Saw the Dixie Dregs play at Center Stage here in Atlanta Saturday. It was a blast from the past and Steve Morse is still a monster on guitar. The highlight was at the end when Jimmy Herring (currently lead guitar for Widespread Panic) came out and played a couple of Dregs tunes with the band eventually leading into "Crossroads". Such a treat to see two masters of their craft improvise and have a ton of fun. The sound was not too loud which was a pleasant surprise because of Morse's affiliation with Deep Purple. Center Stage probably seats 1000. Much prefer going to something like this over the upcoming U2 stadium tour with $250 tickets. |
Kiddman, you and I have communicated before regarding the robust musicality of the JBL DD 66/6700. Your keen ears would have appreciated the utterly perfect seating I enjoyed. A most intimate experience with the enormous scale,precision, grandeur and delicacy of one of the world’s great pianos played by an inspired master. Would have been nice to have you there;and enjoy the afterglow. Best regards. Pete |
“Fabulous” concert yesterday, April 22/18, by pianist INON BARNATAN, put on by the Vancouver Recital Society at the melodious Chan Centre,UBC in Vancouver,BC. Musically and intellectually lucid and uplifting. Absolutely masterful playing. He provided an incredible program including Handel,JS Bach,Rameau,Couperin,Ravel,Thomas Ades,Gyorgy Ligeti and Samuel Barber with only 5-8 second breaks in between. The assembly and playing of a musical genius! After intermission, Johannes Brahms Variations on a Theme by Handel Op. 24. Brahms was in the room! Inons relaxed and intimate stage manner;icing on the cake! My seat was AA12. Front row,aligned where the keyboard meets the body of the well worn Steinway. The intimacy of this setting is transfixed in my mind as his face remains melded with the piano. Overall, a most intimate, organic and inspiring moment with a gracious master that all classical piano lovers should seek out. |
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio - Last Evening at my Local Record Store - Plaid Room Records - Loveland, Ohio. Plaid Room has a sister company - Colemine Records who do a lot of new and re-issue soul and funk. Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio is a newly signed band on the Colemine label. They were at Plaid Room to help celebrate Record Store Day 2018. A good time was had by all. The Trio played a really fun set out on the patio. Terry Cole - Colemine Records recorded it and hopefully it will result in a new live album on the Colemine label. We ran into Delvon Lamarr a little earlier in the evening at a local restaurant. Had a nice conversation with him. He seemed like a genuinely nice person and seemed very happy that he was recognized on the street by a fan. |
The Rosanne/John show was all acoustic. She has the most tonally rich/incredible voice! John's acoustic guitar was also the most tonally rich guitar I've ever heard! Two pros....loved it! Thinking about the Gillian/David show on Wed.? Bought my tickets for the Shovels & Rope/ SonVolt show in June...can't wait. |
Last week, 5 day music festival here in Boise, Idaho. https://www.treefortmusicfest.com/ 400+ bands. I went all 5 days. Hours of shows every day. Too many highlites, although two nyc bands, Antibalas &The Muckers were primo. |
@reubent- +1 to everything you said. esp. "any Lyle I can get". In the acoustic shows I've seen, you get a more "personal" experience,. but his Large Band is just a stunning exhibition of musical virtuosity. Most incredible to me was how each individual musician, a "star" in his own right, was always playing in service to the song. The last time we saw the Large Band, there were 13 pieces and a 9 person choir backing Lyle and Justine! One of the best shows I've ever seen. |
@swampwalker - I did enjoy it. I really like Lyle Lovett live. This is the first time I've seen him do an acoustic show. I do prefer the Large Band show, but I'll take any Lyle I can get. He's really funny and engaging. I enjoyed the banter between he and Colvin. I thought Shawn Colvin was pretty good. I saw her last summer, doing a similar show with Steve Earle and I think she was better this time. I thought the few songs where Shawn sang with Lyle were some of the best of the show. |
@reubent- I hope you enjoyed the show. We caught them at the Garde Theater in New London, CT a couple of weeks ago. I'm not a huge Shawn Colvin fan but Lyle is amazing! Saw him with the Large Band last summer and a couple of times in an acoustic show. He is unique, I love his songwriting and his quirky sense of humor. |
John McLaughlin, Jimmy Herring and their bands--separately and then together (playing tunes from the Mahavishnu Orchestra songbook) at the Paramount Theater in Austin, 11/30/17. Supposedly it was Mclaughlin's farewell tour. He's still at the top of his game and it was great to hear him play those great tunes from the 70's again (as well as his newer material). I hadn't heard Mr. Herring before but he is a fine guitarist with a good band behind him. All in all, a good night out. |
King Crimson, Cleveland 11/24/17. A totally awesome show. Last saw them in 1982 at their first US gig after releasing Discipline. Fripp and Levin have lost none of their chops. 3 drummers didn't hurt a bit, either. The hall was the Hard Rock Rocksino. Smaller venue, maybe 1000 or so seats. A great spot to see bands that benefit from smaller places. Recommended! |
@thepigdog - Not only do small venues count, you actually get extra credit for seeing a show in a small venue! This last year I saw Bruce Cockburn in a 200 seat room and I saw Richard Thomson in a 450 seat room. Both shows were incredibly intimate and outstanding. I would always prefer to see a great artist in a small venue over seeing a "mainstream" band in a large arena. However, I did enjoy seeing U2 twice this summer on their Joshua Tree stadium tour...... |
Do small venue (less than 500 seats) count as concerts, most things I see mentioned here seem to be large shows / big sound? if so then we listened and saw Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Dave Alvin at The Bull Run in Shirley Mass 11/3/17. 2 guys playin’, singin’ and tellin’ tales. Had not heard/seen JDG for 15-20 years, saw DA approx 2 years ago. Both were in great form, wonderful selection of old songs. Pretty good venue in a centuries old building. |
Sting at SPAC last week. He is in good voice, I enjoyed the show more than I expected.... I ’m a casual fan of The Police, only have their first 3 LP’s, and Nothing Like the Sun. I have to admit these have collected some dust, with the exception of Zenyatta. Needless to say, I played Outlandos and Regatta since the Sting Concert. I would love to see him with Andy Summers, and Stwewart Copeland. |
I saw dada last night at Southgate House Revival in Newport, KY. Great show. In my book, dada is the best band that never made it big. The Trews opened up for dada. The Trews were awesome! I had never heard of this band. Now I'm a big fan. Interestingly, they were much better live than I would have ever guessed from listening to recordings and watching videos. |
Saw Tift Merritt & friends last night. Always enjoy seeing her live. Her recent lp has taken some time to grow on me. Seeing her perform some of those songs live gave me a much deeper appreciation for them. Her (friends) that comprised her band were fabulous separately and especially playing together. When you experience her live, you feel like she could be your sister, down to earth, no put-ons. |
