured band at New England Conservatory's 150th concert and tickets were about to go on sale ... so we got some, first row of the balcony at Jordan Hall! This show sold out fast. The band met at NEC and are all grads and, though we knew there might be some amateurism on display in the concert, we suspected it might be fantastic. We'd seen "amateur" concerts at some fine music schools like Berklee College of Music and Ithaca College, and they'd been vastly entertaining. As it turned out, this concert was stellar and the number of fine, young musicians we saw (including LSD of course) was enough to make you think that maybe the world is not doomed after all.
Had a fun drive into Boston after work on Thursday 2/16: in Soldiers Field Road to the Bowker Interchange exit, between the great stone pillars at the intersection of Westland and Hemenway (which used to be one of the best places in the city (supposedly) to find prostitutes), right onto Mass Ave in front of one of the most beautiful buildings in Boston, Horticultural Hall, past Symphony Hall (and spewing busses) on my right, and then right onto St. Botolph (whom Boston was named after), past the current Matthews Arena (the old Boston Arena which predates the (original) Boston Garden), and left on Gainsborough into the parking garage. I hadn't been in this area of the city for a long time.
Sarah and Dave were just getting off the Green Line and we met at the Pizzeria Uno on Huntington. It was the Day Without Immigrants in Boston, one of the latest Trump protests, but the restaurant was not busy at that time and we got some over-attentive white guys to bring us beer and food. After a relatively quick meal we stopped at the car and then entered beautiful Jordan Hall, the concert space of the New England Conservatory with practice rooms scattered throughout the building. Bridget later said, "We first wrote 'Lake Street Dive' on a blackboard in a practice room up there," pointing beyond the balcony.
Oh yeah, we were in the first row of the balcony, a lovely soaring balcony like a standing wave surrounding a huge stage and making what was basically a very intimate space. This was the quintessence of the saying, "Not a bad seat in the house." There were carved wood and velvet coverings everywhere. No beer/concessions but no one cared, we were there for an incredible experience.
The NEC Chamber Singers came out and assembled into a crescent towards the front of the stage, and then we realized that the NEC Trumpet Ensemble had filled the corridors in the orchestra. The trumpets gave us a fanfare and the singers backed them up. This was "Franfare for twelve trumpets," written in 1986 by Gunther Schuller. Each trumpeter was perfect in his own way (all guys I think) and as an ensemble they seemed to be projecting an aural jewel, with each side presenting an aspect of what a trumpet could do. Just amazing stuff and just the start.
The chamber singers then did a piece called "I Hear," written by current NEC student Andrew Haig in 2016. Maybe I don't get out to hear enough classical vocal ensembles, but the male voices in this piece just blew me away, they were so emotional but controlled. And the soprano soloist (Pepita Salim) was jaw-dropping. This is the piece I'll always think of when I recall this concert.
They then shifted around a bit and the NEC Gospel Ensemble took the stage. The conductor introduced Rachael Price, who came out as classy as always, wearing a dress that looked like a Kandinsky painting. They did "What I'm Doing Here" and brought the house down.
The rest of the band came out at that point, MikeO in a checkered suit that John Mayer might have worn, MikeC in a stylish bandanna headband and no shoes, and Bridget in her trademark no-nonsense plain-colored skirt and top. The Gospel singers disappeared and LSD was on! This relatively short set showcased some of the best sides of the band, interspersed with funny stories about meeting each other in college. MikeO was better on trumpet than I've ever heard him and Bridget took a few lengthy solos that had that incredible wood and velvet hall ringing. In fact, several students accompanied them for some of the songs, including one guy on Jordan Hall's pipe organ!
They concentrated on the last record, doing Side Pony of course, Call Off Your Dogs (smoking Bridget bass solo), Spectacular Failure, How Good It Feels, and Mistakes (which actually wasn't as good in this smaller hall as it had been in the HOB - Boston, though of course Rachael was excellent). They also did a song that had been in my head all day, Seventeen (which Bridget may have written in college), and a fantastic cover of Prince's When You Were Mine, that I'd never heard them do before.
Most of the people in the crowd were primarily there to see LSD, and we were rocking. But even the ones who were there just to see an NEC event and weren't used to seeing pop concerts were rocking too. LSD is so good and that hall was filled so well with great music that anyone would have enjoyed it, let alone be appreciative of the excellence.
That was the end of the first set, but there was much more to come. Quickly the stage was set up with seats everywhere, and the guys came back on for the second set with a conductor (Ken Schaphorst), the NEC Jazz Orchestra (which was all guys too?!?), and the Philharmonia Strings. There were only six pieces in that set, but they were all note-perfect.
Rachael soloed on God Bless the Child, which was done in a very traditional style. Schaphorst had worked up versions of MikeC's I Don't Care About You and MikeO's Godawful Things that were beyond belief. To hear the lovely string introduction that he had extrapolated from Bridget's intro to Godawful Things was like being in a dream.
But the last piece in the program, Bad Self Portraits, was the most spectacular. Not only is this a great song, and not only were LSD playing and singing their hearts out, but the jazz orchestra was filling the room with wave after wave of brassy sound, and the string orchestra was swirling through our brains, dancing through the hall with layers and layers of vibrations. If you count the conductor and the sound engineer, there were 46 amazing musicians on stage, telling us about why they bought that damned camera.
I guess the organizers weren't sure about the level of enthusiasm to expect, but the crowd was on its feet after this and would not stop hooting and hollering until Lake Street came out for an encore. The stage crew hurriedly set up a large RCA mike, which Rachael, Bridget, and MikeC (with tambourine) huddled around, while MikeO stepped back a bit for another great trumpet solo. Of course they did Neighbor Song, introduced by Rachael with an anecdote about how when Bridget sent her the first draft of the words and music, she and MikeO were living "upstairs and downstairs" in a triple-decker in Jamaica Plain. She didn't say who was upstairs and who was down, but I have my theories.
OMG, what an excellent night of music! Still not late for a Thursday, left Dave at Charles, and then proceeded on home.
Sarah got some excellent pictures (link coming); here are some of my favorites:
Had a fun drive into Boston after work on Thursday 2/16: in Soldiers Field Road to the Bowker Interchange exit, between the great stone pillars at the intersection of Westland and Hemenway (which used to be one of the best places in the city (supposedly) to find prostitutes), right onto Mass Ave in front of one of the most beautiful buildings in Boston, Horticultural Hall, past Symphony Hall (and spewing busses) on my right, and then right onto St. Botolph (whom Boston was named after), past the current Matthews Arena (the old Boston Arena which predates the (original) Boston Garden), and left on Gainsborough into the parking garage. I hadn't been in this area of the city for a long time.
Sarah and Dave were just getting off the Green Line and we met at the Pizzeria Uno on Huntington. It was the Day Without Immigrants in Boston, one of the latest Trump protests, but the restaurant was not busy at that time and we got some over-attentive white guys to bring us beer and food. After a relatively quick meal we stopped at the car and then entered beautiful Jordan Hall, the concert space of the New England Conservatory with practice rooms scattered throughout the building. Bridget later said, "We first wrote 'Lake Street Dive' on a blackboard in a practice room up there," pointing beyond the balcony.
Oh yeah, we were in the first row of the balcony, a lovely soaring balcony like a standing wave surrounding a huge stage and making what was basically a very intimate space. This was the quintessence of the saying, "Not a bad seat in the house." There were carved wood and velvet coverings everywhere. No beer/concessions but no one cared, we were there for an incredible experience.
The NEC Chamber Singers came out and assembled into a crescent towards the front of the stage, and then we realized that the NEC Trumpet Ensemble had filled the corridors in the orchestra. The trumpets gave us a fanfare and the singers backed them up. This was "Franfare for twelve trumpets," written in 1986 by Gunther Schuller. Each trumpeter was perfect in his own way (all guys I think) and as an ensemble they seemed to be projecting an aural jewel, with each side presenting an aspect of what a trumpet could do. Just amazing stuff and just the start.
The chamber singers then did a piece called "I Hear," written by current NEC student Andrew Haig in 2016. Maybe I don't get out to hear enough classical vocal ensembles, but the male voices in this piece just blew me away, they were so emotional but controlled. And the soprano soloist (Pepita Salim) was jaw-dropping. This is the piece I'll always think of when I recall this concert.
They then shifted around a bit and the NEC Gospel Ensemble took the stage. The conductor introduced Rachael Price, who came out as classy as always, wearing a dress that looked like a Kandinsky painting. They did "What I'm Doing Here" and brought the house down.
The rest of the band came out at that point, MikeO in a checkered suit that John Mayer might have worn, MikeC in a stylish bandanna headband and no shoes, and Bridget in her trademark no-nonsense plain-colored skirt and top. The Gospel singers disappeared and LSD was on! This relatively short set showcased some of the best sides of the band, interspersed with funny stories about meeting each other in college. MikeO was better on trumpet than I've ever heard him and Bridget took a few lengthy solos that had that incredible wood and velvet hall ringing. In fact, several students accompanied them for some of the songs, including one guy on Jordan Hall's pipe organ!
They concentrated on the last record, doing Side Pony of course, Call Off Your Dogs (smoking Bridget bass solo), Spectacular Failure, How Good It Feels, and Mistakes (which actually wasn't as good in this smaller hall as it had been in the HOB - Boston, though of course Rachael was excellent). They also did a song that had been in my head all day, Seventeen (which Bridget may have written in college), and a fantastic cover of Prince's When You Were Mine, that I'd never heard them do before.
Most of the people in the crowd were primarily there to see LSD, and we were rocking. But even the ones who were there just to see an NEC event and weren't used to seeing pop concerts were rocking too. LSD is so good and that hall was filled so well with great music that anyone would have enjoyed it, let alone be appreciative of the excellence.
That was the end of the first set, but there was much more to come. Quickly the stage was set up with seats everywhere, and the guys came back on for the second set with a conductor (Ken Schaphorst), the NEC Jazz Orchestra (which was all guys too?!?), and the Philharmonia Strings. There were only six pieces in that set, but they were all note-perfect.
Rachael soloed on God Bless the Child, which was done in a very traditional style. Schaphorst had worked up versions of MikeC's I Don't Care About You and MikeO's Godawful Things that were beyond belief. To hear the lovely string introduction that he had extrapolated from Bridget's intro to Godawful Things was like being in a dream.
But the last piece in the program, Bad Self Portraits, was the most spectacular. Not only is this a great song, and not only were LSD playing and singing their hearts out, but the jazz orchestra was filling the room with wave after wave of brassy sound, and the string orchestra was swirling through our brains, dancing through the hall with layers and layers of vibrations. If you count the conductor and the sound engineer, there were 46 amazing musicians on stage, telling us about why they bought that damned camera.
I guess the organizers weren't sure about the level of enthusiasm to expect, but the crowd was on its feet after this and would not stop hooting and hollering until Lake Street came out for an encore. The stage crew hurriedly set up a large RCA mike, which Rachael, Bridget, and MikeC (with tambourine) huddled around, while MikeO stepped back a bit for another great trumpet solo. Of course they did Neighbor Song, introduced by Rachael with an anecdote about how when Bridget sent her the first draft of the words and music, she and MikeO were living "upstairs and downstairs" in a triple-decker in Jamaica Plain. She didn't say who was upstairs and who was down, but I have my theories.
OMG, what an excellent night of music! Still not late for a Thursday, left Dave at Charles, and then proceeded on home.
Sarah got some excellent pictures (link coming); here are some of my favorites:
Saturday, January 21, 2017
Rubblebucket Packs Paradise
We saw Rubblebucket in the Paradise Rock Club back in 2011 and that was pretty intense to put it mildly. In the meantime they've been through a lot of life and success, and we've been lucky enough to see them a bunch. But they announced they were coming back to the Paradise on Friday, 1/20 and ... though we knew it would be a late night again ... we just had to go see them in a small club.
It was s surprisingly quick drive into Brighton, but as soon as I got off Soldiers Field Road I was in the midst of a madhouse of traffic and pedestrians. BU was in full swing, including hosting a hockey game (vs. Maine), but I was able to crawl up Comm Ave slowly and miraculously got a parking space right in front of the Paradise.
Met Sarah and Dave (who had Green Lined it up from work) at the Sunset Cantina and had a nice dinner and a few beers. Lucky to get a table in the way back, probably as quiet a table as you could get in that packed and noisy restaurant. Took our time eating and eventually wandered over to the Paradise at 7:30 or so, where we were about 20th in line.
They opened the doors right at 8 and let us in slowly after thorough searches. We went right upstairs and got great standing places immediately to the right of the soundboard. The place was sold out of course, and it was amazing to see the number of (very excited) people they shoehorned in there. By the time the show started the entire first floor was packed so tightly that we wondered if anyone down there could breath, let alone be able to jump and dance. Kalmia had been manning the merch table early on, and Alex took a tour upstairs (Sarah smiled at him), probably scoping it out to see if it would be appropriate for their end-of-show parade.
They finally had most of the people in the club and Joe Evian came out for the first set. Joe was set up behind a massive control panel of mixers, switches, and who knows what else with a tiny keyboard, and had his blonde Strat. His other guitar player had an identical Strat (also identical black leather shoes) and the bassist had a violin-bodied instrument that sounded great but was at first too loud in the mix. They also had a drummer with a relatively small kit.
It was a very entertaining set. Basically blues rock but with a concentration on sounding indie/unique and never too far from psychedelic meltdown. Joe ripped off a few really good leads and the band was nice and tight. But it was a short set and soon they had the stage set up for the main attraction.
The guys came out and lined up and we suddenly had cause to wonder about the definition of a band. Because the only two remaining players from the first time we saw them were Kalmia and Alex! They're the key ones I guess, to any definition of what Rubblebucket is, but we were shocked and disappointed that Adam Dotson and Ian Hersey were apparently no longer with them. But the trombone player who replaced Dotson was (I hate to say it) probably an upgrade. His tone and power were fantastic and his dance moves were every bit as good. The woman guitarist (Maddie Rice) who replaced Hersey was not as good as him (who could be?) but held her own.
And another definition of Rubblebucket is diversity. The new trombonist is black, the current drummer is Japanese (I think), and to see a young "girl" with long hair playing the lead blues guitar was great (though a pillar blocked her from my view 90% of the time ... that's what happens when you're upstairs in the Paradise). And diversity was so important on that day. January 20th 2017 was Inauguration Day and we should have been celebrating the first woman president of the United States. Instead we were besieged by the institutionalization of hate. It was very good to go out to see such a progressive band that night, it was good to hear Kalmia tell us how important it was to listen to each other and know that she was struggling along with us, and it was fantastic the next day to have millions of people march all over the world to protest what was happening in American government.
That day, Rubblebucket had released a new EP ("If U C My Enemies"), and they featured all four songs from it, which are excellent. And wrapped around them was a setlist of your dreams, including some of the best tracks from their first records, including Shake Me Around, Silly Fathers, Pain From Love, Carousel Ride, etc. As mentioned, the people on the floor were squished together like you wouldn't believe, but they still managed to jump and groove, though the only way they could do it was if everyone jumped on the same frequency.
Kalmia, in a sparkling leotard and psychedelic blouse, was rolling on the stage, bouncing around, tooting her sax with abandon (some of the new songs have excellent baritone sax textures), and singing like an angel. One of the last songs of the set was Came Out Of a Lady ("for all the Moms"), which quickly degenerated into a Rubblebucket love fest. They showered the crowd with confetti, both Alex and Kalmia crowd-surfed (Kalmia singing the chorus while she did so), and they tried a bit of a parade up the steps to the balcony, though this was soon aborted when the crowd was just too thick.
Incredible talent, incredible songs, and a great show! I have to say again that Kalmia was singing better than I've ever heard her. There was a short break before everyone came back out for a long encore, including a brilliant Triangular Daisies and finally a successful parade through the crowd, ending with a tribal circle-groove with the entire band in front of the merch table. That was a lot of fun!
Waited a bit and then were able to push out onto the sidewalk and it was earlier than we expected, just 12:15 or so. The car was right in front and after dancing through a bevy of Ubers we got out of there and had a quick drive home.
It was s surprisingly quick drive into Brighton, but as soon as I got off Soldiers Field Road I was in the midst of a madhouse of traffic and pedestrians. BU was in full swing, including hosting a hockey game (vs. Maine), but I was able to crawl up Comm Ave slowly and miraculously got a parking space right in front of the Paradise.
Met Sarah and Dave (who had Green Lined it up from work) at the Sunset Cantina and had a nice dinner and a few beers. Lucky to get a table in the way back, probably as quiet a table as you could get in that packed and noisy restaurant. Took our time eating and eventually wandered over to the Paradise at 7:30 or so, where we were about 20th in line.
They opened the doors right at 8 and let us in slowly after thorough searches. We went right upstairs and got great standing places immediately to the right of the soundboard. The place was sold out of course, and it was amazing to see the number of (very excited) people they shoehorned in there. By the time the show started the entire first floor was packed so tightly that we wondered if anyone down there could breath, let alone be able to jump and dance. Kalmia had been manning the merch table early on, and Alex took a tour upstairs (Sarah smiled at him), probably scoping it out to see if it would be appropriate for their end-of-show parade.
They finally had most of the people in the club and Joe Evian came out for the first set. Joe was set up behind a massive control panel of mixers, switches, and who knows what else with a tiny keyboard, and had his blonde Strat. His other guitar player had an identical Strat (also identical black leather shoes) and the bassist had a violin-bodied instrument that sounded great but was at first too loud in the mix. They also had a drummer with a relatively small kit.
It was a very entertaining set. Basically blues rock but with a concentration on sounding indie/unique and never too far from psychedelic meltdown. Joe ripped off a few really good leads and the band was nice and tight. But it was a short set and soon they had the stage set up for the main attraction.
The guys came out and lined up and we suddenly had cause to wonder about the definition of a band. Because the only two remaining players from the first time we saw them were Kalmia and Alex! They're the key ones I guess, to any definition of what Rubblebucket is, but we were shocked and disappointed that Adam Dotson and Ian Hersey were apparently no longer with them. But the trombone player who replaced Dotson was (I hate to say it) probably an upgrade. His tone and power were fantastic and his dance moves were every bit as good. The woman guitarist (Maddie Rice) who replaced Hersey was not as good as him (who could be?) but held her own.
And another definition of Rubblebucket is diversity. The new trombonist is black, the current drummer is Japanese (I think), and to see a young "girl" with long hair playing the lead blues guitar was great (though a pillar blocked her from my view 90% of the time ... that's what happens when you're upstairs in the Paradise). And diversity was so important on that day. January 20th 2017 was Inauguration Day and we should have been celebrating the first woman president of the United States. Instead we were besieged by the institutionalization of hate. It was very good to go out to see such a progressive band that night, it was good to hear Kalmia tell us how important it was to listen to each other and know that she was struggling along with us, and it was fantastic the next day to have millions of people march all over the world to protest what was happening in American government.
That day, Rubblebucket had released a new EP ("If U C My Enemies"), and they featured all four songs from it, which are excellent. And wrapped around them was a setlist of your dreams, including some of the best tracks from their first records, including Shake Me Around, Silly Fathers, Pain From Love, Carousel Ride, etc. As mentioned, the people on the floor were squished together like you wouldn't believe, but they still managed to jump and groove, though the only way they could do it was if everyone jumped on the same frequency.
Kalmia, in a sparkling leotard and psychedelic blouse, was rolling on the stage, bouncing around, tooting her sax with abandon (some of the new songs have excellent baritone sax textures), and singing like an angel. One of the last songs of the set was Came Out Of a Lady ("for all the Moms"), which quickly degenerated into a Rubblebucket love fest. They showered the crowd with confetti, both Alex and Kalmia crowd-surfed (Kalmia singing the chorus while she did so), and they tried a bit of a parade up the steps to the balcony, though this was soon aborted when the crowd was just too thick.
Incredible talent, incredible songs, and a great show! I have to say again that Kalmia was singing better than I've ever heard her. There was a short break before everyone came back out for a long encore, including a brilliant Triangular Daisies and finally a successful parade through the crowd, ending with a tribal circle-groove with the entire band in front of the merch table. That was a lot of fun!
Waited a bit and then were able to push out onto the sidewalk and it was earlier than we expected, just 12:15 or so. The car was right in front and after dancing through a bevy of Ubers we got out of there and had a quick drive home.
Wednesday, January 11, 2017
Lee, Steve, and Meg at The Armory
Scott got several of us motivated to go hear Lee Ranaldo and Steve Gunn at the Armory in Somerville on Tuesday night, 1/10. I'd never seen either play, though of course I'd heard of Ranaldo. Besides being 3 days younger than me, he's always been known as one of the best guitarists around.
And we'd never been to the Armory, though we'd been tempted by other events in their Arts At the Armory series over the past few years. They were playing that night with Meg Baird opening, and we waffled a bit, but then got tickets. Why not, this should be great!
And it was great. I was delayed at work (ho hum, we got acquired by D&B), but finally hit the road and amazingly got to deepest darkest Somerville in time to meet Sarah at Highland Kitchen and have a quick dinner before the show. It was one of those suddenly warm, rainy, and sloppy early Winter nights in the Boston area where the snow turns to slush and everything is damp or just plain wet.
We made it the few blocks up to the Armory (where I'd parked), and our friends were just then arriving after their walk from Davis! Hilarity ensued, we got beers and nice seats in the middle, though Meg had already started her set. Only heard a few songs from Meg, but she was wonderful when I got the chance to sit down and listen to her. A classical voice, songs featuring subtle intonations, and a lovely sounding guitar (no electric guitars from any of the three last night).
The Armory impressed me right away. It's a surprisingly big space (with two bars) and could easily seat a lot more people than the two hundred or so who crammed into their shitty plastic chairs that night, especially if they opened the balcony area. They also could fit three or four youth basketball games if they tried. If you took away the curtained-off green rooms, it's a very large rectangle a few city houses wide and deep, and is just as high, way up to a complicated ceiling with exposed insulation and ventilation. The sound in there was fantastic and all three performers rocked it.
Ranaldo was in the back thumbing his phone during Baird's set and came on soon thereafter with a rack of four very similar guitars (one of which was obviously his favorite but had an E-string that went out of tune regularly). His style involves playing on the drama of the sound he's making and he started off well by shaking a few chimes and getting some droning sounds melding around. But then his main guitar switch fucked up on him and he had to crawl on all fours to get it right. Hey, maybe that was part of the drama!?!
But anyway, he rebounded soon, cranked up the volume, and blew our minds. His technique was fascinating, including playing bar chords with his thumb. I loved his voice and many of his originals (he's recently put out a new record and concentrated on that) featured neat word puzzles and twists. But the sonic tapestry he wove was the best part of his set, sometimes getting alarmingly close to runaway feedback or guitar angst, but always veering back into his control.
The funniest thing about the night was the crowd in the Armory. It was like an early Joan Baez concert in there or something. Everyone was as quiet as a church mouse during the songs, and there was a loud but short round of polite applause after every number. When you whispered during a song you were invariably met with "hushes" from the surrounding rows (though most people were on both ends of this). I let out a "woohoo" after a particularly good song and several others showed some psych too, but it was mostly a coffee-house kind of crowd.
Lee was fantastic and then Steve Gunn came on, another excellent solo guitarist. As Tristan said after a few songs, it would have helped to have been high for his set. Not that he was bad at all ... he was excellent. But his pace was at times a little slow for later in the evening, and you had to stay with his songs for them to develop. The careful listener was rewarded though and you soon found your consciousness going up and down with his baroque stylings. Great stuff!
Well, that was it. No encores for any of the three and little stage chatter. This was the start of their "tour" and I think it likely the three of them will vary the format of their set as they go along.
Gave our three friends a ride back to Alewife so they didn't have to navigate the sloppy slush and rain, and still made it back home in plenty of time for bed.
And we'd never been to the Armory, though we'd been tempted by other events in their Arts At the Armory series over the past few years. They were playing that night with Meg Baird opening, and we waffled a bit, but then got tickets. Why not, this should be great!
And it was great. I was delayed at work (ho hum, we got acquired by D&B), but finally hit the road and amazingly got to deepest darkest Somerville in time to meet Sarah at Highland Kitchen and have a quick dinner before the show. It was one of those suddenly warm, rainy, and sloppy early Winter nights in the Boston area where the snow turns to slush and everything is damp or just plain wet.
We made it the few blocks up to the Armory (where I'd parked), and our friends were just then arriving after their walk from Davis! Hilarity ensued, we got beers and nice seats in the middle, though Meg had already started her set. Only heard a few songs from Meg, but she was wonderful when I got the chance to sit down and listen to her. A classical voice, songs featuring subtle intonations, and a lovely sounding guitar (no electric guitars from any of the three last night).
The Armory impressed me right away. It's a surprisingly big space (with two bars) and could easily seat a lot more people than the two hundred or so who crammed into their shitty plastic chairs that night, especially if they opened the balcony area. They also could fit three or four youth basketball games if they tried. If you took away the curtained-off green rooms, it's a very large rectangle a few city houses wide and deep, and is just as high, way up to a complicated ceiling with exposed insulation and ventilation. The sound in there was fantastic and all three performers rocked it.
Ranaldo was in the back thumbing his phone during Baird's set and came on soon thereafter with a rack of four very similar guitars (one of which was obviously his favorite but had an E-string that went out of tune regularly). His style involves playing on the drama of the sound he's making and he started off well by shaking a few chimes and getting some droning sounds melding around. But then his main guitar switch fucked up on him and he had to crawl on all fours to get it right. Hey, maybe that was part of the drama!?!
But anyway, he rebounded soon, cranked up the volume, and blew our minds. His technique was fascinating, including playing bar chords with his thumb. I loved his voice and many of his originals (he's recently put out a new record and concentrated on that) featured neat word puzzles and twists. But the sonic tapestry he wove was the best part of his set, sometimes getting alarmingly close to runaway feedback or guitar angst, but always veering back into his control.
The funniest thing about the night was the crowd in the Armory. It was like an early Joan Baez concert in there or something. Everyone was as quiet as a church mouse during the songs, and there was a loud but short round of polite applause after every number. When you whispered during a song you were invariably met with "hushes" from the surrounding rows (though most people were on both ends of this). I let out a "woohoo" after a particularly good song and several others showed some psych too, but it was mostly a coffee-house kind of crowd.
Lee was fantastic and then Steve Gunn came on, another excellent solo guitarist. As Tristan said after a few songs, it would have helped to have been high for his set. Not that he was bad at all ... he was excellent. But his pace was at times a little slow for later in the evening, and you had to stay with his songs for them to develop. The careful listener was rewarded though and you soon found your consciousness going up and down with his baroque stylings. Great stuff!
Well, that was it. No encores for any of the three and little stage chatter. This was the start of their "tour" and I think it likely the three of them will vary the format of their set as they go along.
Gave our three friends a ride back to Alewife so they didn't have to navigate the sloppy slush and rain, and still made it back home in plenty of time for bed.
Friday, December 16, 2016
Miss Tess at The Burren
The latest record by Miss Tess and the Talkbacks is on my best of 2016 list, and she was finally playing back in the Boston area, at The Burren in Somerville on December 15th. Met Sarah at Redbones on a very cold and windy almost Winter day, had a couple of beers and then filed into the back room at The Burren where we had a quick dinner.
The room filled up quickly and may have been sold out. This was a WUMB “Third Thursday” concert and so was hosted by their DJ, Jess Phaneuf, who strangely looked exactly like she sounds. Most DJs don’t and you’re surprised when you meet them.
Miss Tess was playing with different people than the last time we saw her, which was two and a half years ago, so that’s no surprise. But it was the same instrumentation: Thomas Bryan Eaton on lead guitarist, a (very tall) bass player, and a drummer with a small but effective kit. She was not playing the big guitar I’ve always seen her with before and love, but the one she had last night was possibly even better. Her guitar sound is so rich and chewy it’s phenomenal. I spent most of the concert just concentrating on her guitar work.
And she’s a great song writer too. They opened with the whirlwind Ride That Train, the opening track on her 2016 record, and later did a few of the other great songs from that, Little Lola (which she said is about her neighbor’s cat, I should have guessed!), I Can’t Help Myself, Take You Break You Shake You, and Going Downtown. She also did several brand new songs, including one that could have been written by Hank himself, it’s got the laconic true life blues set to a deadly melody that he specialized in. I complimented her on that one, and she smiled in her Miss Tess way (we were at the front table of course).
Another thing worth noting is the vocal arrangements were very good. All of the guys filled in at various points and didn't slow her down at all, they just egged her on. She's more of a bandleader than she seemed previously and had the whole sound working and pulling in the right direction.
Had a nice conversation with our neighbors at the table before and after the set, and then bundled up and braved the cold Davis Square air. Luckily the car was not far away and we got home in fine time.
The room filled up quickly and may have been sold out. This was a WUMB “Third Thursday” concert and so was hosted by their DJ, Jess Phaneuf, who strangely looked exactly like she sounds. Most DJs don’t and you’re surprised when you meet them.
Miss Tess was playing with different people than the last time we saw her, which was two and a half years ago, so that’s no surprise. But it was the same instrumentation: Thomas Bryan Eaton on lead guitarist, a (very tall) bass player, and a drummer with a small but effective kit. She was not playing the big guitar I’ve always seen her with before and love, but the one she had last night was possibly even better. Her guitar sound is so rich and chewy it’s phenomenal. I spent most of the concert just concentrating on her guitar work.
And she’s a great song writer too. They opened with the whirlwind Ride That Train, the opening track on her 2016 record, and later did a few of the other great songs from that, Little Lola (which she said is about her neighbor’s cat, I should have guessed!), I Can’t Help Myself, Take You Break You Shake You, and Going Downtown. She also did several brand new songs, including one that could have been written by Hank himself, it’s got the laconic true life blues set to a deadly melody that he specialized in. I complimented her on that one, and she smiled in her Miss Tess way (we were at the front table of course).
Another thing worth noting is the vocal arrangements were very good. All of the guys filled in at various points and didn't slow her down at all, they just egged her on. She's more of a bandleader than she seemed previously and had the whole sound working and pulling in the right direction.
Had a nice conversation with our neighbors at the table before and after the set, and then bundled up and braved the cold Davis Square air. Luckily the car was not far away and we got home in fine time.
Saturday, December 3, 2016
JRAD ROCK HOB
Well ... in yesterday's post I said that we'd decided to go to just one of the three TTB shows. And it's a great thing we did because soon after we made that commitment, JRAD announced that they'd be playing the House Of Blues the second night of the TTB stand! Geez, we would have been in a panic if we'd committed for the second night instead. But this meant that we were going to see two consecutive nights of some of the best music around at this time in history. We are very lucky.
And JRAD in the House of Blues instead of the Paradise again?!? I love the sound at the HOB and was very excited to think of JRAD playing there. They've been doing acoustic mini-sets at the end of their first sets lately (Bob Weir sat in on a recent one, and John Mayer did a couple of months ago), and I was hoping they'd do that.
Sarah and I were at home for various reasons, but took off for the Fens at the end of the afternoon, making it to the parking lot on Van Ness eventually through thick traffic. The HOB restaurant was closed for a special event, so we met Dave at Yardhouse and had another excellent Yardhouse dinner and raft of beers. Headed over to Lansdowne Street (after a detour by the car) and took our places about 20th in line about 45 minutes before the doors opened. And it's a good thing we were that early, the line was soon around the block! Needless to say, this show was sold out and almost everyone there was there to see one of the best bands around, not just out for a night at a rock club.
Met some nice people in line and the time flew by, and before we knew it we were filing in. Dave and I got quite searched and they ended up denying him access temporarily. I saw he wasn't behind me and so turned around; was able to hand him the keys so he could go back to the car and then try again. In the meantime, Sarah had secured our spot so everything was ok, except Dave now had to go to the back of that long line and it took him basically a whole hour to get in.
Met some nice people inside and that hour flew by while the hall filled in; it was eventually as packed as it gets. The guy next to me got in with a whole baggie of stuff and must have smoked it all (discreetly??) by the end of the night.
Dave showed up eventually and we critiqued the stage setup. Marco did not have his stand-up piano and Joe's drum kit was a little smaller than when we'd seen them before. And it didn't look like they were geared up for the switch to an acoustic setup that we were hoping for. Oh well.
Soon the boys came out, tuned up a bit, and launched right into the good stuff. Dave called the first song from the intro ... here are Costello's notes:
Show #87
House of Blues,
Boston, MA
2016.12.02
(SOLD OUT - THANK YOU!!!)
Set 1 (9:16PM - 10:21PM)
Music Never Stopped @ (SM) ->
China Cat Sunflower (TH) ->
Touch of Grey (TH)
Black Throated Wind # (SM) >
Jack Straw (SM & TH)
Ruben & Cherise $ (TH) ->
I Know You Rider (All)
Set 2 (10:53PM - ~1:00AM)
Althea % (TH) ->
Duo Jam ->
Good Lovin (SM) ->
Terrapin Station Jam ++ ->
My Pet Goat Jam ^ ->
Terrapin Suite & (TH) >
Uncle Johns Band (All) ->
9x9 Jam * ->
Uncle Johns Band Reprise + (All)
He’s Gone (TH/All) ->
Saint Of Circumstance @@ (SM)
E: Ophelia (SM) >
Not Fade Away ## (All) ->
Brown Eyed Women %% ->
Not Fade Away Reprise $$ (All)
@ - With The Eleven Tease (SM), unfinished
# - With a Jack Straw Jam (Band)
$ - With China->Rider Transition Teases (TH) & a “Waltz #1” (Elliot Smith) Tease (MB)
% - With an “All of My Love” (Led Zeppelin) Tease (MB)
++ - First Time Played by Almost Dead (I think?)
^ - First Time Played by Almost Dead, Benevento Russo Duo Original, not the complete song
& - With Ruben & Cherise Teases (Band)
* - First Time Played by Almost Dead, Benevento Russo Duo Original, not the complete song
+ - First Time Played by Almost Dead
@@ - With Ruben & Cherise and Terrapin Station Teases (Band)
## - With GDTRFB Teases (SM) and “Shortnin’ Bread” (James Whitcomb Riley) Teases (Band)
%% - With a “Come On Feel The Noize” (Quiet Riot) Tease (JR)
$$ - First time played since 2015-02-16 Boulder, CO, a gap of 66 shows, With a “Hey Bulldog” Jam (Band) - that may end up being a track, not sure if it was long enough.
Wow! The were all on fire and, it seems strange to say, but if you had to pick a slightly less then incredible performance it might have been Joe (he cured this in the second set). He was really singing and playing fantastically and did not turn in a weak performance at all, but everyone else on the stage was beyond the top of his game! Marco was just spectacular on his organ, Rhodes, and piano ... his piano sounded incredible. Tom was coming out with aggressive, stand-on-your-head lead after lead, the singing was excellent, and Dave was amazingly amazing.
At times I got the feeling I've mentioned when seeing Phil and Stanley Jordan, that I could see the music. Dave was laying down a popping bass line and looking at Joe; Joe was slamming his toms and cymbals and looking over at Marco; Marco had one hand on his organ and one hand on his Rhodes and was bouncing the energy from the rhythm guys to the guitarists. You could see the electricity crackling back and forth among them.
And the room was great for this band. I think that may have been part of why they were playing so well: the House Of Blues can ring in time with a loud band, the space fills with the sound and reverberates with the beat. As I say, everyone there was [Almost] Deadicated and when you looked out over the floor, it was a sea of wildly dancing people.
Our place was being threatened of course, but we were able to take turns at the bathrooms and smoke area, and then get back together before the second set started. Joe had said the break would be short, but it was average length. It was already getting late, but we were about to see JRAD do a second set ... "late" was not an issue.
What can you say about that second set? It was a little weird because it basically had only 7 songs. But these were epic versions filled in with jams that left you drooling. There is never a down second with these guys, it's rare to find a time when there isn't something unique and remarkable going on on stage, and usually there are many remarkable things happening at once.
I have to say something about the Terrapin, because it was one of the most epic versions ever. It seemed to go on for a hour with the transitions and the jams and the choruses. It built and climaxed and built and climaxed over and over. You would have thought it would have been exhausting but it wasn't, it was exhilarating.
And when they were finally done they fell into a crunchy, rocky UJB that was driven by its beat, and then one of the best He's Gones I've ever heard ... soulful and yearning. And then they finished the set with another left turn into a rocking Saint, which had the entirety of the Fenway area jumping. We were going for it for sure. And to top his excellent vocal night, at the end, right before the last chords, Scott switched into his best falsetto and capped the song with an emphatic, "Going on a feeling!!!"
Again, Wow!!! The floor was a mess of empty cans and cups, and we were all a satisfied mess as well. They came back out after a little bit and launched into Ophelia, a drummer's special. That's so perfect we thought, open the second set with Althea and end the night with Ophelia. But they were not ending!! They teased us a bit at the end of it and then before we knew it they were playing the ultimate rocker, Holly's Not Fade Away. My buddy to my left went nuts, having predicted that they'd close with this (he was about done with his baggie by this point).
But then the music didn't stop! They burst through another door in unison and whacked us over the heads with Brown-Eyed Women. Again, a crunchy, rocky version in which they hit all the emotional phrasings but did it fast, with an incredible beat and Joe playing every possible part of it. And then they were back into NFA! They stopped while everyone was chanting, waved at us all, and then walked away. What a night and what a performance!
Actually, the last on the stage was Tom. He'd taken off his jacket in the middle of a song, but was still as stylish as ever in a long scarf and his ever-present scally cap. And then someone threw a number of scally caps on stage at him! He was a little surprised but then realized the story, that a fan wanted him to autograph the caps, so he went over to the side of the stage, sat down and hung out while signing. Nice music and nice guys.
Got it together and started out pretty soon after that. It was already just after 1. Got to the car and it would have been an easy ride home, but the staties had blocked off the entrances to 93 from Storrow Drive and Leverett Circle, so had to wend our way though Charlestown before we could get on the highway. It was well after 2 by the time I got to bed.
And JRAD in the House of Blues instead of the Paradise again?!? I love the sound at the HOB and was very excited to think of JRAD playing there. They've been doing acoustic mini-sets at the end of their first sets lately (Bob Weir sat in on a recent one, and John Mayer did a couple of months ago), and I was hoping they'd do that.
Sarah and I were at home for various reasons, but took off for the Fens at the end of the afternoon, making it to the parking lot on Van Ness eventually through thick traffic. The HOB restaurant was closed for a special event, so we met Dave at Yardhouse and had another excellent Yardhouse dinner and raft of beers. Headed over to Lansdowne Street (after a detour by the car) and took our places about 20th in line about 45 minutes before the doors opened. And it's a good thing we were that early, the line was soon around the block! Needless to say, this show was sold out and almost everyone there was there to see one of the best bands around, not just out for a night at a rock club.
Met some nice people in line and the time flew by, and before we knew it we were filing in. Dave and I got quite searched and they ended up denying him access temporarily. I saw he wasn't behind me and so turned around; was able to hand him the keys so he could go back to the car and then try again. In the meantime, Sarah had secured our spot so everything was ok, except Dave now had to go to the back of that long line and it took him basically a whole hour to get in.
Met some nice people inside and that hour flew by while the hall filled in; it was eventually as packed as it gets. The guy next to me got in with a whole baggie of stuff and must have smoked it all (discreetly??) by the end of the night.
Dave showed up eventually and we critiqued the stage setup. Marco did not have his stand-up piano and Joe's drum kit was a little smaller than when we'd seen them before. And it didn't look like they were geared up for the switch to an acoustic setup that we were hoping for. Oh well.
Soon the boys came out, tuned up a bit, and launched right into the good stuff. Dave called the first song from the intro ... here are Costello's notes:
Show #87
House of Blues,
Boston, MA
2016.12.02
(SOLD OUT - THANK YOU!!!)
Set 1 (9:16PM - 10:21PM)
Music Never Stopped @ (SM) ->
China Cat Sunflower (TH) ->
Touch of Grey (TH)
Black Throated Wind # (SM) >
Jack Straw (SM & TH)
Ruben & Cherise $ (TH) ->
I Know You Rider (All)
Set 2 (10:53PM - ~1:00AM)
Althea % (TH) ->
Duo Jam ->
Good Lovin (SM) ->
Terrapin Station Jam ++ ->
My Pet Goat Jam ^ ->
Terrapin Suite & (TH) >
Uncle Johns Band (All) ->
9x9 Jam * ->
Uncle Johns Band Reprise + (All)
He’s Gone (TH/All) ->
Saint Of Circumstance @@ (SM)
E: Ophelia (SM) >
Not Fade Away ## (All) ->
Brown Eyed Women %% ->
Not Fade Away Reprise $$ (All)
@ - With The Eleven Tease (SM), unfinished
# - With a Jack Straw Jam (Band)
$ - With China->Rider Transition Teases (TH) & a “Waltz #1” (Elliot Smith) Tease (MB)
% - With an “All of My Love” (Led Zeppelin) Tease (MB)
++ - First Time Played by Almost Dead (I think?)
^ - First Time Played by Almost Dead, Benevento Russo Duo Original, not the complete song
& - With Ruben & Cherise Teases (Band)
* - First Time Played by Almost Dead, Benevento Russo Duo Original, not the complete song
+ - First Time Played by Almost Dead
@@ - With Ruben & Cherise and Terrapin Station Teases (Band)
## - With GDTRFB Teases (SM) and “Shortnin’ Bread” (James Whitcomb Riley) Teases (Band)
%% - With a “Come On Feel The Noize” (Quiet Riot) Tease (JR)
$$ - First time played since 2015-02-16 Boulder, CO, a gap of 66 shows, With a “Hey Bulldog” Jam (Band) - that may end up being a track, not sure if it was long enough.
- They were firing on all cylinders right off the line. Music was big and beefy and featured an excellent outro jam, which sounded like it was going to morph into The Eleven. Instead they turned a quick corner and bam! ... were playing the China Cat intro ... Dave had called this too.
- The sing-songy Touch, as you might imagine, was a bit of a weird thing for this band to play, but they aren't afraid to be weird.
- Black-Throated Wind was awesome; Scott was singing incredibly last night. And that went into a short and sweet Jack Straw.
- Then Tommy took over the mike with a crackling Reuben and Cherise, which morphed into a sing-along I Know You Rider to end the set.
Wow! The were all on fire and, it seems strange to say, but if you had to pick a slightly less then incredible performance it might have been Joe (he cured this in the second set). He was really singing and playing fantastically and did not turn in a weak performance at all, but everyone else on the stage was beyond the top of his game! Marco was just spectacular on his organ, Rhodes, and piano ... his piano sounded incredible. Tom was coming out with aggressive, stand-on-your-head lead after lead, the singing was excellent, and Dave was amazingly amazing.
At times I got the feeling I've mentioned when seeing Phil and Stanley Jordan, that I could see the music. Dave was laying down a popping bass line and looking at Joe; Joe was slamming his toms and cymbals and looking over at Marco; Marco had one hand on his organ and one hand on his Rhodes and was bouncing the energy from the rhythm guys to the guitarists. You could see the electricity crackling back and forth among them.
And the room was great for this band. I think that may have been part of why they were playing so well: the House Of Blues can ring in time with a loud band, the space fills with the sound and reverberates with the beat. As I say, everyone there was [Almost] Deadicated and when you looked out over the floor, it was a sea of wildly dancing people.
Our place was being threatened of course, but we were able to take turns at the bathrooms and smoke area, and then get back together before the second set started. Joe had said the break would be short, but it was average length. It was already getting late, but we were about to see JRAD do a second set ... "late" was not an issue.
What can you say about that second set? It was a little weird because it basically had only 7 songs. But these were epic versions filled in with jams that left you drooling. There is never a down second with these guys, it's rare to find a time when there isn't something unique and remarkable going on on stage, and usually there are many remarkable things happening at once.
I have to say something about the Terrapin, because it was one of the most epic versions ever. It seemed to go on for a hour with the transitions and the jams and the choruses. It built and climaxed and built and climaxed over and over. You would have thought it would have been exhausting but it wasn't, it was exhilarating.
And when they were finally done they fell into a crunchy, rocky UJB that was driven by its beat, and then one of the best He's Gones I've ever heard ... soulful and yearning. And then they finished the set with another left turn into a rocking Saint, which had the entirety of the Fenway area jumping. We were going for it for sure. And to top his excellent vocal night, at the end, right before the last chords, Scott switched into his best falsetto and capped the song with an emphatic, "Going on a feeling!!!"
Again, Wow!!! The floor was a mess of empty cans and cups, and we were all a satisfied mess as well. They came back out after a little bit and launched into Ophelia, a drummer's special. That's so perfect we thought, open the second set with Althea and end the night with Ophelia. But they were not ending!! They teased us a bit at the end of it and then before we knew it they were playing the ultimate rocker, Holly's Not Fade Away. My buddy to my left went nuts, having predicted that they'd close with this (he was about done with his baggie by this point).
But then the music didn't stop! They burst through another door in unison and whacked us over the heads with Brown-Eyed Women. Again, a crunchy, rocky version in which they hit all the emotional phrasings but did it fast, with an incredible beat and Joe playing every possible part of it. And then they were back into NFA! They stopped while everyone was chanting, waved at us all, and then walked away. What a night and what a performance!
Actually, the last on the stage was Tom. He'd taken off his jacket in the middle of a song, but was still as stylish as ever in a long scarf and his ever-present scally cap. And then someone threw a number of scally caps on stage at him! He was a little surprised but then realized the story, that a fan wanted him to autograph the caps, so he went over to the side of the stage, sat down and hung out while signing. Nice music and nice guys.
Got it together and started out pretty soon after that. It was already just after 1. Got to the car and it would have been an easy ride home, but the staties had blocked off the entrances to 93 from Storrow Drive and Leverett Circle, so had to wend our way though Charlestown before we could get on the highway. It was well after 2 by the time I got to bed.
Friday, December 2, 2016
Tedeschi Trucks Band in the Orpheum
Tedeschi Trucks Band is blessing Boston with three consecutive nights, though they're at the stinky old Orpheum. The first night (12/1) was with Jorma Kaukonen opening, tonight's is with Amy Ray (of Indigo Girls), and the third night is just them doing two sets. All three shows sold out and TTB is sure indicating that they'll only get better and more popular over the coming years. We debated for a minute and then decided to go to just one of the shows though, the one with Jorma, even though that was a Thursday night.
In recent interviews, Derek has said that he anticipates a significant number of fans will go to multiple nights, and so they planned to play unique sets each night. Glad to see they take their music seriously! And I was astounded to see that when I grabbed tickets for the Thursday show as soon as they went on sale, that I had gotten first row center tickets in the Orpheum!?! I've been there many times and never sat in good seats. We were very psyched.
Met Sarah and Dave after work, parked in their building, and then we headed over to the 21st Amendment for a nice bar dinner (noisy and funky as always in there), and then mosied on down to the Common. What was happening that evening was the unveiling/lighting of Boston's annual Christmas present from Nova Scotia, a huge spruce tree. For those not familiar with this tradition, please read about it here.
After touring around the Common, the tree with festivities going on around it, and the Frog Pond skating rink, we made our way back uphill on Tremont and slid down Hamilton Place towards the maw of the Orpheum, old Boston all over. The place has been cleaned up some since when I spent the night in that alley waiting for tickets to Garcia Saunders in 1975, but there are probably still rats lurking in the shadows.
Grabbed a beer and headed to our front row center seats, which we found in as good shape as the rest of the theater. Not much leg room, a speaker was right in front of us and cut off a bit of our view when we were sitting down, and there were signs of decay everywhere. But what was I complaining about, we were almost as close to Jorma when he came out as when we'd seen him recently at the Bull Run, and when TTB came out, it was like having our own Tiny Desk Concert in their living room.
Jorma came out in a stylish sport coat, black jeans, and t-shirt, and was as stellar as ever. Here's his set:
True Religion
Come Back Baby
Hesitation Blues
Watch the North Wind Rise
Sea Child
Death Don't Have No Mercy
San Francisco Bay Blues
How Long Blues
River Of Time
I Am the Light Of This World
Good Shepherd
Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning
Water Song
Wow, long first set! And this was transcendent stuff. As stated previously, I feel that listening to Jorma play Come Back Baby is one of the keys to civilization, and his fingering was exceptional. He's been working on that song for a while and pretty much has it down.
Another very high highlight was Sea Child. At some times in his set he sounded like a symphony with just his guitar, and you could feel Jack pounding away on the bottom end, though he was just one of the ghosts flying around Jorma on his small metal chair. San Francisco Bay Blues was another fantastic cover, with Jorma growling out the lines in funky syncopation like some old blues guitarist. I wonder when he realized that he'd spent his whole life admiring the old blues musicians and now he was one so he'd better start acting like it?
Just ridiculous that there was the standard amount of first-set chatter going on in the theater, but a good number of us there were enthralled even so. There were shouts of delight from all over the theater at his phrasing and skill, hopefully startling the fuck out of the chattering idiots. Between sets I actually heard several people ask, "Who was that opening?"
After Good Shepherd we all stood up (those who were listening that is) and applauded, but Jorma apologetically told us, "Two more!" He could have played a lot longer as far as I was concerned. As usual, Jorma was out there with two guitars and spent most of the time on his gut-string wonder, but when he picked up the steel-string beauty for the last song, no question but that we were about to be blown away with Water Song. I think that means he's done Come Back Baby and Water Song every time I've seen him, and that's fine with me.
Ran into famous Jorma fan, PeterP, at the break and we gushed about what we'd just seen. Talk about playing with the old powers!
As mentioned, the Orpheum is ridiculously dirty, small, and cramped. The lobby between sets was scary it was so packed. A guy in the beer line in front of me was freaking out because of the high-strung crowd, and needed a little encouragement from those of us around him, especially when a lazy beer vendor snarled at him that he was in the wrong line. He was about to explode but we talked him down and he got his beer. I got mine and made it back to our seats, and soon all 12 of the Tedeschi Trucks Band came out on stage and lined up right in front of me!
Hopefully I can restrict describing this next incident to one paragraph. Dave and I wanted to stand because a) it was a rock concert, b) the speaker was right in our faces and if we stood up the sound was much better, and c) sitting down we couldn't see Kofi Burbridge, who was as excellent as always that night. Everyone in the theater was standing except for some people in the row behind us, and they felt they could demand that we sit down. One person asked Dave with a "please" that he sit down, so he did. But one guy six seats to my left (that is, I wasn't even in his sight line) poked me firmly in the butt with his cane to get me to sit! I sure let the people around us know at the next song break that he had done that, and he was later confronted by security.
OK, another paragraph on this topic. I was heartened to get a lot of support from many people around us who had seen the incident, and who came up to me afterwards and told me they couldn't believe the guy had done that. "Has he ever BEEN to a rock concert before??" was the sentiment from person after person. The security guy who'd confronted him actually came up to me also at the end of the concert and said, "I told that senile old guy to stop poking people with his cane and he just glared at me!" One person told me he had heard him say, "I didn't jab him, I just poked him!" Oh well, I was steamed up and embarrassed pretty good and I sat for about half the concert, but then I stood up again and loved it. Everybody in the second row left sometime during the set and now everyone was standing ... good riddance to them.
Anyway ... again, there I was with the whole fucking Tedeschi Trucks Band playing and singing their hearts out right on front of me. They opened with an incendiary vocal by Mike Mattison, who came down off his riser for that. Susan took most of the leads from there, though Mark Rivers got one late in the set and one was a duet between Mike and Alecia Chakour. As mentioned, Kofi Burbridge was just excellent, stamping every song with his powerful organ fills. I could mention everybody in the band, they were all playing fantastically.
But as you might imagine, this was another transcendent experience in a large part because of Derek Fucking Trucks. I'd seen him play many times, but this time he was just 20 feet in front of us and his powerful technique and volume were dominating our world. He's a bit of a stone face when he performs, but on this night we were close enough to see the glances he shot around the stage to keep his band together, everyone on the stage was hanging on his little winks, nods, and quick smiles.
As mentioned before, they were determined to play three nights of non-repeats, and so did a few songs that perhaps could have been rehearsed a bit more. But we loved it, and Susan was delightfully embarrassed when she forgot some words. Dave got a setlist from a roadie at the end, and here's what it says:
Get What You Deserve
Laugh About It
Don't Drift Away
Within You Without You
Just As Strange
Bird On a Wire
The Storm
Color Of the Blues
Key To the Highway
I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free
Leavin' Trunk
Volunteered Slavery
How Blue Can You Get?
Ali
Let Me Get By
Encore:
It Ain't Easy
Space Captain/Delta Lady
The Beatles song Within You Without You was the surprise of the set, but soon segued into the powerful Just As Strange. Susan just killed Leonard Cohen's Bird On a Wire, and later did the song she does as a duet with John Prine on his latest album, George Jones' Color Of the Blues. Jorma came out and joined the band for Key To the Highway, playing a vintage Thunderbird electric.
Here's an excellent review of the show, and I think that's my profile blocking the camera in his pictures. Good!
Confabbed with people who wanted to tell me what a jerk that guy had been, got the setlist, and finally pushed our way out through the cramped lobby and up Hamilton Place. Not far back to the garage, and got home and in bed by midnight.
In recent interviews, Derek has said that he anticipates a significant number of fans will go to multiple nights, and so they planned to play unique sets each night. Glad to see they take their music seriously! And I was astounded to see that when I grabbed tickets for the Thursday show as soon as they went on sale, that I had gotten first row center tickets in the Orpheum!?! I've been there many times and never sat in good seats. We were very psyched.
Met Sarah and Dave after work, parked in their building, and then we headed over to the 21st Amendment for a nice bar dinner (noisy and funky as always in there), and then mosied on down to the Common. What was happening that evening was the unveiling/lighting of Boston's annual Christmas present from Nova Scotia, a huge spruce tree. For those not familiar with this tradition, please read about it here.
After touring around the Common, the tree with festivities going on around it, and the Frog Pond skating rink, we made our way back uphill on Tremont and slid down Hamilton Place towards the maw of the Orpheum, old Boston all over. The place has been cleaned up some since when I spent the night in that alley waiting for tickets to Garcia Saunders in 1975, but there are probably still rats lurking in the shadows.
Grabbed a beer and headed to our front row center seats, which we found in as good shape as the rest of the theater. Not much leg room, a speaker was right in front of us and cut off a bit of our view when we were sitting down, and there were signs of decay everywhere. But what was I complaining about, we were almost as close to Jorma when he came out as when we'd seen him recently at the Bull Run, and when TTB came out, it was like having our own Tiny Desk Concert in their living room.
Jorma came out in a stylish sport coat, black jeans, and t-shirt, and was as stellar as ever. Here's his set:
True Religion
Come Back Baby
Hesitation Blues
Watch the North Wind Rise
Sea Child
Death Don't Have No Mercy
San Francisco Bay Blues
How Long Blues
River Of Time
I Am the Light Of This World
Good Shepherd
Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning
Water Song
Wow, long first set! And this was transcendent stuff. As stated previously, I feel that listening to Jorma play Come Back Baby is one of the keys to civilization, and his fingering was exceptional. He's been working on that song for a while and pretty much has it down.
Another very high highlight was Sea Child. At some times in his set he sounded like a symphony with just his guitar, and you could feel Jack pounding away on the bottom end, though he was just one of the ghosts flying around Jorma on his small metal chair. San Francisco Bay Blues was another fantastic cover, with Jorma growling out the lines in funky syncopation like some old blues guitarist. I wonder when he realized that he'd spent his whole life admiring the old blues musicians and now he was one so he'd better start acting like it?
Just ridiculous that there was the standard amount of first-set chatter going on in the theater, but a good number of us there were enthralled even so. There were shouts of delight from all over the theater at his phrasing and skill, hopefully startling the fuck out of the chattering idiots. Between sets I actually heard several people ask, "Who was that opening?"
After Good Shepherd we all stood up (those who were listening that is) and applauded, but Jorma apologetically told us, "Two more!" He could have played a lot longer as far as I was concerned. As usual, Jorma was out there with two guitars and spent most of the time on his gut-string wonder, but when he picked up the steel-string beauty for the last song, no question but that we were about to be blown away with Water Song. I think that means he's done Come Back Baby and Water Song every time I've seen him, and that's fine with me.
Ran into famous Jorma fan, PeterP, at the break and we gushed about what we'd just seen. Talk about playing with the old powers!
As mentioned, the Orpheum is ridiculously dirty, small, and cramped. The lobby between sets was scary it was so packed. A guy in the beer line in front of me was freaking out because of the high-strung crowd, and needed a little encouragement from those of us around him, especially when a lazy beer vendor snarled at him that he was in the wrong line. He was about to explode but we talked him down and he got his beer. I got mine and made it back to our seats, and soon all 12 of the Tedeschi Trucks Band came out on stage and lined up right in front of me!
Hopefully I can restrict describing this next incident to one paragraph. Dave and I wanted to stand because a) it was a rock concert, b) the speaker was right in our faces and if we stood up the sound was much better, and c) sitting down we couldn't see Kofi Burbridge, who was as excellent as always that night. Everyone in the theater was standing except for some people in the row behind us, and they felt they could demand that we sit down. One person asked Dave with a "please" that he sit down, so he did. But one guy six seats to my left (that is, I wasn't even in his sight line) poked me firmly in the butt with his cane to get me to sit! I sure let the people around us know at the next song break that he had done that, and he was later confronted by security.
OK, another paragraph on this topic. I was heartened to get a lot of support from many people around us who had seen the incident, and who came up to me afterwards and told me they couldn't believe the guy had done that. "Has he ever BEEN to a rock concert before??" was the sentiment from person after person. The security guy who'd confronted him actually came up to me also at the end of the concert and said, "I told that senile old guy to stop poking people with his cane and he just glared at me!" One person told me he had heard him say, "I didn't jab him, I just poked him!" Oh well, I was steamed up and embarrassed pretty good and I sat for about half the concert, but then I stood up again and loved it. Everybody in the second row left sometime during the set and now everyone was standing ... good riddance to them.
Anyway ... again, there I was with the whole fucking Tedeschi Trucks Band playing and singing their hearts out right on front of me. They opened with an incendiary vocal by Mike Mattison, who came down off his riser for that. Susan took most of the leads from there, though Mark Rivers got one late in the set and one was a duet between Mike and Alecia Chakour. As mentioned, Kofi Burbridge was just excellent, stamping every song with his powerful organ fills. I could mention everybody in the band, they were all playing fantastically.
But as you might imagine, this was another transcendent experience in a large part because of Derek Fucking Trucks. I'd seen him play many times, but this time he was just 20 feet in front of us and his powerful technique and volume were dominating our world. He's a bit of a stone face when he performs, but on this night we were close enough to see the glances he shot around the stage to keep his band together, everyone on the stage was hanging on his little winks, nods, and quick smiles.
As mentioned before, they were determined to play three nights of non-repeats, and so did a few songs that perhaps could have been rehearsed a bit more. But we loved it, and Susan was delightfully embarrassed when she forgot some words. Dave got a setlist from a roadie at the end, and here's what it says:
Get What You Deserve
Laugh About It
Don't Drift Away
Within You Without You
Just As Strange
Bird On a Wire
The Storm
Color Of the Blues
Key To the Highway
I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free
Leavin' Trunk
Volunteered Slavery
How Blue Can You Get?
Ali
Let Me Get By
Encore:
It Ain't Easy
Space Captain/Delta Lady
Here's an excellent review of the show, and I think that's my profile blocking the camera in his pictures. Good!
Confabbed with people who wanted to tell me what a jerk that guy had been, got the setlist, and finally pushed our way out through the cramped lobby and up Hamilton Place. Not far back to the garage, and got home and in bed by midnight.
Sunday, November 20, 2016
Del and Dawg In Beverly
Geez it's been a horrible year in several ways, including in the number of fantastic musicians we've lost, most recently Leon Russell, Leonard Cohen, and Mose Allison. One universe-class musician we still have with us is Del McCoury, and when we heard back in August that he'd be playing at the newly-refurbished Cabot Theater in Beverly on Saturday, November 19th with another incredible (and elderly) musician, David Grisman, we got tickets immediately! 4th row center, that is.
Dave was working downtown but showed up towards the end of the afternoon. We headed out for the North Shore in plenty of time, but I then realized I'd forgotten the tickets ... though I realized it before we'd even gotten to 128 it still took us 45 minutes or so to go back and get them. Whatever, we still were in time to grab a table at Gulu-Gulu in Salem and have a fine dinner and couple of beers.
Then headed up over the bridge to Beverly, found the Cabot (we'd never been there before), and found a parking space on a nearby suburban street. Grabbed another beer from their bar and had a little time to admire the handsome theater before the guys came out and lined up right in front of us, the great Del McCoury with his guitar to the right as we looked at them, and David Dawg Grisman on the left, of course with a beautiful mandolin. They then proceed to be as fantastic as you might expect.
They opened with Feast Here Tonight, did East Virginia Blues, Toy Heart, and just ripped off fantastic tune after fantastic tune. Hearing Del McCoury sing is literally incredible ... it's hard to believe that a person can do that. But to see him do it right in front of you forces you to believe.
Grisman was great on vocals and his touch on the mandolin is unique. There's a style named after him, for Dawg's sake. But as wonderful as he is, to see Del sing was the most magical aspect of the night. They did two relatively short sets, and as I say, pushed the bar higher and higher, They climaxed with Dark Hollow, which of course Del sang with the loneliness, bravado, and character you'd expect. His tempo and his precise ability to hit any note ever invented is spectacular.
Great Saturday night, and then Dave drove home. A car in front of us was cut off and almost turned over by another car swerving for an exit on 128. We stopped and they were ok; Sarah called 911 and the State Police were soon there, though the guy who did it had driven off.
Dave was working downtown but showed up towards the end of the afternoon. We headed out for the North Shore in plenty of time, but I then realized I'd forgotten the tickets ... though I realized it before we'd even gotten to 128 it still took us 45 minutes or so to go back and get them. Whatever, we still were in time to grab a table at Gulu-Gulu in Salem and have a fine dinner and couple of beers.
Then headed up over the bridge to Beverly, found the Cabot (we'd never been there before), and found a parking space on a nearby suburban street. Grabbed another beer from their bar and had a little time to admire the handsome theater before the guys came out and lined up right in front of us, the great Del McCoury with his guitar to the right as we looked at them, and David Dawg Grisman on the left, of course with a beautiful mandolin. They then proceed to be as fantastic as you might expect.
They opened with Feast Here Tonight, did East Virginia Blues, Toy Heart, and just ripped off fantastic tune after fantastic tune. Hearing Del McCoury sing is literally incredible ... it's hard to believe that a person can do that. But to see him do it right in front of you forces you to believe.
Grisman was great on vocals and his touch on the mandolin is unique. There's a style named after him, for Dawg's sake. But as wonderful as he is, to see Del sing was the most magical aspect of the night. They did two relatively short sets, and as I say, pushed the bar higher and higher, They climaxed with Dark Hollow, which of course Del sang with the loneliness, bravado, and character you'd expect. His tempo and his precise ability to hit any note ever invented is spectacular.
Great Saturday night, and then Dave drove home. A car in front of us was cut off and almost turned over by another car swerving for an exit on 128. We stopped and they were ok; Sarah called 911 and the State Police were soon there, though the guy who did it had driven off.
Sunday, November 13, 2016
DSO At the Calvin Theater
It was a bit of a depressing week … in a depressing year in politics and popular culture. So we figured what the heck, lets’ go see DSO in Northampton on Saturday, 11/12 and cheer up a bit!
Made some plans and headed first to Mt. Tom State Reservation in Holyoke on a slightly chilly but beautiful, blue Fall day. I think I’d been skiing at Mt. Tom way back in my teenage days, but the ski slopes there have been closed for years and now it’s a mish-mosh of picnic areas and hiking trails. It’s a beautiful area with great views of the Connecticut River and the surrounding hills, and features 47 of the 80 tree species native to Hampshire County, according to the website.
We made it out there without much traffic in early afternoon, and had a great hike on one of the loops recommended on their site: part of the M&M trail (Monadnock to Metacomet), over the summit of Whiting Peak at 1014', back down the East side of the mountain on the DOC trail, and then back to the road on the level Quarry Trail. That section of the M&M trail is very vertical, but the reward is being on top of some spectacular cliffs, looking Northwest. The ground was thick with fallen leaves and the footing could be very treacherous on the not-level parts, which was most of the hike, but the scenery was fantastic. We saw many young people on the hike, and a couple of old ones, which was the theme of the day.
We then spent some time hanging around Northampton, where we saw many, many people younger than us, a lot of them dragging their kids and/or babies around downtown. Had a beer at the Toasted Owl, some great Middle Eastern food down the street, and then another drink at Foundry before heading over to the Calvin Theater, where the box office was mobbed with young people getting last-minute tickets (the show sold out). They wouldn’t let Sarah bring her camera in, but we’d parked nearby and she took it back to the car.
This was our first time at the Calvin and it’s a pretty little theater, though it shows some signs of age. And the bathroom floors became swamps by the end of the concert, perhaps related to the fact that it was packed with young people drinking and carrying on … which is fine with us. But the sound was not good; sure, it was loud enough, but they seemed to have a hard time ( and to then give up) with un-muddifying it. RobE and RobB managed to sing well and project through the mud, but Jeff Mattson never sounded good. Maybe he was having a bad vocal night (though his leads were great), but I think the real culprit was the sound in the theater, which is narrower and has a lower ceiling than (e.g.) the Wilbur or the Capitol. At the end when RobE rambled on about the show they covered and the filler they were about to do at the end of the night, we could barely make out what he was saying.
And I’ll have to say that the setlist they did was a little disappointing. Here it is:
First set:
Second set:
OK, a little disappointing with Touch, We Can Run, and some uninspired playing. But in all it was a lot of fun. I’ve never not had fun at a DSO concert, and one of the great things was the crowd was going nuts, dancing and freaking out through the whole thing. There was not a depressed person in the house!
As mentioned, Jeff pulled off some great leads, RobE was trying as hard as he could on the vocals, and RobB is always great. Lisa didn’t appear at all, which was a little disappointing too, but what are you gonna do? Not every DSO show can be Europe ’72 or Boston ’69. Highlights to me were a great Minglewood, a very good jam in the second part of Help, and a fine Man Smart that had everyone dancing.
I was texting Dave and he figured out the show early: Brendan Byrne Arena, 1989-10-14. I told him, no wonder they sound like they’re playing in a hockey rink! I think every Saturday show should end with Saturday Night, so that made me happy, as well as the encore of Black Muddy River, a song I love, and the filler of Tom Thumb and Second That Emotion. Skip sang Tom Thumb woodenly (this must be sung by the bass player), but threw in “started off on Diet Coke” and “I’m going back to Massachusetts” which got quite the roar … we’ll keep our universal health care and marriage rights here (and we’ve just legalized marijuana), even if the rest of the country changes.
Took a bit of doing to push our way out through the crowd a few minutes before midnight; everyone was having so much fun they didn’t want to leave! Sarah drove us back and even though the traffic remained light it was a long haul. Got to bed just before 2:30.
Made some plans and headed first to Mt. Tom State Reservation in Holyoke on a slightly chilly but beautiful, blue Fall day. I think I’d been skiing at Mt. Tom way back in my teenage days, but the ski slopes there have been closed for years and now it’s a mish-mosh of picnic areas and hiking trails. It’s a beautiful area with great views of the Connecticut River and the surrounding hills, and features 47 of the 80 tree species native to Hampshire County, according to the website.
We made it out there without much traffic in early afternoon, and had a great hike on one of the loops recommended on their site: part of the M&M trail (Monadnock to Metacomet), over the summit of Whiting Peak at 1014', back down the East side of the mountain on the DOC trail, and then back to the road on the level Quarry Trail. That section of the M&M trail is very vertical, but the reward is being on top of some spectacular cliffs, looking Northwest. The ground was thick with fallen leaves and the footing could be very treacherous on the not-level parts, which was most of the hike, but the scenery was fantastic. We saw many young people on the hike, and a couple of old ones, which was the theme of the day.
We then spent some time hanging around Northampton, where we saw many, many people younger than us, a lot of them dragging their kids and/or babies around downtown. Had a beer at the Toasted Owl, some great Middle Eastern food down the street, and then another drink at Foundry before heading over to the Calvin Theater, where the box office was mobbed with young people getting last-minute tickets (the show sold out). They wouldn’t let Sarah bring her camera in, but we’d parked nearby and she took it back to the car.
This was our first time at the Calvin and it’s a pretty little theater, though it shows some signs of age. And the bathroom floors became swamps by the end of the concert, perhaps related to the fact that it was packed with young people drinking and carrying on … which is fine with us. But the sound was not good; sure, it was loud enough, but they seemed to have a hard time ( and to then give up) with un-muddifying it. RobE and RobB managed to sing well and project through the mud, but Jeff Mattson never sounded good. Maybe he was having a bad vocal night (though his leads were great), but I think the real culprit was the sound in the theater, which is narrower and has a lower ceiling than (e.g.) the Wilbur or the Capitol. At the end when RobE rambled on about the show they covered and the filler they were about to do at the end of the night, we could barely make out what he was saying.
And I’ll have to say that the setlist they did was a little disappointing. Here it is:
First set:
- Touch Of Grey
- Minglewood Blues
- We Can Run
- Friend Of the Devil (which was the 30DoD song for the day!)
- Mama Tried > Mexicali Blues
- Help On the Way > Slipknot! > Franklin’s Tower
Second set:
- Foolish Heart
- Man Smart (Woman Smarter)
- Scarlet Begonias
- Truckin’ > Jam > Drums > Space > China Doll
- One More Saturday Night
- Black Muddy River
- Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues
- I Second That Emotion
OK, a little disappointing with Touch, We Can Run, and some uninspired playing. But in all it was a lot of fun. I’ve never not had fun at a DSO concert, and one of the great things was the crowd was going nuts, dancing and freaking out through the whole thing. There was not a depressed person in the house!
As mentioned, Jeff pulled off some great leads, RobE was trying as hard as he could on the vocals, and RobB is always great. Lisa didn’t appear at all, which was a little disappointing too, but what are you gonna do? Not every DSO show can be Europe ’72 or Boston ’69. Highlights to me were a great Minglewood, a very good jam in the second part of Help, and a fine Man Smart that had everyone dancing.
I was texting Dave and he figured out the show early: Brendan Byrne Arena, 1989-10-14. I told him, no wonder they sound like they’re playing in a hockey rink! I think every Saturday show should end with Saturday Night, so that made me happy, as well as the encore of Black Muddy River, a song I love, and the filler of Tom Thumb and Second That Emotion. Skip sang Tom Thumb woodenly (this must be sung by the bass player), but threw in “started off on Diet Coke” and “I’m going back to Massachusetts” which got quite the roar … we’ll keep our universal health care and marriage rights here (and we’ve just legalized marijuana), even if the rest of the country changes.
Took a bit of doing to push our way out through the crowd a few minutes before midnight; everyone was having so much fun they didn’t want to leave! Sarah drove us back and even though the traffic remained light it was a long haul. Got to bed just before 2:30.
Sunday, October 30, 2016
Phil Once Again, Armonk part 2
Woke up in the Armonk La Quinta after a nice sleep. Breakfast was open until 10 that morning and we sure didn't want to miss that (sarcasm intended)! The place was pretty full, probably mostly with business-people who spent Friday on the job but left early to get back to Podunk (not Armonk). A bunch of stragglers remained however: a mish-mosh of families on their way to somewhere, elderly folks on their way to somewhere else, and partiers like us who were just stopping in for a spell.
We all hit up the lobby for an American motel breakfast of hard-boiled eggs, make-your-own waffles, and catch as can pastries (good blueberry muffins actually). We sat in the back room, thankfully far away from the blaring FoxTV station, along with a Mexican family and a couple of young black guys who bitched half-heartedly about ho's and then probably went back to their suburban homes. Have you been to America?
OK, time to re-gather in the hotel room and it wasn't long before we were all ready to focus on the excursion we'd planned, to the Butler Sanctuary, just North of Armonk in Mt. Kisco (which is a town). It's so rare to see them in the wild and we were psyched.
Jumped in the car and pulled into the Sanctuary parking lot not too long after that on another lovely Fall day, with a few dark clouds in a mixed overcast, a nippy-but-warm-feeling-inside Fall glow, hints of a languorous idyll hiding among the rocks, and the musty and moldy but bright smell of a full-lunged Autumn day in the woods.
The Butler Sanctuary is right off 684 and was noisy at the parking lot, but straight-away we climbed right up to the hawk observation platform, high above the highway, where we could see Long Island Sound in the distance to the South and a trio of predators circling to the East. We amateur-observed a bit and talked to a couple of late-season official observers; we were far away from the highway and what it represented with just a short climb. We then went downhill and uphill and downhill and uphill past a few dog-hikers and jeez, we loved the place. The light and the mix of trees (ash, beech, oak, and maple, with a few pines and other sorts) were so refreshing and the rock outcroppings, the stone walls, and the roll of the land were just incredible. This place is highly recommended.
We didn't go for the longest walk around the perimeter trails that we had considered, for several reasons, This place is a bit more challenging than you'd think because of the frequency of elevation changes ... you're rarely *not* going up or down. And we weren't as equipped as we might have been for such a woodsy walk. And anyway, we were well aware that in a few hours we'd be dancing all night, and that was really the point of this goddamn expedition, not trying to catch a glimpse of butlers whisking around silver tea sets!!
Got back to the parking lot after a really fun time, and then headed into Mt. Kisco itself to seek out the Mt. Kisco Diner we'd seen mentioned on signs. Turned out it was in the middle of a charming North Westchester town and we got seats after a bit of a wait, and got some VERY large dishes: Chef's Salad, Portabella Grill, and Aruba Wrap. Sarah and Dave got fancy drinks too. We had a fine time there but had to leave the deep-fried green beans behind. Maybe we'll go back there another time when we're looking for good, pricey, American food with a bit of high-calorie whimsy and a suburban ambiance. They actually have a burger served between two grilled cheese sandwiches!?!
OK, back to the Armonk hotel, a bit of catching up with the internet, and then we were off once more to Port Chester to see Jay Blakesberg's show at Garcia's. Jay, of course, is one of the pre-eminent photographic documentarians of the Grateful Dead and other rock artists. We were running a bit late and the Church parking lot was not open to us hoi-polloi (turned out they were having a function that night), but we found a great spot on the street and soon settled into folding chairs at Garcia's (with adult beverages) in plenty of time for Jay's slides.
Garcia's is the Capitol Theater's side-bar, which is open at times that the Theater itself isn't and functions alongside the Theater, sometimes as an overflow for the crowds there. They have their own functions too, and we'd seen that Blakesberg would be presenting a slide-show of his photographs there in the afternoon before the P&F show. Jay walked around nervously in a paisley shirt, but seemed to figure all was ok eventually, and settled into his stool on their small stage.
This was another great time! Jay's done some fantastic rock photography over a long career, and in his rambling, rapid show frames his iconic pictures in his own experiences, including some poignant seventies-teenager moments and some brushes with larger-than-life (they wish) characters like Tom Waits and Bill Murray. About 50 of us were sitting in rows of folding chairs listening to this, and the crowd gradually filled in around the edges as the show went on. Two surprising things were that GD crowds are generally 60-70% male, but the audience at this event was predominantly female. Also, when Jay asked, "Who here was at Fare Thee Well?" well over 50% of the hands went up. I guess we profiled ourselves there.
One fun thing was that Phil and Friends launched into their soundcheck in the middle of the slide presentation. Jay said to the audience, "Want me to go ask Phil to turn it down a bit??" I was so focused on the slides that I didn't pay a lot of attention to what they were playing, but one song you could not help but hear was Nicki Bluhm singing the Jefferson Airplane's Somebody To Love.
Great time and got out of there just in at the right moment to escape the forming crowd and to walk up the few blocks to Kiosko, where we had another delicious, quiet and private meal. Fed the meter (well, the parking ticket dispenser) on the way back, and then figured we might as well go in. They sure searched me thoroughly this time (ok, no cavity inspection) and they made me discard a couple of un-documented tabs of ibuprofen that I had in my pocket. The interior doors weren't open yet so we had plenty of time to kill and we hung out back in Garcia's, where Jay and his paisley shirt were still holding court, Would have liked to talk with him, but he was busy entertaining paying customers.
Before we knew it, it was time for the Saturday show in the Capitol!
We had seats a few rows back and a few seats to the right of where we'd been on Friday. The crowd was late-arriving and we had plenty of time to detour to the smoking area (where I met a guy from Scroon Lake), drink some beer, and watch the pre-show. It soon became apparent that, not only were lots of people in costume, but lots of people were already very fucked up, and they got more fucked up as the night went along. Didn't see any puking, but saw a few people fall down in ways that had to hurt, saw a few people who had no idea where they were, and got bumped into by a number of fellow concert-goers (I was on the aisle).
At one point someone danced or staggered too crazily and launched a beer all over the woman standing in the aisle next to me, getting my right side too. But the worst was the people who were on their phones! We were listening to a fucking concert, sitting in (or trying to stand at) $100 seats, and some idiots spent most of the show on their phones. A woman near me actually tried to stream a video *with sound* while the music was going on. She soon gave it up with a disgusted look. A trio two rows in front of me leaned together and gabbed about some Facebook thread they were participating in, all the while waving their phones around and showering us all with the bright light.
And really just as bad was the fact that all this added up to us feeling cramped and uncomfortable in the theater we had had so many good times in. OK, we could deal with that and a rock-n-roll concert is a rock-n-roll concert. But we had to keep looking around us to see who would fall on us next, and this was not the loosey-goosey mellow good time we'd had Friday night. The music was really just as good, but forgive me if I don't gush about the experience as much.
OK, complaining over! Luther had moved next to Nicki in the middle of the stage and Scott took the spot between him and Jason. They came out at about the same time they had the night before and the crowd roared. They were as well rehearsed as any P&F band, and instantly launched into another excellent opener. We were off!
Jack Straw
I'm a King Bee
High Time
Big Railroad Blues
Bird Song
Somebody To Love
Feel Like a Stranger
Well, the only thing to do was sit down and let the wasted people filter out a bit. There was a guy passed out across the aisle from me, but that kept him quiet. Started down to the smoking area with Dave after a bit, but from the top of the stairs I could see it was a mosh pit down at the bottom, and I bagged. Got a beer successfully at the upstairs bar, even though I had another drunk guy hanging over my shoulder and yelling endearments at the bartendress while I tried to order. Then back to the seats to mellow out for a bit. I think the band realized that they had to keep things moving and they came out after one of the shortest set breaks ever. Dave made it back just in time for...
Deal
Walking Blues
In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed
New Speedway Boogie
The Wheel
Terrapin Station
In the Midnight Hour
Yeeha! This had been such a great experience, but I had to admit to myself that it would be great to get out of that hot and wasted crowd. Phil came out for his donor rap after a bit of a long break. I hope this won't be the last one I hear live. Then they lined up and I called it: Music, sung by Scott and Nicki.
In my mind, one of the things that makes The Music Never Stopped such a great song is the quasi-descant, the "Donna part." Brent, John Mayer, and others have had their shot at it, but what this really needs is a rocking chick singer letting it all hang out. And that's what Nicki did here, just belting out the "There's a band out on the highway" and the "Keep on dancing through to daylight" lines. This was a marvelous end to a marvelous weekend!
We needed a little water and a little rest before struggling out of the theater, but the Cap has a nice flow to it, and the crowd soon thinned out enough for us to exit. We'd had another great time there and though this night was a little difficult, we won't hesitate to show up again the next time Phil's there with an amazing band. How lucky are we to have seen those concerts?
So no butler sightings, that would have made the weekend too perfect. Got back up the street to the car, twisted around to the highway, and got back to Armonk pretty quickly for another good night's sleep after a long day of having fun.
We had seats a few rows back and a few seats to the right of where we'd been on Friday. The crowd was late-arriving and we had plenty of time to detour to the smoking area (where I met a guy from Scroon Lake), drink some beer, and watch the pre-show. It soon became apparent that, not only were lots of people in costume, but lots of people were already very fucked up, and they got more fucked up as the night went along. Didn't see any puking, but saw a few people fall down in ways that had to hurt, saw a few people who had no idea where they were, and got bumped into by a number of fellow concert-goers (I was on the aisle).
At one point someone danced or staggered too crazily and launched a beer all over the woman standing in the aisle next to me, getting my right side too. But the worst was the people who were on their phones! We were listening to a fucking concert, sitting in (or trying to stand at) $100 seats, and some idiots spent most of the show on their phones. A woman near me actually tried to stream a video *with sound* while the music was going on. She soon gave it up with a disgusted look. A trio two rows in front of me leaned together and gabbed about some Facebook thread they were participating in, all the while waving their phones around and showering us all with the bright light.
And really just as bad was the fact that all this added up to us feeling cramped and uncomfortable in the theater we had had so many good times in. OK, we could deal with that and a rock-n-roll concert is a rock-n-roll concert. But we had to keep looking around us to see who would fall on us next, and this was not the loosey-goosey mellow good time we'd had Friday night. The music was really just as good, but forgive me if I don't gush about the experience as much.
OK, complaining over! Luther had moved next to Nicki in the middle of the stage and Scott took the spot between him and Jason. They came out at about the same time they had the night before and the crowd roared. They were as well rehearsed as any P&F band, and instantly launched into another excellent opener. We were off!
Jack Straw
I'm a King Bee
High Time
Big Railroad Blues
Bird Song
Somebody To Love
Feel Like a Stranger
- Nicki was certainly feeling it that night. She had a hippie gown on instead of the blue jeans look and proceeded to belt out the blues all night. First up was a duet with Scott on Jack Straw, with Phil taking a verse too. She wasn't really a convincing Shannon, but whatever.
- Time for more blues and Luther sang a gleeful King Bee, probably more faithful to the original Slim Harpo 50's version than to Pigpen.
- Barry got settled down at the pedal steel next and Phil was anxiously getting the band ready. We watched for a second and agreed, they were about to attempt High Time, without Jerry! They really did an excellent job on this, though there were a few missed cues. Very good cover of a great early Dead song.
- Barry stayed on the pedal steel more for most of that first set, and he and Scott next led the guys through a fast, upbeat version of Big RR Blues. Dave had commented about not being able to hear Jason at times on Friday, but on Saturday he was dominant on a lot of songs, rocking his organ lead here.
- This time they didn't stop ... they just kind of wound down from the country blues, Phil the bandleader made sure they had everything just perfect, and they gently rolled into the Bird Song of death. This was a highlight of the weekend shows to our ears. Nicki was as excellent as she was all night, and the song had exactly the right feel ... floating but in pain.
- OK, time for a rocker. We'd heard Somebody To Love in soundcheck and when they lit into it, everyone on the stage was instantly having as much fun, or more, than anyone in the audience. Nicki got the lungs going here and they crunched right through the Airplane classic.
- Then it was Scott's turn and he was Feeling Like a Stranger! This is a showstopper for him and we were glad that Phil set him up to do it. Very nice first set closer.
Well, the only thing to do was sit down and let the wasted people filter out a bit. There was a guy passed out across the aisle from me, but that kept him quiet. Started down to the smoking area with Dave after a bit, but from the top of the stairs I could see it was a mosh pit down at the bottom, and I bagged. Got a beer successfully at the upstairs bar, even though I had another drunk guy hanging over my shoulder and yelling endearments at the bartendress while I tried to order. Then back to the seats to mellow out for a bit. I think the band realized that they had to keep things moving and they came out after one of the shortest set breaks ever. Dave made it back just in time for...
Deal
Walking Blues
In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed
New Speedway Boogie
The Wheel
Terrapin Station
In the Midnight Hour
- You know, we've heard Deal before, including at three of the four Dead & Company shows we've been to. But it's a great song and they did a nice arrangement of it, Nicki sliding along right through it.
- They didn't bring Bobby out for Walking Blues, but did a fine cover anyway, or maybe in spite of that. Luther was feeling it here and led the guys on a long outro jam, into...
- Most people didn't recognize this right away, but I did with the first sliding notes. Elizabeth Reed is one of the best songs ever in my mind and these guys didn't nail it like the ABB used to, but who could? They did a very nice job though and the Cap crowd was delighted. Some reviewers think this was the most unexpected song of the weekend, but I've always thought this would be right in Luther's wheelhouse and he and Scott really wrung some of the deepest soul out of it, wailing away on twin guitars while Phil and John and Jason thundered in the background. This was one of the pinnacles of the weekend!
- They funked from that right into the groove of Speedway, and Nicki came back out and helped nail the vocals. This maybe wasn't the most soulful Speedway, but was very well played by the whole band. And I realized, this was the fifth of the eight songs on Workingman's that they played that weekend! Can't argue with that.
- They wound down and Phil instantly started up the cadence of Wheel, another of the most excellently played songs of the weekend. Dave observed that they did a lot of tracks from first Garcia too. The crowd tried to get into this but was a little bit off key by that point.
- The musical surprise of the evening for me was Barry Sless. I'd been wishing after the Friday show that he'd just stick to pedal steel, but he had his electric out and was fantastic on it. As Dave said, he did all the little Garcia parts that help make GD songs so great, and this allowed Scott and Luther free rein to add their own personalities to the songs. As with the best P&F combos, they showed potential as well as polish.
- Same juncture in the second set that I talked about last night, when they lit into Help. Would they wind it down now after that Jerry ballad, or would they take it higher? They took it to Terrapin Station, and this sure was a fine one. The three guitars wound around and around that baroque theme and the old man nailed the vocals (with Nicki's and Scott's help), preaching to us about the spiral light of Venus until there was a tear in everyone's eye. Good ol' Phil.
- Tight little Midnight Hour to close, though Luther kind of blew the lines. Oh well, you can't play the blues if you get all the words right I guess.
Yeeha! This had been such a great experience, but I had to admit to myself that it would be great to get out of that hot and wasted crowd. Phil came out for his donor rap after a bit of a long break. I hope this won't be the last one I hear live. Then they lined up and I called it: Music, sung by Scott and Nicki.
In my mind, one of the things that makes The Music Never Stopped such a great song is the quasi-descant, the "Donna part." Brent, John Mayer, and others have had their shot at it, but what this really needs is a rocking chick singer letting it all hang out. And that's what Nicki did here, just belting out the "There's a band out on the highway" and the "Keep on dancing through to daylight" lines. This was a marvelous end to a marvelous weekend!
We needed a little water and a little rest before struggling out of the theater, but the Cap has a nice flow to it, and the crowd soon thinned out enough for us to exit. We'd had another great time there and though this night was a little difficult, we won't hesitate to show up again the next time Phil's there with an amazing band. How lucky are we to have seen those concerts?
So no butler sightings, that would have made the weekend too perfect. Got back up the street to the car, twisted around to the highway, and got back to Armonk pretty quickly for another good night's sleep after a long day of having fun.
Saturday, October 29, 2016
Phil Once Again, Armonk part 1
Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results." We keep going down to New York to see Phil Lesh and Friends, and to date we've been delighted by very different results each time, all excellent!
Seems we're doing it more and more often, but it's such a fun trip. We heard Phil was coming back to the Capitol Theater in Port Chester for another Halloween weekend with a group of Friends, and so we got tickets and got a reservation at the hotel on Armonk that's so convenient.
What really made this a must-do thing was that the Friends on Friday, October 28th, were Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams(!), AND Luther Dickinson, AND John Molo and Jason Crosby, AND Barry Sless on pedal steel, AND Nicki Bluhm! The Friends group on Saturday was scheduled to be the same except Scott Metzger would be added instead of Larry and Teresa, Phil's also playing on Monday, Halloween itself, with the former group above, but we'll be back in Massachusetts by then.
So we took Friday off from work, had a morning session with Marina from Seaver's and a couple of contractors, and then threw the beer, sandwiches, and tickets in the car and drove down to Quincy to pick up Dave. Back up to the turnpike (about 9 hours in advance of the start of open road tolling and the demo of the toll booths that have been there since Christ was a child) and headed West and then Southwest, starting with rain and finally sunny skies on a beautiful mid-Fall day, into and at last through the middle of Connecticut, driving with massive amounts of traffic the whole way, but moving quickly.
Got to the La Quinta in Armonk finally ... it really was pretty quick ... you can sneak up on Port Chester this way. Checked into a nice first-floor room, and got psyched for the concert. Got saddled up around 5:30 and fought more bad traffic down to a crowded Port Chester.
Our favorite parking lot is under different ownership and was not open, so we turned around and headed down the hill to the Church parking lot, which was the same price and just as close. Up to Kiosko for another Mexican meal that couldn't be beat, though the waitress (not our normal one) almost forgot our drinks. Same old routine ... checked out Shakedown Corner after that, which was packed with people but not much merchandise, and then into the theater at last.
Are we crazy to eat at the same place after driving all the way down there, and to retrace the same footprints? Some would say yes, but we all say no. This is the routine that we've lucked into (Kiosko is so excellent!) and that we follow. Our favored parking lot folded and we had to change ... which was fine ... and we're going to sour eventually on Kiosko and/or it will go out of business. But at that point we'll be glad to let fate push us in another direction, to another restaurant or to a different routine. We don't need to struggle with fate.
We'd seen the poster for this show online, a proud-to-be-Headless Horseman outlined against a Nightfall of Diamonds, and Dave had to have that. And they had the same motif on t-shirts! Sarah and I both opted for that. Up the lovely stairs, grab a beer, and then to our seats, which were dead center in the third row of the balcony. We love the Capitol!
The had their loop of The Skeleton Dance playing in one pair of alcoves, and a new loop of the silent film Nosferatu in the center alcoves ... and lots of swirling lights and trippy patterns of course. Hit the smoking area right before 8, and weren't too disappointed when they didn't come on until 8:25 or so. Sitting in the balcony and enjoying the pre-show can be groovy.
The lineup was Jason far left, then Luther, then Larry ... the two stacks of guitar amps very close to each other, then Teresa, John behind her, Nicki to her left, then Phil with his control center of stuff (though curiously fewer speakers than we'd ever seen him with), then Barry to the far right. Both Larry and Barry had other instruments they could pick up; Larry played his cittern a bit, played his mandolin a bit too, and also played a wonderful fiddle (it looked so small to us?!?). And Barry ended up playing his electric guitar most of the night instead of the pedal steel he started on. Teresa also picked up her acoustic for one song.
But, to leave the narrative for a bit, this was mainly about all of the band excelling on their main instruments, not about versatility or varied instrumentation (though those were featured of course). It was delightful to see that Luther was having SUCH a good time playing with Larry Campbell ... who could not enjoy playing with Larry Campbell? Time after time the two of them, right next to each other, faced off and let it rip and just *dominated* the song. Or should I say, they tried to ... but just across the stage was the firm of Lesh and Molo and they weren't taking a back seat to anyone. As before when we've seen Phil & Friends, Mr. Lesh was leading the band and was easily and gracefully playing better then anyone else on stage.
And as before, though I was so drawn in by the other excellent musicians, I kept forcing myself to turn back to Phil and listen to what he was laying down, which remains the most incredible music I've ever heard ... 45 or so years after I first heard it. Maybe it's feeling myself get older this Fall, but I could see exactly how old Phil was, and ways in which he seemed older than he was even last March. He was just a hair more stooped and a hair more of an aged, dignified, scarecrow inside his blue jeans and long-sleeved shirt. An incredible man who plays with the old forces, but a skinny guy getting smaller. How long will he keep on doing this? I was very glad we were back at the Cap, back watching and listening to Phil.
So what did they play? Well it was a great first set ... here's the list and some notes:
Till the Morning Comes
Peggy-O
Uncle John's Band
Cumberland Blues
Rollin' and Tumblin'
River Deep, Mountain High
Sugaree
The Capitol that night was delightful, especially since there were a couple of empty seats around us and we had more room to relax and dance. I'd checked the day before and some seats were still available, which had not been the story at other P&F shows we'd been at. Maybe people are distracted by the election.
But anyway, had another fine half-time at the Cap, checking out the smoking area, getting replenished with local beer, and peeing in the stinky old bathrooms. The film loops were going strong, the GD scene was happening all around us, and then the guys came back on after an average-length break. Here's the second set:
Casey Jones
Midnight Highway
Cross Road Blues
Unbroken Chain
Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning
Help On the Way
Slipknot!
Franklin's Tower
Yay!!! We were in the middle of the balcony at the Capitol but standing on the top of a mountain in our own way, or in our own minds. We'd just seen and heard some incredible stuff and were still in that bubble. As I've said before, I hope that bubble will always surround me when I need to call it up ("Phil Power, now!!!").
We were hoarse and tired but made as much sound as we could and soon Phil came back out and did a perfunctory Donor Rap. Then the guys came back out, Nicki stepped up to the mike, and Phil started into the groove. They did Turn On Your Lovelight for an encore! This was one of the most unexpected GD encores ever. Maybe Nicki didn't get as graphic as Pig at his peak, but maybe that's a blessing.
Anyway, we loved it and the whole Capitol was swaying and shouting and moving in time. A wonderful end to a wonderful night!
OMG, time to sit down and take a few moments before getting out of there. Back down the lovely stairs after a few minutes rest, and then followed the crowd out onto the street. Not too far to the car, and then not too far back up North to Armonk, where our nicely-sized, quiet room was waiting for us. One more beer, checked internet stuff, and then we all fell into a sound sleep.
Pictures from Sarah here!
Seems we're doing it more and more often, but it's such a fun trip. We heard Phil was coming back to the Capitol Theater in Port Chester for another Halloween weekend with a group of Friends, and so we got tickets and got a reservation at the hotel on Armonk that's so convenient.
What really made this a must-do thing was that the Friends on Friday, October 28th, were Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams(!), AND Luther Dickinson, AND John Molo and Jason Crosby, AND Barry Sless on pedal steel, AND Nicki Bluhm! The Friends group on Saturday was scheduled to be the same except Scott Metzger would be added instead of Larry and Teresa, Phil's also playing on Monday, Halloween itself, with the former group above, but we'll be back in Massachusetts by then.
So we took Friday off from work, had a morning session with Marina from Seaver's and a couple of contractors, and then threw the beer, sandwiches, and tickets in the car and drove down to Quincy to pick up Dave. Back up to the turnpike (about 9 hours in advance of the start of open road tolling and the demo of the toll booths that have been there since Christ was a child) and headed West and then Southwest, starting with rain and finally sunny skies on a beautiful mid-Fall day, into and at last through the middle of Connecticut, driving with massive amounts of traffic the whole way, but moving quickly.
Got to the La Quinta in Armonk finally ... it really was pretty quick ... you can sneak up on Port Chester this way. Checked into a nice first-floor room, and got psyched for the concert. Got saddled up around 5:30 and fought more bad traffic down to a crowded Port Chester.
Our favorite parking lot is under different ownership and was not open, so we turned around and headed down the hill to the Church parking lot, which was the same price and just as close. Up to Kiosko for another Mexican meal that couldn't be beat, though the waitress (not our normal one) almost forgot our drinks. Same old routine ... checked out Shakedown Corner after that, which was packed with people but not much merchandise, and then into the theater at last.
Are we crazy to eat at the same place after driving all the way down there, and to retrace the same footprints? Some would say yes, but we all say no. This is the routine that we've lucked into (Kiosko is so excellent!) and that we follow. Our favored parking lot folded and we had to change ... which was fine ... and we're going to sour eventually on Kiosko and/or it will go out of business. But at that point we'll be glad to let fate push us in another direction, to another restaurant or to a different routine. We don't need to struggle with fate.
We'd seen the poster for this show online, a proud-to-be-Headless Horseman outlined against a Nightfall of Diamonds, and Dave had to have that. And they had the same motif on t-shirts! Sarah and I both opted for that. Up the lovely stairs, grab a beer, and then to our seats, which were dead center in the third row of the balcony. We love the Capitol!
The had their loop of The Skeleton Dance playing in one pair of alcoves, and a new loop of the silent film Nosferatu in the center alcoves ... and lots of swirling lights and trippy patterns of course. Hit the smoking area right before 8, and weren't too disappointed when they didn't come on until 8:25 or so. Sitting in the balcony and enjoying the pre-show can be groovy.
The lineup was Jason far left, then Luther, then Larry ... the two stacks of guitar amps very close to each other, then Teresa, John behind her, Nicki to her left, then Phil with his control center of stuff (though curiously fewer speakers than we'd ever seen him with), then Barry to the far right. Both Larry and Barry had other instruments they could pick up; Larry played his cittern a bit, played his mandolin a bit too, and also played a wonderful fiddle (it looked so small to us?!?). And Barry ended up playing his electric guitar most of the night instead of the pedal steel he started on. Teresa also picked up her acoustic for one song.
But, to leave the narrative for a bit, this was mainly about all of the band excelling on their main instruments, not about versatility or varied instrumentation (though those were featured of course). It was delightful to see that Luther was having SUCH a good time playing with Larry Campbell ... who could not enjoy playing with Larry Campbell? Time after time the two of them, right next to each other, faced off and let it rip and just *dominated* the song. Or should I say, they tried to ... but just across the stage was the firm of Lesh and Molo and they weren't taking a back seat to anyone. As before when we've seen Phil & Friends, Mr. Lesh was leading the band and was easily and gracefully playing better then anyone else on stage.
And as before, though I was so drawn in by the other excellent musicians, I kept forcing myself to turn back to Phil and listen to what he was laying down, which remains the most incredible music I've ever heard ... 45 or so years after I first heard it. Maybe it's feeling myself get older this Fall, but I could see exactly how old Phil was, and ways in which he seemed older than he was even last March. He was just a hair more stooped and a hair more of an aged, dignified, scarecrow inside his blue jeans and long-sleeved shirt. An incredible man who plays with the old forces, but a skinny guy getting smaller. How long will he keep on doing this? I was very glad we were back at the Cap, back watching and listening to Phil.
So what did they play? Well it was a great first set ... here's the list and some notes:
Till the Morning Comes
Peggy-O
Uncle John's Band
Cumberland Blues
Rollin' and Tumblin'
River Deep, Mountain High
Sugaree
- Fantastic opener, showing some of their best cards right from the start. Larry and Teresa sang this so sweetly and Barry Sless picked a perfect pedal steel. Perhaps "You're my woman now, make yourself easy" is anachronistic wording, but people with their minds open get the point; this is about the kind of mutual support we all need.
- Another fantastic Peggy-O from Phil and L&T (Larry on cittern). Phil was so eager he sang the "I would marry you" verse and in the middle of it chuckled at himself ... he'd stolen Teresa's part! She tried not to give him mean looks.
- So these guys just hit us with the good stuff right off the bat. Larry got out his mandolin, Nicki took a couple of verses, and they played another sparkling UJB and then let Larry and Luther just jam the fuck out of it. We were up in center balcony, dancing our asses off.
- And they jammed and jammed and all of a sudden were playing Cumberland! Barry had switched to electric guitar somewhere in there and the leads and overlays and rhythmic chording flowed back and forth between Barry, Luther, Larry, and or course Jason, who was tinkling the (electric) piano so daintily I can't believe it wasn't a melted mess.
- Luther's turn next and he got after it with no hesitation. He pulled out the tin-can-and-strings guitar we'd seen him play at GRF and proceeded to howl the Muddy Water blues, and I mean howl. He sang a few verses into the tin can and brought us all closer to the center of an echoing blues vortex. Larry had the little violin out for this and tried to match Luther's funkiness.
- And then they stopped for a short rest, Phil nodded at the players who would start the next song, Teresa turned to the mike, and she, Larry, and Phil hit it: "When I was a little girl I had a rag doll...." We'd seen them do this before in the middle of Dark Star(!), but this time it was a stand-alone and the guys dragged it out and out. She sang the "like a flower loves the Spring" bridge twice after long jams, and she could have done it several times more to my ear.
- Dave observed that this night (and the next) were a bit unusual for P&F sets in that they featured many separate songs more than free-flowing jams. Perhaps that was because they had so many people on stage and wanted to be sure the individual talents were not swept away. Another observation was that Phil likes a lot of guitars on stage. Some of these songs would definitely have been more vivid if they'd just had Luther/Larry with Barry on steel, or Luther/Barry with Larry on fiddle/mando, or whatever. Sometimes the tumultuous river of guitar sounds was excellent, as in Crossroads (see below) or Sugaree, and sometimes it was a bit over the top.
- Did someone say Sugaree? Nicki stepped up for this and did a great duet with Luther, but Holy Fuck, this became an amazing guitar showcase. Sugaree has been played over and over, but rarely with this degree of rhythm, soul, and searing guitar blues.
The Capitol that night was delightful, especially since there were a couple of empty seats around us and we had more room to relax and dance. I'd checked the day before and some seats were still available, which had not been the story at other P&F shows we'd been at. Maybe people are distracted by the election.
But anyway, had another fine half-time at the Cap, checking out the smoking area, getting replenished with local beer, and peeing in the stinky old bathrooms. The film loops were going strong, the GD scene was happening all around us, and then the guys came back on after an average-length break. Here's the second set:
Casey Jones
Midnight Highway
Cross Road Blues
Unbroken Chain
Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning
Help On the Way
Slipknot!
Franklin's Tower
- Casey Jones is a great song, though at times it has become an embarrassing and rote druggy sing-along. And it was an awesome second-set opener, with Nicki giving it her laid-back hippie blues treatment and Larry playing some great guitar. This needs a strong lead, and Larry did it like you wouldn't believe.
- Midnight Highway is another song Larry and Teresa kill (Larry wrote it with Julie Miller) ... this was *the* earworm from the show when I reminisce.
- In my mind, the next song was Crossroads, because Clapton's version (and spelling) is basic to my appreciation of this kind of art. But this was something different, and was long, encyclopedic, lyrical, etc. Luther and Nicki again paired off for the blues and perhaps didn't get to the furthest reaches of the song, but they, and the whole band, took us pretty far.
- And then one of the quintessential Phil Lesh songs. Don't know what to say about Unbroken that I haven't said before. There's such an incredible layer of rich bass sounds in this song, room for virtuoso drumming, melody lines to bite on, and a beautiful vocal line, which Phil falls right into.
- And then Teresa came back out for Trimmed and Burning! I've gushed before about her talent at shouting out this song, and this was as excellent a rendition as I've heard her do. We were gobstruck at getting River Deep and Lamps on the same night!
- Well jeez, it was getting a little late. At other GD concerts we've been to, this point of the second set has then led to some varied results, mostly excellent. We were just beginning to think that and then they struck those chords...
- Help On the Way, sung by Nicki. Nicki's a tall woman with long dark-brown hair and was wearing tight blue jeans and a big Stetson that night. She sang those great words ("Cause I love what I love and I want it that way") with a little shuffle.
- Fantastic Slipknot!, with lots of jamming, and then a short and sweet Franklin's.
Yay!!! We were in the middle of the balcony at the Capitol but standing on the top of a mountain in our own way, or in our own minds. We'd just seen and heard some incredible stuff and were still in that bubble. As I've said before, I hope that bubble will always surround me when I need to call it up ("Phil Power, now!!!").
We were hoarse and tired but made as much sound as we could and soon Phil came back out and did a perfunctory Donor Rap. Then the guys came back out, Nicki stepped up to the mike, and Phil started into the groove. They did Turn On Your Lovelight for an encore! This was one of the most unexpected GD encores ever. Maybe Nicki didn't get as graphic as Pig at his peak, but maybe that's a blessing.
Anyway, we loved it and the whole Capitol was swaying and shouting and moving in time. A wonderful end to a wonderful night!
OMG, time to sit down and take a few moments before getting out of there. Back down the lovely stairs after a few minutes rest, and then followed the crowd out onto the street. Not too far to the car, and then not too far back up North to Armonk, where our nicely-sized, quiet room was waiting for us. One more beer, checked internet stuff, and then we all fell into a sound sleep.
Pictures from Sarah here!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)