I can't believe it has been 19 years since we lost Stevie. I don't remember the exact date, but I do remember where I was when I heard the news. What struck me was how cruel life can be. He cleans up his life and is beginning to peak when an accident cuts it all short. I never got to see him live (there was always next tour) and I will regret that forever. I still listen often and you hear him in so many players today. Now my son is a fan and I suspect that when he has one his son may be listening.
Stevie Ray Vaughan. One for the ages. Rest in Peace.
Buddy Guy & B.B. King at the Capital One Bank Theater at Westbury August 29, 2009
Buddy Guy was in fine form last night and he was pretty much focused for the entire set. He has the tendancy to wander a bit but he played some killer riffs and the volume was UP. None of that quiet noodling that he has done in the past. Hoochie Coochie Man > Love Her With a Feeling > She's 19 Years Old absolutely killed. Drowning on Dry Land was played from out in the crowd to the delight of those around him. Buddy's former guitarist Scott Holt joined him for Somebody Else is Steppin' In... trading licks and generally tearing things up. The crowd ate it up. This is Buddy Guy the Legend. If you haven't seen him yet you need to and at 73 let's hope you have many more opportunities to come. I'll be there.
What can you say about B.B. King that hasn't been said. The King of the Blues is a national treasure. At 83 (almost 84) he's slowing down but his voice is still in fine form and he still plays a little guitar with Lucille. The band is tight and professional. Every once in a while he fires off a little run and you remember...this is B.B. King!
A great night featuring two blues legends. Catch them while you can.
From allmusic.com Review by Jeff Tamarkin Jimmy Herring has long been the lead guitar go-to guy on the jam band scene, and his credentials read like a veritable who's who within that niche: he's been heard with Widespread Panic, Phil Lesh & Friends, the Allman Brothers Band, Aquarium Rescue Unit, even the Dead (post-Jerry Garcia, of course). It may come as a surprise to aficionados of those bands, then (or maybe not, given Herring's chops and proven versatility), that Lifeboat — Herring's first solo album — sports ten tightly arranged instrumental tunes (six of them written by Herring) and leans toward jazz-fusion-esque showpieces (that course set definitively on the funky opener, "Scapegoat Blues," with its shifts in time signature), tastefully constructed blues, and displays of ethereal atmospherics and not the endurance-test rock of the above-named bands. Working with the basic lineup of Oteil Burbridge on bass and Jeff Sipe on drums, with Kofi Burbridge of the Derek Trucks Band on piano for all but the first track (he also plays flute on several tracks), Herring also opens up the proceedings to an A-list of guest players who include soprano saxophonist Greg Osby, slide guitar whiz Derek Trucks, Matt Slocum on various keyboards, and others. The two tracks that feature Trucks, the back to back "New Moon" and "Lifeboat Serenade," are, not surprisingly, guitar feasts to be savored — hearing Herring and Trucks in tandem is always a treat and they're in their element on these midtempo ballads that leave plenty of space for personal expression. Herring shows restraint where other guitarists would show off, and that economical approach — which isn't to say he doesn't dazzle when it's called for — serves the music well. Although the set flirts with genre jumping, the closer Herring and friends get to true jazz, the more gleeful they seem. Osby livens up both the old Disney favorite "Jungle Book Overture" and Wayne Shorter's "Lost," and the remake of Aquarium Rescue Unit's "Splash," which closes this set, is pure enough to land these guys a booking not only at Bonnaroo but at Blue Note.
I have to start out by saying that the Brothers were great at the Beacon in March. I didn't plan on going as they were really starting to get into a rut and I was getting bored. I've seen them a couple of dozen times over the past 30 years so I have some basis for comparission. I want to remember them fondly not as a boring old touring band. My son had never seen them so I grabbed some tickets for one of the Friday night shows. I won the concert lottery because that was the second night Clapton played with them. They were on fire before EC, but the second halof was classic rock nirvana. So I gave it another go with some cheap seats for Jones Beach.
This was pretty much a split decision for me. I got there around 7:30 so I missed some of Panic's set. I've always kind of liked them but never got to see them live so this was indeed a suprise. I've seen Jimmy Herring play with Phil Lesh so I know that he is pretty good, but he is on fire with Panic. His solos were amazing. Sam was dumfounded. Then we got some guest spots with Derek Trucks and Warren Haynes for a few numbers. Great stuff. I have to grab the download from their site and will not miss them on the next NYC stop.
UPDATE: I downloaded the show from the band's web site tonight and upon further review I may not have been kind enough in my words. This was a killer full of great grooves and some superior musicianship. I will be back for more.
Three Candles Worry From the Cradle Tall Boy Blue Indian Hatfield> Impossible> Thin Air> Blackout Blues> Fishwater> Protein Drink> Sewing Machine Ain't Life Grand
Since this was a true double bill, both acts got about 2 hours which is less than a normal show but not too short. The Brothers hit the stage a little after 9:30 and things were pretty good. My bif complaint is song selection. They have a heck of a catalog and it seems like we get a lot of the same songs at Jones Beach year after year. I am sick of Woman Across the River and Rocking Horse (even though Warren killed the solo). In fact Warren Haynes, who I think is one of the all-time greats needs to get away from the Brothers and the Dead for a bit and concentrate on Gov't Mule which is where he really shines. Just my opinion. The setlist was pretty basic, the playing strong but a bit uninspired after the Beacon run, just an OK show. Does anyone else miss Dickey Betts? The best part is Gregg sounds great. Way up in the mix and singing really strong.
DONE SOMEBODY WRONG HOT LANTA AIN'T WASTING TIME NO MORE WOMAN ACROSS THE RIVER MIDNITE RIDER ROCKIN HORSE STATESBORO BLUES REVIVAL STORMY MONDAY ELIZABETH REED (W/ JIMMY HERRING) SOUTHBOUND
Aerosmith have pulled a strike on singer Steven Tyler after he fell off the wagon and went back to heavy drinking – resulting in the fall off stage which led to the band’s US tour being cancelled.
Sources close to the Boston band have revealed Tyler was “partying hard” before he lost his footing and wound up with a broken shoulder. Since then, his bandmates haven’t heard directly from him, and are instead receiving daily email updates from his management – a separate entity from Aerosmith’s management.
A band employee tells the Boston Herald: “Truthfully, he’s a liability for the band. He’s uninsurable because of all the accidents and cancelled dates.”
Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton, Brad Whitford and Joey Kramer are understood to have suspended work on their upcoming album after video and photos of Tyler appeared on the web, showing a gaunt, wasted figure buying alcohol in a liquor.
The source continues: “All of this didn’t happen overnight. The fall was just the final straw. Everyone is very worried about him.”
Rumours within the extended Aerosmith family suggest that Tyler is surrounded by people who “think they’re going to cash in on the guy”.
He signed a personal management deal with UEG who now control communication between the 61-year-old frontman and the band’s own management, Howard Kaufman and Trudy Green. He’s believed to have been persuaded to sell his publishing company recently for an amount considerably less than its long-term value.
It also seems that Perry – who was once a half of the hard-living ‘Toxic Twins’duo with Tyler before sobering up – isn’t waiting for evidence of his bandmate’s recovery. That’s why he continued working on his solo album while the Aerosmith one was postponed.
Now promoting that solo release, Perry has been asked for details of Tyler’s injuries by several media outlets since the tour cancellation. But he’s only been able to make vague statements including: “We’re being told anything from four weeks to two months” and “We don’t really know what’s happening with Steven.”
Anyone who’s read Walk This Way, the warts-and-all story of the band’s rise, fall and second rise, will find the above details worryingly familiar.
You really need to know that this is WWII as only Quentin Tarantino could tell it. There is nothing remotely historical about this movie. In fact it occurs in some alt-history universe. That said it is pure Tarantino film making. The trailers are a pretty good snapshot of the movie, but be aware that much of the film is in German or French with English subtitles. It's a little long at 2 1/2 hours, but I don't think you'll be looking at your watch too often. This one is definitely worth the price of admission, even a full price evening showing.
Oh by the way, to quote another movie...there will be blood.
While the folks were twirlin in tie-dye there was a revolution afoot. And it was comin' from the UK. By the end of the year the idealism of the "hippie"movement would be dead and buried at Altamont. Maybe that was ok in retrospect. Things were about to get interesting...
Of course, the Beatles and Apple, Inc. have had a tumultuous legal history, and recently George Harrison's son Dhani Harrison was quoted in Blender as saying he didn't feel that the iTunes Store's per-song charge was a fair price for Beatles songs. He also mentioned that the remaining members of The Beatles were looking into creating their own website for digital downloads. Given the shaky history of most Beatles business ventures, I wouldn't give that comment a second thought.
Just last month, Sir Paul McCartney told the Guardian that in terms of the Beatles library appearing in iTunes, "The last word I got back was it's stalled at the whole moment, the whole process... I really hope it will happen because I think it should."
Frankly, I think the music world and Apple both need a little magic right now, so I'm hoping to see Steve Jobs, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Dhani Harrison, and Julian Lennon on stage together on September 9th. That would be even better than an announcement of a Mac tablet.
Coming soon to a WalMart near you...KISS. Or rather what passes for Kiss in 2009. Can anyone outside of the 40-something guys in Gene make-up care about this? Folks, they were never good. When I was 14 I thought they were slicker than whale shit, but by the time 15 rolled around I was off into Zep, Aerosmith, Thin Lizzy, Sabbath, etc. By the end of that year I was already aware of the Pistols and the Clash while Gene and the money train were on to their Disco album. You know that this is gonna suck right? I'm talking to you John. You too Larry.
Gov't Mule is excited to announce the release date for their first studio album in three years. "By A Thread" will be in stores on October 27th, 2009 on Evil Teen Records. The album can be pre-ordered here and those of you who pre-order will get an exclusive download of tracks recorded at Gov't Mule SoundChecks over the Summer & Fall tours (this will be available prior to the release date) as well as some special discounts and other offers as we move forward. We apologize for any inconvenience that this delay caused and we look forward to placing the record in your hands this fall.
Head to mule.net, myspace.com/govtmule or facebook.com/govtmule right now to hear "Broke Down On The Brazos", the first track from "By A Thread" featuring the bad-ass guitar work of the one and only Billy Gibbons. Different tracks will be posted over the next few months as we approach the release date. We'll see you on the road this fall!
I don't buy all the I'm sorry bullshit. I don't believe everyone deserves a second chance. I do think that anyone in Philly who runs out and buys a Michael Vick jersey is an asshole. Michael Vick is a reprehensible human being who happens to be able to throw a football. Were you fooled by his performance on 60 minutes?
Ry Cooder - The Ry Cooder Anthology: The UFO Has Landed Hard to classify and way, way too many different albums for me to absorb makes this 2 CD anthoogy the perfect place to go to hear one of the unique talents in american music.
The Mighty Jeremiahs - The Mighty Jerimiahs Foot stompin' blues-gospel. It is Sunday after all.
I've come to the party late with this one. Not a household name and not really something I usually go looking for. I guess they come under some kind of prog heading, or alternative. What I really hear is just some of the most complex sounding albums that I have listened to in a long while. The songs ebb and flow and then just explode. There is a real beauty in the music and also a sense of longing. It's hard for me to describe. The new album drops in mid-September and you can listen to a medley below. Really interesting stuff.
So I was working at an indie store on Long Island a few years back and a promo comes in with a note that says you gotta hear this. So I play it. This was good, heavy rock & roll. No wimpy nu metal. Crunchy guitars, tunes with a little hook to them. Great choruses. The real deal.
I start playing the crap out of this. We get the band in store on the day of release and they just kill. The fans (they had some already from listening in the store)are stoked and we keep on promoting them. I see a few shows and they are just killer live. so what happens? Nada. This should have been a no miss band but the times just weren't right. They released a couple more cd's and broke up. But I still love this first one. Brand New Sin rocked. Big time.
I consider myself a rock fan. Granted, I am an OldRockr so my tastes definitely lean towards those wonderful sounds of the 70's. Old guy classic rock and blues for the most part. So I was reading the new Classic Rock and they had a little story on Bigelf. It sounded like I may like it so I gave it a listen. I have to say Wow! Bigelf is kind of different. I guess they are a Prog band, but it is much more than that. I hear loads of 70's influences like Bowie, Queen, some Sabbath, Rush, Yes and believe it or not even some Beatles influences all mixed up with some Pink Floyd to bind it together. This isn't Dream Theater prog metal. It's way more interesting, to me at least, than most of the new things I've heard lately. Very cool stuff.
Check out the video for Money, It's Pure Evil
Here' an electronic press kit.
I wish I had heard this before I took my son to Dream Theater last week. I would have gotten there early and I would have actually enjoyed something. I will be looking forward to their next NY dates.
If drowning out the opposition's voice is "un-American" as Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Hoyer say, doesn't that go in direct contradiction to how they have dictated the health care legislation that is at the center of the debate. The House has worked to exclude any and all differing opinions. The bill has not bi-partisan support because that support should be more than a rubber stamp of approval. I do think there needs to be changes, but not in secret and not as designed by a few on the far left fringe of our country. The Speaker is a far off base as former VP Dick Cheney. Most of the country lives in the center, not on the fringes.
As for the President's Town Hall meeting today, it took this long before he addresses the concerns of those who have insurance? The group that is in the over whelming majority in this country? I fear he has over valued his "mandate". This is the same kind of tactic used by the Clinton administration and it just doesn't play with most Americans.
Let's hope that there is a real debate that includes the voices and opinions of all, not just those on MSNBC.
I'm most definitely grounded in the blusier side of rock music. I'm not a metal guy, although some of it appeals to me, and I certainly am not into the hair bands of the 80's. For me, it's always been about classic rock bands like Led Zep, the Who, the Stones, Bad Co., well you get my drift. Another band from the day that I really enjoyed was Free. Paul Kossoff was the guitarist and Back Street Crawler was his first "solo" album. I say "solo" because all the members of Free including Paul Rodgers make appearances on this long forgotten, oft overlooked classic.
The star of the album is Kossoff and his guitar. The original clocked in at around the usual 40 minutes, but there is a recent Deluxe Edition that includes the entire original album and tons of alternates and jams. Most of the time. these kind of release add in what is essentially junk, not this one. The bonus material is amazing and if you are a fan of the classic rock of the 1970's and great guitar in particular you need this. There are several alternates of the killer instrumental Tuesday Morning featuring different styles and the 38 minute Time Away with the late John Martyn is just fantastic. It never gets dull. I don't know how it doesn't lose its way. A killer jam!
You need this. The CD is expensive, but the download at Amazon.com is only $9.97 for 2.5 hours of great music.
“I mean, I always hated CDs. Me and Stanley [Donwood] always hated CDs. Just a fucking nightmare,” he ranted, adding later, “there’s a process of natural selection going on right now. The music business was waiting to die in its current form about twenty years ago. But then, hallelujah, the CD turned up and kept it going for a bit. But basically, it was dead.”
I really like Steely Dan. They were the "way cool" rock band back in the day. The albums were so crisp, so perfect with some really fantastic songs. And the playing was always first rate. I saw one of the Rock & Soul reviews back in the 90's that was a sort of mini-reunion then I didn't get to another show until the last tour. In both cases I was a bit disappointed. They played and sounded great but there was a disconnect with me. Too cool, too perfect. Maybe it just didn't work live.
I was still intrigued by this new tour with them playing an album straight through (Aja, Gaucho or Royal Scam) each of 3 nights and then an internet request night where the audience votes on songs for that nights setlist. Hmmm. Well I passed due to the VERY HIGH ticket price. Good seats were $172-240 which is too much for me. I did luckily get an e-mail last week with Orchestra seats going for $99. I bit and am glad I did.
The show was fantastic. Some will say it is too greatest hits, but I for one loved every minute. They need to play in a theater not in some huge outdoor amphitheater. The sound was great, the band was tight and they looked like they were enjoying this. Aside from most of the songs you would expect we got Dr Wu and Any Major Dude which is a favorite. Just an overall excellent night of music. If you get the chance, check it out.
Steely Dan Beacon Theater August 4, 2009
Teenies Blues (The Band) Aja Hey 18 Peg Dirty Work FM Rikki Don't Lose That Number Home At Last Dr. Wu Any Major Dude Will Tell You Do It Again Love Is Like An Itchin' In My Heart Babylon Sisters Daddy Don't Live In NYC No More Black Cow Josie Don't Take Me Alive Kid Charlamagne Reelin' In The Years My Old School
I just grabbed a copy of this one from a friend in the biz. As usual, Robben Ford is just exceptional on this live CD. His playing is so fluid and well just plain amazing, that it is easy to take him for granted. His studio CD's don't always feature the best songs (Talk to Your Daughter and Handful of Blues are exceptions in my opinion), but you can always count on him live. This CD is no exception.
For Soul on Ten, his fourth and latest album for the Concord Music Group, five-time Grammy nominee Robben Ford is definitely ‘on ten,' playing with the kind of skill and experience that had Musician magazine dubbing him one of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of the 20th Century."
With eight of the ten tracks recorded live over two nights at The Independent in San Francisco last April-just across town from the Fillmore, where the north California native grew up hearing the likes of B.B. King, Jimi Hendrix, Duane Allman, Eric Clapton, Jerry Garcia, Albert King, Jimmy Page, Michael Bloomfield and Elvis Bishop-Soul on Ten captures Ford's unique style, one that combines, yet transcends, his roots in jazz, fusion, blues, soul and rock, distilling the past into the moment, with an eye on the future.
"I wanted to capture that experience of playing live," says Ford of the album, which follows his three other Concord Music Group releases, Blue Moon (2002), Keep on Running (2003) and Truth (2007). "I find it has a lot more impact than a studio recording. Music is a living, breathing thing. Real art is timeless. It doesn't have a beginning and an end. It's all about the present moment."
The album features Robben's road-tested band of the last few years. Athens-born drummer Toss Panos is a musicologist, a student of African percussion and Greek music, who has also played the blues in South Central L.A., bringing a world music perspective to the mix, while L.A.-born bassist Travis Carlton is the 26-year-old son of jazz great Larry Carlton, with whom Ford also played. Organist Neal Evans provides the distinctive B3 on five of the tracks.
The material ranges from the title track and "Nothin' to Nobody," his collaboration with Michael McDonald, from 1999's Blue Thumb album, Supernatural, and "Indianola," his B.B. King tribute, from 2002's Blue Moon, to "There's Never Be Another You" and "How Deep in the Blues (Do You Want to Go)," from 2007's Truth. There are also three brand-new Robben Ford compositions in "Earthquake" and a pair of studio recordings, "Don't Worry About Me" and "Thoughtless," as well as covers of classic Chicago blues numbers in Willie Dixon's "Spoonful" and Elmore James' "Please Set a Date."
"This was about the live experience of playing and hearing music," he explains. "What music is really about is what happens when it's played in front of people. That's when you really understand it. That's what I wanted to capture."
And capture is he does, in only the way Robben Ford can.
"Supernatural" starts with a wah-wah psychedelic guitar interlude before slipping into an evocative jazz-like riff, all of which contributes to the difficulty of pigeonholding Ford's music into a single category.
"What we do isn't constrained by the past, it's informed by the past," insists Robben. "When we play, it's not about what happened before. It's about what's going to happen next."
It's no wonder Ford doesn't want to be pigeonholed. His background is similarly eclectic, having started out touring with blues legends like Chicago harp player Charlie Musselwhite and singer Jimmy Witherspoon, then going on to play with Joni Mitchell as part of Tom Scott's L.A. Express, George Harrison on his ‘70s Dark Horse tour, jazz icon Miles Davis and fusionists the Yellowjackets, as well as rockers Greg Allman and Phil Lesh.
His version of "There'll Never Be Another You" includes an elongated improvisation that touches on Miles Davis at his most spacious, with a Panos drum solo that eventually involves the entire band.
As for his version of Dixon's classic "Spoonful," Robben says: "That's something I've wanted to play for a long time, but I never found quite the right band or arrangement to feel good about it, but it finally came together with this group. It takes a lot of nerve to do a song that was originally done by Howlin' Wolf and then a classic version by Cream. So I did my own thing. I didn't try to imitate anybody."
"Nothin' to Nobody" mutates from R&B to jazz, with a featured bass solo by Carlton and Evans' gurgling B3 organ part.
In tackling Elmore James' "Please Set a Date," Ford combined the song with Jimmy Reed's "You Don't Have to Go" to come up with a hybrid mutation. "I rarely play a straight-ahead 12-bar blues like I did here," he reveals. "I didn't want to cover something everyone's heard. I found the Jeames on a three-volume set from Chess, Chicago: The Blues Today that also included songs by James Cotton and Otis Rush. I just really like this song, but it's half-written. He's faking the lyrics on most of it, so to make it a whole song, I combined it with the Reed song."
About his love for the Chicago blues, Ford says: "There's a lot of creativity, a great variety within that context, a lot of different kinds of songwriting-great drum, bass, rhythm section stuff. For me, these things can't quite be pinned down. There are surprises within the format, if you look for them, which I do."
"Earthquake" is a new song which Ford describes as "a black comedy about the difficulties in maintaining relationships with the demands of a touring musician forced to be away from home much of the time. "I've traveled miles to find you waiting/Waiting for someone I've never been," he sings. "Being a musician's really hard work, debilitating, and pretty awful sometimes."
It's a subject he returns to in "Thoughtless," one of two studio recordings that mark his continued emergence as a singer/songwriter alongside his recognized ability as a guitarist. On these two songs, Ford is joined by keyboardist Larry Goldings, Sheryl Crow bassist Jon Button and sax player Karl Denson.
"‘Thoughtless' is a song about separation and being on the road, with the person you left back home wondering where you are and why you're gone," he says. "It's a lonely road being a musician. But this is what I do. I have to do it."
"Don't Worry About Me" continues the socio-political bent of his last album, Truth, as it points out society's ills, while also acknowledging the urge to disengage: "It's not so bad to be alone/I got nobody bending my ear."
"The war is still going on, and these guys will keep it going as long as they can make money on it," he says of the song's abrupt shift in attitude. "The song says ‘I'm cool, I get the picture, but don't kid yourself. There are some real horrendous things happening on this planet. There's a monster rearing its head.' "
The title to the new album perfectly describes Robben Ford's commitment to his muse. He's at maximum capacity and there's no holding him back.
"I'm still inspired," he says.
One listen to Soul on Ten makes you realize Robben Ford means it.
WASHINGTON – Two of President Barack Obama's economic heavyweights said middle-class taxes might have to go up to pare budget deficits or to pay for the proposed overhaul of the nation's health care system.
Mike Peters is one of the class acts in the music business. Mike was diagnosed with Leukemia and he has started a foundation as a way to give back. Here's a video PSA..
You can find out more about the Love Hope Strength organization by clicking the link. Make a donation or just find out more about them.
It seems to me that if the gov't is trying to improve the environment through this handout then perhaps it should be limited to vehicles that get over, I don't know, maybe 30 mpg. Even better how about 35 or 40. Encouraging people to buy new vehicles that are slightly better on gas than their old ones is a joke. Call it what it is, more cash for the car dealers through increased sales. Too many of the new pieces of the so-called stimulus plans go to small segment of our society. This is just another form of wealth re-distribution. Come to think of it, so are the new health care bills under consideration.
Call your Congressman and Senators and tell them to stop spending your tax dollars in this manner. If they don't get then it's time to vote 'em out.
I can't believe it has been 19 years since we lost Stevie. I don't remember the exact date, but I do remember where I was when I heard the news. What struck me was how cruel life can be. He cleans up his life and is beginning to peak when an accident cuts it all short. I never got to see him live (there was always next tour) and I will regret that forever. I still listen often and you hear him in so many players today. Now my son is a fan and I suspect that when he has one his son may be listening. 
I have to start out by saying that the Brothers were great at the Beacon in March. I didn't plan on going as they were really starting to get into a rut and I was getting bored. I've seen them a couple of dozen times over the past 30 years so I have some basis for comparission. I want to remember them fondly not as a boring old touring band. My son had never seen them so I grabbed some tickets for one of the Friday night shows. I won the concert lottery because that was the second night Clapton played with them. They were on fire before EC, but the second halof was classic rock nirvana. So I gave it another go with some cheap seats for Jones Beach.
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