The Cookers, a couple years ago. I couldn't ignore a chance to see/hear Billy Harper again.
Unfortunately, they were louder than most Rock bands I've heard and I had to retreat to the lobby for most of the performance.
I spoke to the soundman and he said the group had insisted on that volume at sound-check. Their hearing must be gone!
@br3098:
I recall with great affection my years in Santa Barbara-- '76 - '82. So many venues and so much wonderful music. Oh, for a time machine ! |
Elvis Costello and the Imposters - Saturday 10/18/2021 - Andrew J Brady ICON Music Center - Cincinnati
Great artist, good show, mediocre venue
I'm a big fan of Elvis Costello fan and I've seen him a few times. This was the least-good show of his that I've seen. He was having a hard time with vocals and the setlist was not the greatest. The last half-hour was fantastic, as they always are, ending with "Pump it Up" and "What's So Funny 'bout Peace Love and Understanding". Charlie Sexton was a guest guitarist and was very good, but not featured.
The newly opened Andrew J Brady ICON Music Center was a disappointment. Boring, sterile environment. Felt like it was designed by corporate bean-counters only interested in separating you from your money. And don't even get me starting regarding Ticketmaster fees... |
Tonight, John Hiatt with The Jerry Douglas Band. Music making on a very high level. A master songwriter and stylized vocalist, a band composed of virtuosos, on a level with Jazz musicians. The band changed gears and turned corners like a highly-tuned race car, far above the capabilities of almost all Rock bands. Of course, they are not a Rock band, but they played some passages with as much drive and torque as AC/DC.
And their ensemble playing was infused with dynamic contrasts rarely heard in live music, in any genre. All band members (Jerry of course on dobro, along with an electric guitarist, an upright bassist, and a fiddler) took numerous solos, all very musical (if you have to ask what that means, I can't help you ;-). I love when a soloist plays straight eights against swinging accompaniment, or visa versa. Which they all did. Very hip. |
I saw The Tubes tonight - 10/28/2021 @ The Ludlow Garage in Cincinnati's Clifton neighborhood. This is the third time I've seen them - 1979, 1996-ish and 2021. GREAT, every time. Fee Waybill is 70 years old! Still does "Mondo Bondage" and "White Punks on Dope"! Scary moment tonight. The 8 ft tall Quay Lewd (fee on huge platform shoes) got off balance fell off the stage! Luckily, not injured and keep singing like it was part of the act.
BTW, for any fans, or non-fans, Roger Steen is a monster guitar player. Really fantastic.
Fun, fun music, from back in my day. Could have gone either way. Was really happy that they still got it and seemed to be having a good laugh at their own expense... |
Shovels and Rope - Bare Bones Tour - tonight, 11/19/2021 at The Ludlow Garage, Cincinnati, Ohio
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Greensky Bluegrass, Railroad Earth, and Holly Bowling
9/19/21 @ Red Rocks
Great music and atmosphere. The encore was a real treat; 27 minutes of pure jamming from amazing musicians.
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City Morgue at Irving Plaza with my son. Reminded me of the thrash metal days back in the 80's. Looking forward to NYE at Brooklyn Bowl with Soulive.
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Florida Orchestra, a week ago, playing Auerbach's Icarus, Prokofiev second violin concerto (Hadelich) and Pictures at an Exhibition. Sat in about the 8th row -- closer than I like, but not too too close. Great to hear live music again. The Auerbach was very interesting and made me want to hear it again. Hadelich is as good as they get and that's a fatastically beautifyul concerto. I became familiar with it from a Connoisseurs recording at least 40 years ago, Syeryng performance. And lo and behold, Hadelich plays an ex-Szeryng Guaraneri. May be I just heard it on teh very same instrument!!! And Pictures is Pictures: virtuosic and powerful music, showcasing the entire orchstral palette in the Ravel transcription. The Florida Orchstra is actually a quite fine ensemble -- and this coming from someone who spend their formative orchestra going years hearing Solti, Giulini and many others conduct the CSO..
I gotta say, this concert reminded me just how crappy my actually pretty good but fairly modest system is from the standpoint of The Absolute Sound. In fact, on that measure, lets face it, all of our systems, including super-megabucks ones, suck by that standard, at least as far as orchstral music is concerned. It's often remarked that real musicians are rarely audiophiles. That's why.
Richard
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Houston Symphony, last night, with Helene Grimaud playing Ravel’s Concerto in G. Grimaud is fabulous, and from the second row, I had an exceedlingly clear vantage point to observe her artistry.
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Dylan last night at the Beacon, NYC, with my son. Oh yeah, so great!
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Last that anyone heard of was King Crimson at Anthem in DC back in September. This is rumored to have been their last ever US performance. It was off the charts. No words to describe fully. We were right in the sweet spot. CD of the performance being issued in a couple weeks. Can preorder on Amazon. Check it out.
Masks and proof of vaccination was required.
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Hey jeroboam! Um, isn’t Grimaud’s artistry something one hears?
More generally, I’ve always thought that if the experience of music is improved by the visuals, the music itself is lacking. Seems to me paying attention to what you’re seeing is a way of not paying attention to what you’re hearing. Idiosyncratic view, I know.
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Justin Hayward at Golden State Theater in Monterey. Great show and sound system is much better than Vina Robles!
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This show right here - Kristeen Young, my favorite musical artist, at DNA Lounge in San Francisco 3 weeks ago on April 29....
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OMD last month in Washington DC---fantastic show!
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Steve Hackett and his band at the Celebrity theatre in Phoenix two weeks ago. Wonderful as usual. They really are the band that carries forth the memories of early and mid-period Genesis music, as well as Steve’s own music. It was very emotional.
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Last night - Thursday 6/16/2022 - Steely Dan - Riverbend Music Center - Cincinnati
Took my 18 year old son to see Steely Dan (Donald Fagen and Co.). My son has somehow become a big fan and says it's his favorite band. Can't fault him for that! We bought tickets day of show through Stubhub and got GREAT seats, about 10 rows from the front, center section, and got them for about 30% less than face value.
Show was good, not great. I saw Steely Dan and their last summer tour before Walter passed away (RIP Walter Becker) and this show was not as good. Fagen has aged a bit more, the sound system had some glitches, and the song selection was good, but missed several of our favorites. Also, opening was Snarky Puppy. They were better and more entertaining than I expected. However, last go around, Steve Winwood opened and was fantastic.
So, all in all, glad to spend a hot summer night outside with the crowd listening to good music. Having my son there was the best part of the experience...
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6/18/2022 - Govt Mule - Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas
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Paul McCartney last week (06/16) in New Jersey, MetLife stadium. Springsteen and Bon Jovi showed up to pay their respects to Paul as he turned 80 last Saturday.
More than a concert, this was a spiritual event (for me at least). I had never seen the Beatles and am a huge fan. My expectations were muted as hey, the guy is 80 years old.
Best and most fun concert that I can remember. I felt like a teenager. I'm keeping my MetLife green security wristband :-).
Next week is Steely Dan.
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Little Feat at the Beacon a few weeks ago. They recreated Waiting for Columbus.
A week prior we saw Molly Tuttle in a small church in Montclair. That woman can really play.
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As sad as this seems, I've come to a realization that I might not be attending many/any live shows again. This from someone who lived for this activity. But the last few years, I have skipped sooo many, including last night, a Malpass Brothers show. Maybe its because I'm old, maybe its because I don't enjoy going alone much any longer, maybe its because I have become accustomed to staying ut the last few years with the viral pandemic. The last 10 or 15 shows for which I have had tickets, I mostly skipped. At last the artists received my ticket proceeds?
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Chris Botti at the Ikeda Theater in April. Great acoustics and outstanding performance!
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@rpeluso - I've been experiencing the same thing; so many shows this year that I would have jumped on tickets immediately in another time, I'm just passing on now. Just too wary of a lot of people packed together inside. And I turned 70 last year, so that might be a factor as well.... Not long ago, I'd be good for 30-40 gigs per year.
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09 May 2022
Figaro at Vienna State Opera
The orchestra was loud
Bengtsonn was a ravishing Countess
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Tonight! 9/24/2022 - Joan Osborne - Ludlow Garage - Cincinnati, Ohio
Wow! Fantastic show! That girl has got "it".
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Kansas at Wild Horse Pass Casino in AZ earlier this month. Really good as usual.
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Saw Roxy Music in Chicago on Monday. Wonderful show! St. Vincent opened.
Saw Phish last month in Detroit. Also a great show!
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Robert Plant and Allison Krauss at Marymoor Park in Redmond WA - 8/28/2022.
Excellent show and outdoor venue! An added bonus was Plant and Krauss performing “Rock and Roll”, “The Battle of Evermore” and “When The Levee Breaks” from Led Zeppelin IV.
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Last month, Melody Gardot at Yoshis jazz club in Oakland CA.
What a disappointment.
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Lots of evocative, excellently played street music on the streets of Greece. Played with dash, style, fun and emotion.
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Suede and Manic Street Preachers at the Orpheum Theater in Boston, a couple weeks ago. Two classic British bands that play in front of massive crowds in the UK but are hardly known in the USA. The Orpheum was maybe 1/2 full, but what a show!!
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September, Here Come The Mummies.
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Joe Bonamassa 2 weeks ago in Phoenix. It was my first time seeing him, and boy, that man can raise hell with a guitar! Great experience, and well worth the money. Myself and my concert-going buddy were mightily impressed.
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Just finished 17 days on a bicycle with the last week being an organized ride with concerts every night.
I intended to see 5 of them but long days and heat reduced that to 3, and one of those was cancelled.
Spin Doctors sounded ok and it was fun to hear their hits.
Lynyrd Skynyrd put on a great show with singing mostly by Johnny Van Zant, three guitars (including Rick Medlocke of Blackfoot, Mark "Sparky" Matejka, and Damon Johnson of Thin Lizzy and Alice Cooper), Pete Keys on keyboards and drumming by Michael Cartellone (Damn Yankees). The back up singing by Carol Chase and Stacy Michelle was also solid. They played all the favorites and included heartfelt tributes to USA, our military, police, first responders, and all the former band members including recently passed Gary Rossington. The encore of course was Free Bird.
Unfortunately, the Bush concert was cancelled at the last minute due to a storm with high winds.
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Last thursday, Chris Isaak at Humphries in SD. Smallish outdoor venue with pretty good acoustics. Excellent show.
Jerry
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@carlsbad2 excited…going to see Mr. Isaak this Thurs. at the Uptown in Napa. One of my favorites since the 90’s.
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Shawn Colvin, Sarah Jarosz, and Marc Cohen at the Palace of Fine Arts, SF. Never took notice of Sarah prior and wow was she a surprise. Great mandolin work and songs. The other 2 excellent as always. Great show!
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The Pine Box Boys at Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco about 3 weeks ago.
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@carlsbad2
Chris Issak is always a great show. What a band!
I saw The John Lodge Band last week at the Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix performing Days of Future Passed. Very good overall, and it had some moments of greatness as that album does.
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Trampled by Turtles at Red Rocks.
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Dreamsonics, last month......great bands and a good time.
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George Thorogood, lead up was Robert Cray in Costa Mesa CA. Phenomenal, and huge kudos for anyone at that age who still goes live.
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Billy Strings at Thompson Point, Portland Maine. July 28, 2023. It was fantastic, a great band.
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Fri Aug 4th Danville, CA …The Beatles’ "Rubber Soul" & Wings' "Band On The Run" Complete live on stage w/ Wings' Laurence Juber, John Jorgenson, Jeff Ross & more. Great show with some amazing musicans. Guitar masters doing the Beatles and Wings especialy well.
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Iris DeMent tonight at The Aladdin Theater in Portland, OR. She closed the show with this fantastic song:
https://youtu.be/FikZwgj89HI?t=1
Harmony vocal sung by Emmylou Harris, dobro played by Jerry Douglas.
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Jackson Browne, last week, Ft Lauderdale.
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Eric, Iris is a treasure, you were fortunate to see her, again. I've only been once, and it was magical.
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@rpeluso: As is Jackson, whom I have somehow never heard live. Gotta do that before he or I die.
Iris is very charming live, with lots of self-deprecating humour. Her piano playing is somewhat reminiscent of that of Randy Newman, with those New Orleans chord voicings. And my gawd, what a voice!
Monday night is Kelly Willis, Brennen Leigh, and Melissa Carper at Mississippi Studios.
Hmm, all chicks.😉 Speaking of which, this time Iris had two accompanying musicians along; a redhead playing a beautiful Gretsch 5120 plugged into a Fender Deluxe Reverb---great tone!, and another young woman playing an electric upright bass
And I couldn’t help but noticed that the audience was about 3/4 female. I’m not complaining.😉
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Well fellas, did I see a great one last night!
Kelly Willis, Brennen Leigh, and Melissa Carper, doing a set as a trio on the stage at Mississippi Studios in Portland Oregon. Kelly and Brennen playing acoustic guitars, Melissa an upright bass almost as big as herself, and all three singing solo and in perfect 3-part harmony. And I mean per-fect!
I’ve been a fan of Kelly for decades, and just recently discovered Brennen (her 2022 album Obsessed With The West is a Country Swing project, produced by Ray Benson of Asleep At The Wheel, who serve as her backing band. This Year’s Ain’t Through Honky Tonkin’ Yet was produced by Chris Scruggs, and features a guest appearance by Marty Stuart on mandolin. Both are available on both LP and CD). Melissa I had not yet known about. All three have roots in the South and Midwest, and I believe crossed paths in---where else?---Austin Texas, Texas.
The set was the three of them each singing a song of their own composition, one after the other. Mississippi Studios is an excellent sounding room (capacity 250), as is the Studios’ sound system and the ears of the mixing engineer; not too loud, not too bright or boomy (though the bottom string of the bass was vibrating the walls of the room pretty strongly). Their was lots of humour, and great stories about the origins of each song. Plus, the sight of three chicks in cowboy hats and boots was pretty hot 😉 .
They are making their way across the U.S.A., so catch them if you can. Last night tickets were only twenty bucks, less than I paid for a double shot of Johnnie Walker Black!
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Metallica - 72 Seasons Tour: Two Day pass to an epic, no repeat weekend at MetLife Stadium (Aug 4 and 6). Warm up bands were Pantera on Friday and Five Finger Death Punch in Sunday. It’s going to be a while before I play Metallica on my home system.
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