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Sean Spillane Music Blog

July 16, 2008

Bosstones, Murphys in Pawtucket

Posted by Sean on 5:45 PM | Comments (0)

I went to Pawtucket, R.I., Saturday to catch The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and The Dropkick Murphys in concert at McCoy Stadium and, surprisingly, everything ran smoothly.
I’m not usually a fan of big outdoor events, but whoever put on this concert knew what they were doing. Long waiting periods were easily avoided if you a) hit the ATM before you got to the stadium and b) didn’t feel the need to get in line before the gates opened at 5 p.m.
The only complaint I had was a small one. There was another opening band, the all-girl punk quartet Civet, that was not listed on the show’s Web site. The group was entertaining — and not too hard on the eyes either from my vantage point — but I like to know all of the acts on the bill. This way I can decide whether I want to rush and get into the show or take my time.
Like I said, a small complaint.
After Civet’s set, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones took the stage and made the trip worthwhile. The plaid-clad ska-punk band put on an energetic performance and it is good to see the band back together. Every time I watch “The Jimmy Kimmel Show” on ABC, I feel Bosstones singer Dickie Barrett is wasting himself as the announcer. He belongs on a stage somewhere leading his band.
I had seen the Bosstones once before, at Toad’s Place in New Haven, but an afternoon wedding that day had kept me from seeing the whole concert. Since that day, I have grown to like the band even more, helped along by my friend Pete, who always manages to play a few of the band’s tunes on the jukebox at our local watering hole.
As an added bonus, the Bosstones did a killer cover of The Clash’s “Rudie Can’t Fail.”
In March, I went to see The Dropkick Murphys in the Dorchester section of Boston and swore I would never leave the state to see the band again. Not that I was growing tired of the music, but rather tired of the costs that go with overnight shows to Boston.
That vow lasted four months, thanks to the prospect of seeing a full Bosstones show — and the fact that we weren’t staying overnight in Rhode Island.
The Dropkick Murphys were as fun as usual, but I was ready to leave the stadium before the band even left the stage before the encore. Five hours of standing up was quite enough for my 42-year-old legs and, besides, I have seen the group enough in the past few years so that I didn’t feel like I would be missing anything.
Singer-bassist Ken Casey told the crowd that the show was being recorded for a live CD/DVD, so I can always see the end of the show whenever that comes out.

June 26, 2008

Steely Dan at Chevrolet Theatre

Posted by Sean on 5:13 PM | Comments (0)

Did you ever leave a concert and feel like you’re not quite sure whether you enjoyed it or not?
That’s kind of how felt after Steely Dan’s concert Wednesday night at the Chevrolet Theatre in Wallingford. There were enough hits mixed into the set list to keep me happy, but there also were just enough lesser-known songs to keep it from registering as a “great” concert in my mind.
Admittedly, I’m a casual fan of Steely Dan. I have the group’s albums, but usually only reach for a greatest-hits collection when I’m in the mood to listen to the band.
That being said, I respect the fact that Steely Dan doesn’t just rehash the same old classics to make a buck on the concert circuit. On the other hand, I wasn’t familiar with a quite a few of the songs played Wednesday and that somewhat dampened my enjoyment.
The Steely Dan zealots in the crowd must have been thrilled to hear tunes such as the opening “The Royal Scam” and “I Got the News,” but the concert didn’t get going for me until the third song, “Show Biz Kids.”
Two more non-hits followed before I perked up again at “Hey Nineteen,” even though a mid-song spoken-word break by Walter Becker was uninteresting and unnecessary.
Keyboardist Donald Fagen sounded fine throughout the concert as the band’s primary vocalist and even dipped into his solo career for the song “New Frontier.”
Becker’s lone turn at the microphone was on “Gaucho,” which was OK. The only other time Fagen gave up the microphone was on “Parker’s Band,” which put backup singers Tawatha Agee and Cindy Mizelle in the spotlight.
There are definitely no complaints about the last half-hour of the concert, which closed with four classic-rock-radio staples — “Josie,” “Black Friday,” “Peg” and “FM” — and “Kid Charlemagne” for an encore.
That more than made up for any perceived lulls in the previous 90 minutes of the show.
The opening act Wednesday night was jazz organist Sam Yahel, who was joined by two members of Steely Dan’s touring band — Michael Leonhart (trumpet) and Walt Weiskopf (sax) — for his 30-minute set.
Handling the drums for Yahel was Joe Strasser, who, according to Yahel’s on-stage introduction, is from Danbury. Not a bad homestate showcase for the drummer, opening for Steely Dan.

The set list
The Royal Scam/I Got the News/Show Biz Kids/Everything You Did/Two Against Nature/Hey Nineteen/Godwhacker/Babylon Sisters/New Frontier/Gaucho/Home at Last/Parker’s Band/Josie/Black Friday/Peg/FM
Encore: Kid Charlemagne

June 24, 2008

Ringo Starr at Mohegan Sun Arena

Posted by Sean on 6:27 PM | Comments (0)

If there’s one thing you can count on when you see Ringo Starr, it is this: You will walk out of the show feeling much better than when you walked in.
I was feeling a little run down Sunday, but I had committed to covering Ringo and his All-Starr Band at the Mohegan Sun Arena, so off I went.
I’m glad I did.
It’s not so much that Ringo is a great singer or that this lineup of his All-Starrs consists of A-list performers, because neither of those statements are true. But catching the positive vibe put forth on stage by Ringo was invigorating, as was watching the band members, who obviously were enjoying being back on a main stage in an arena.
Joining Ringo on this tour are Billy Squier, Edgar Winter, Colin Hay of Men at Work, Hamish Stuart of Average White Band, Gary Wright and drummer Gregg Bissonette.
This was the second time I had seen a Ringo tour, but I don’t remember the first show lasting as long. Sunday night’s concert ran nearly 2½ hours, perhaps because some of the All-Starrs got the opportunity to do three songs instead of what I perceived to be the limit of two.
After Ringo opened the show with two classics and a recent number he seems to enjoy, “Memphis in Your Mind,” it was time for the All-Starrs to take over the spotlight.
Squier did a blistering “Lonely is the Night” and sounded pretty much as he did in his early-’80s heyday. He also nailed “The Sttroke” later in the concert. It made me wonder why we don’t see more of him on tour. You would think with his string of hits that he should be able to pack clubs and small theaters.
Next up was Winter, who recently played a club date at Daniel Street in Milford, with “Free Ride,” followed by Hay, who played the obligatory “Down Under” by Men at Work.
The first surprise of the night came when Gary Wright performed “Dream Weaver.” He sounded great and he also would provide me another surprise later in the show. I had always thought of him as a one-hit wonder, but when he did his second number, “Love is Alive,” I realized my mistake. So, is he a two-hit wonder or are there more songs by him that I’ve forgotten?
After Ringo returned for “Boys,” Stuart played the up-tempo “Pick Up the Pieces” by AWB, before Ringo sang the nostalgic title track to his latest record, Liverpool 8.
Unlike the last Ringo concert I attended, two members of the band did solo acoustic numbers, with varying degrees of success. Not to knock Stuart, but did we really need him doing a solo version of Leon Russell’s “A Song for You”? It was OK, but there are too many songs Ringo and the other musicians could have played in that slot that it seemed like a waste of time.
Notable Ringo tunes that were missing from the show included “Don’t Pass me By” and “Octopus’ Garden” from his Beatles days and his solo hits “The No-No Song” and “You’re Sixteen.”
Hay, who often performs in the solo format, charmed the crowd with his offering, the title track from his latest CD, Are You Looking at Me? He even managed to get the crowd to help on the chorus, not bad considering there probably weren’t too many in attendance who had ever heard the song before.
Winter supplied another highlight with his instrumental “Frankenstein,” which featured him on keyboards, sax and drums.
Ringo ended the show with the one-two punch of “Photograph” and “Oh My My” before doing something I wish more performers would consider. He didn’t go through the motions of an encore.
“We could go back there and stand in the dark, but you know we’re coming back and we know we’re coming back,” he told the crowd. “I refuse to do it anymore.”
He then led the band through what may be his signature song, “With a Little Help from My Friends,” and this time it rang a little truer. Former All-Starr Dr. John, who had given a free show at the Mohegan Sun’s Wolf Den Sunday night, joined Starr and this group of All-Starrs for the non-encore encore.
The show ended with the musicians and the crowd singing the chorus of John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance.” A fitting end to an uplifting event.

The set list
It Don’t Come Easy/What Goes On/Memphis in Your Mind/Lonely is the Night (Billy Squier)/Free Ride (Edgar Winter)/Down Under (Colin Hay)/Dream Weaver (Gary Wright)/Boys/Pick Up the Pieces (Hamish Stuart)/Liverpool 8/Act Naturally/Yellow Submarine/A Song for You (HS)/Are You Looking at Me (CH)/Frankenstein (EW)/Never Without You/Choose Love/The Stroke (BS)/Work to Do (HS)/I Want to Be Your Man/Love is Alive (GW)/Who Can It Be Now? (CH)/Photograph/Oh My My/With a Little Help from My Friends

June 19, 2008

Tom Tom Club at FTC

Posted by Sean on 5:58 PM | Comments (0)

It was great to see Tom Tom Club back in action Tuesday night at the Fairfield Theatre Company and, watching the band members cavorting on stage, it was easy to tell they were happy to be back.
Drummer Chris Frantz and his wife, singer-bassist Tina Weymouth, have lived in the Southport section of Fairfield for many years, but they rarely, if ever, get to play a hometown show like this. Hopefully, now that the town has a top-notch music venue, Tom Tom Club can make regular appearances at FTC.
The set list was pretty much unchanged since I last saw Tom Tom Club a few years ago, but it was like visiting old friends to hear them again. And the energy TTC gives off is infectious, even if the crowd didn’t do too much dancing.
That might have been the only drawback for the band playing FTC. It’s setup is more suited for sitting and watching a performance, as opposed to shaking what you got.
New to the band — at least since the last time I saw a show — was guitarist James SanGiovanni, better known as Fuzz from Deep Banana Blackout, Rolla and Fuzz and Carrie, the duo setup he has with wife.
As anyone who ever saw DBB perform can probably guess, Fuzz matched the other members of Tom Tom Club in the energy department and was a welcome addition to the band.
Of course, helping Chris and Tina keep things moving were singers Mystic Bowie and Victoria Clamp. The two obviously have a ball on stage together and it translates well to the fans.
Opening the concert was the latest project from Fuzz and Carrie, called Carnival of Thieves. The quartet — which also includes bassist Brian Anderson and violinist Ben Dean — plays a sort of gypsy folk that is very catchy and the music was well-received by the crowd.

June 5, 2008

Robert Plant/Alison Krauss at Mohgan Sun

Posted by Sean on 6:21 PM | Comments (0)

It seemed unlikely that the pairing of angelic-voiced Alison Krauss with former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant would work, but with a Grammy Award and sales figures in the hundreds of thousands for their album, Raising Sand, it’s safe to say the collaboration was a success.
Raising Sand isn’t a duets album. This is not George Jones and Tammy Wynette. It’s more like one singer would be out front and the other would provide harmonies.
So it was Wednesday night when Plant and Krauss brought their tour to the Mohegan Sun Arena, thrilling the near-sellout crowd with selections from the album and more.
The “more” part of the concert came from some dramatic re-workings of Led Zeppelin songs — a slowed down “Black Dog” that sounded almost menacing, as well as versions of “Black Country Woman” and a show-stopping “The Battle of Evermore.”
That “Evermore” was a highlight for the Zeppelin fans in attendance shouldn’t have been too big a shock, as the song was mandolin-based to begin with. What put it over the top was the singing of Plant and Krauss, who traded lines throughout on a rare duet for the duo.
If there’s a better female singer than Krauss working today, I don’t know of her. You can keep the vocal histrionics of the Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera; Krauss can evoke more feeling with a whisper than they can with a shout.
When Krauss was in the spotlight, the crowd would go practically silent, waiting to hear each note she would sing. Her version of “Down to the River to Pray,” which she sang on the soundtrack to “O Brother, Where Art Thou?,” was stunning. It started a cappella before Krauss was joined by the trio of Plant and multi-instrumentalists Buddy Miller and Stuart Duncan on harmonies.
Plant also was in fine voice, although the material from Raising Sand and the other songs chosen for the tour aren’t nearly as taxing as his Zeppelin scorchers. He seems to enjoy digging back into American music from decades ago, much like he did on The Honeydrippers project of the early ’80s.
Plant gave a standout performance on his solo hit “In the Mood,” which was wrapped around Krauss’ take on the traditional “Mattie Groves.” He also nailed Johnny Horton’s “I’m a One-Woman Man” in the encore.
T Bone Burnett, producer of Raising Sand and the tour’s bandleader, performed two songs of his own midway through the two-hour-plus concert, though neither was from his new album, Tooth of Crime.
Opening act Sharon Little was a revelation. The lanky blonde belted out her roots music with conviction during her seven-song set. Little brought a lot of soul to her numbers, but it might serve her well to harness some of her vocal power. If she learns anything from watching Krauss night after night, it’s that volume doesn’t equal power.
But we can cut her some slack. After all, as she pointed out, it was only three months ago that she was working as a waitress.

The set list
Rich Woman/Leave My Woman Alone/Black Dog/Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us/Through the Morning, Through the Night/It’s So Long and Goodbye to You/Fortune Teller/In the Mood/Mattie Groves/Black Country Woman/Shut It Tight (T Bone Burnett)/Bon Temps Rouler (T Bone Burnett)/Trampled Rose/Green Pastures/Down to the River to Pray/Killing the Blues/Nothin’/The Battle of Evermore/Please Read the Letter/Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)
Encore: You Don’t Knock/I’m a One-Woman Man/Your Long Journey

May 27, 2008

Stone Temple Pilots at the Chevy

Posted by Sean on 2:08 AM | Comments (0)

It seems that singers, as a whole, are a curious breed, always looking for a new sound to pair with their voices. Singers in rock bands often use solo albums as a way to fill that need, often with less-than-stellar results (am I right, Mr. Jagger?).
Scott Weiland is a bit of a different story. He didn’t leave his original band, Stone Temple Pilots, to pursue a musical wanderlust. Rather, the band collapsed under the weight of his substance abuse and other personal problems.
He had already put out a solo disc in 1998, so his next musical re-invention would be as the frontman for Velvet Revolver, which included remnants of Guns ’N’ Roses. That group released two records before Weiland announced earlier this year that he was leaving the band to reform Stone Temple Pilots.
It turned out that going backward was a step in the right direction for Weiland.
Velvet Revolver had some commercial success, but nothing by that band seemed as catchy as an STP song. It was almost as if Slash and Duff and company just needed a big-name singer to take the place of Axl Rose. With STP, Weiland seems to be a better fit, leading a band that he helped create as opposed to just being part of a supergroup.
If further proof was needed that Weiland is in the right place, it was given Sunday night during Stone Temple Pilots’ concert at the Chevrolet Theatre in Wallingford. STP thrilled the full house with a two-hour show loaded with the group’s classic grunge-rock hits.
And Weiland looked and sounded great. He started out in a light three-piece suit with a dark red fedora, but by the end he was his usual shirtless self. To this casual observer, he seems to be in better health than when he was with Velvet Revolver. At VR’s concert at the Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport in May of 2005, a shirtless Weiland brought about a gasp at his emaciated physique.
Sunday night’s concert started off with “Big Empty,” which set the tone for the entire evening. STP’s rhythm section of bassist-singer Robert DeLeo and drummer Eric Kretz put down a thunderous beat which guitar Dean DeLeo fleshed out with blazing electric guitar.
STP kept the hits coming with “Wicked Garden” and “Big Bang Baby,” all the while the band members seemed to be enjoying the heck out of being back together and breathing life into the old songs. Weiland even commented on how happy he was to be back in familiar surroundings.
“It’s nice to see you all smiling because we’re all smiling,” he told the crowd. “It’s been a while since I’ve smiled consistently on stage.”
There were a few lulls in the otherwise high-energy concert, two of which had to do with attaching Weiland’s battery pack to his pants. The other was even more unexpected as nature called Weiland near the end of the show. Robert DeLeo announced that the singer had eaten some bad food and would be right back.
At the height of Weiland’s drug woes, this would have caused a ripple of doubt throughout the crowd. After watching and hearing the 2008 version of Weiland for 90 minutes or so at that point, it was pretty easy to believe it was what they said it was.
Sure enough, the singer quickly returned to the stage and led an electrifying version of “Sex Type Thing,” Stone Temple Pilot’s breakthrough single.

The set list*
Big Empty/Wicked Garden/Big Bang Baby/Silvergun Superman/Vasoline/Lounge Fly/Lady Picture Show/Sour Girl/Creep/Crackerman/Plush/Interstate Love Song/Too Cool Queenie/Coma/Down/All in the Suit That You Wear/Sex Type Thing/Sin
Encore: Dead and Bloated/Trippin’ on a Hole in a Paper Heart
*-with an assist from a forum at www.atlanticrecords.com.

May 23, 2008

We got The Beat

Posted by Sean on 6:53 PM | Comments (0)

I have had the pleasure of attending several concerts at the Fairfield Theatre Company, which is good as it gets for live music venues in the region. But I have never seen as much life pumped into the building as Thursday night’s show by The English Beat.
The sold-out show even had people waiting outside, looking for scalpers that weren’t there. I had never seen that before at FTC.
So, the seats were full, the standing-room-only section was full and The English Beat was on stage, working up a sweat playing its high-energy ska music. It was only natural that the crowd couldn’t sit and watch this concert as it would any other show.
Before long, almost everybody was on their feet, bopping to The Beat, and the area in front of the stage was taken over by fans who needed the extra room to dance the night away.
The English Beat, which is basically founding member Dave Wakeling and a group of incredible musicians, sounded fantastic. I have a greatest-hits record of the band and it doesn’t come close to capturing how much fun this band is to watch on stage.
The group’s hit songs — most notably “Save it for Later” and “Mirror in the Bathroom” — were each injected with new life. The tune “Can’t Get Used to Losing You,” on record a bit of a bore, was actually a highlight in the concert.
As if there wasn’t enough excitement attached to this show, The English Beat had a special guest in its band — make that a Specials guest.
Lynval Golding of The Specials, a singer and rhythm guitarist, took the lead on a few songs from his band. In fact, in a bit of a strange move, the show started with The Specials’ “A Message to You, Rudy.”
Reportedly, The Specials will reunite for tour later this year. Let’s hope the powers that be over at FTC can snag the band for a show there and try to recapture some of Thursday night’s magic.

May 6, 2008

Bryan Adams at Toad's Place

Posted by Sean on 8:02 PM | Comments (0)

I’m old enough to remember when Bryan Adams was just starting to make a name for himself in the United States and watched as he landed hit after hit on the Top 40 charts with the videos going into heavy rotation on MTV. (Yes, I’m also old enough to remember when MTV played videos.)
Eventually, I couldn’t care less about what Adams was doing, as it seemed his songs were almost too successful, too omnipresent on radio and TV. To make matters worse, he had a huge hit with the sappy “(Everything I Do) I Do it For You” from a lame Kevin Costner movie.
It certainly didn’t help that every song I heard from him after that smash tried to replicate that formula and even sappier songs were forthcoming. I was officially done with Mr. Adams.
Whatever CDs I had by him were eventually traded in and, aside from seeing him in concert at the Warner Theater in Torrington a few years ago, I had no knowledge of anything he was doing musically.
Until Monday night, that is. Adams was at Toad’s Place in New Haven to do an acoustic solo show with tickets only available through WTIC-FM 96.5. Kim from Adams’ public relations agency offered me a pair of tickets, so I figured, why not?
If the show turned out to be a stinker, at least I could get a couple of slices of Yorkside Pizza while I was in the area. Anyway, what else was there to do on a Monday night?
Surprisingly, everything went well. Adams was engaging with the 450 or so fans in attendance and he sounded, well, like Bryan Adams. I actually could listen to his older hits with fresh ears, to hear the songs as he initially envisioned, not as these catchy monsters that soon assaulted my radio and TV.
The 90-minute set was loaded with his hits, some of which I had blocked out of my brain. Hearing these stripped-down versions brought me back to why I liked his music in the first place: The man can write a catchy pop song.
Here are some of the songs from Monday night that you should remember: “Can’t Stop This Thing We Started,” “Cuts Like a Knife,” “Heaven,” “Run to You,” “Summer of ’69” and “Please Forgive Me.”
Adams is doing this tour ostensibly to showcase his new album, called “11,” which is coming out on May 13 exclusively through Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club. The crowd was polite during his new material, but between songs quickly started yelling out requests for his classics.
Though it was a solo performance, walking into Toad’s and seeing a drum kit on stage, I had a feeling that Adams’ longtime drummer, New Haven native Mickey Curry, would take part at some point of the show.
Curry, who played Toad’s many times in the ’70s with The Scratch Band, eventually joined Adams for four or five songs near the end of the show, playing the first drum set he ever owned. It was nice to see the two old friends enjoying each other’s company and, as far as the show, Curry’s drumming did help to mix things up.
For as entertaining as it was to hear Adams with just his acoustic guitar and occasional harmonica, every now and then, ‘Kids Wanna Rock.’ Even us older ones.

May 5, 2008

Three Dog Night at The Klein

Posted by Sean on 5:54 PM | Comments (0)

I checked out the Three Dog Night concert at The Klein in Bridgeport Friday night and I must say that I walked away sort of impressed.
When I interviewed singer Danny Hutton for the feature that ran in the Post Thursday, he mentioned a few times that the band sounds like it did on the records. He was right.
Though I’m not a big fan of Three Dog Night — I don’t own a single album by the band — I could appreciate all of the hit songs I knew from listening to AM radio growing up. Hutton and fellow singer Cory Wells both did fine work bringing these classics to life on The Klein’s stage.
In the phone interview, Hutton alerted me to a “special” thing that would happen three-quarters of the way through the concert and I’ll assume he was talking about what was the show’s obvious low point.
Wells, in the middle of “Mama Told Me (No to Come),” started talking about how some people said that it was kind of like the first rap song (it’s not). Wells then proceeded to don some bling, sunglasses and a baseball cap and launched into an updated version of the song done as a rap. I actually felt embarrassed for him. It was that bad.
But the show got back on the rails after that and finished with a rousing encore of “Joy to the World.” It was a fitting end to a rather joyful experience, especially for the longtime fans of the band in the crowd of 800 or so at The Klein.

March 28, 2008

The Subdudes at FTC

Posted by Sean on 8:04 PM | Comments (0)

I headed over to the Fairfield Theatre Company Thursday night to check out some of the show by The Subdudes and was very glad I went.
In the past, I had listened to a few of the group’s records, but never really warmed to the five-piece from New Orleans. As expected, the music of The Subdudes came alive on the stage and the near-capacity crowd was all smiles.
I didn’t know any of the songs The Subdudes played, but it didn’t matter. I was enjoying the show almost as much as the group’s long-time fans in attendance, who shouted out requests and other in-jokes only a true fan would understand.
There’s just this great vibe when FTC is packed and it’s probably the best venue for music-lovers in Fairfield and New Haven counties. It only holds 200 people, so tickets are a tad more expensive, but it’s truly a great musical experience to see a show there.
Maybe there’s something about artists from the New Orleans area that just doesn’t translate well onto record, a spark missing that can only be found in concert. I felt the same general disinterest before seeing Marcia Ball and BeauSoleil at Fairfield University’s Quick Center a few weeks back and was rewarded with two sets of great music.
If you don’t know already, Marcia Ball is coming back to Fairfield — this time at FTC — for a concert on June 6 and I suggest you check her out.
Also, Louisiana bluesman Tab Benoit — whose music I love on record and in concert — is coming back to FTC on May 30. Don’t miss out.

March 11, 2008

Los Lobos at Shubert

Posted by Sean on 4:59 PM | Comments (0)

For years, I had wanted to see Los Lobos in concert, so I was pretty pumped up for the group’s appearance at last summer’s Gathering of the Vibes in Bridgeport.
I have to admit, I left Seaside Park just a little disappointed that night.
Don’t get me wrong, the band sounded great, but the members seemed to be a little laid back, almost feeding off the atmosphere of the festival. They didn’t appear to have a set list and would come together after each song to — and I’m guessing here — talk about what they were going to do next.
When they played, everything was fine, but it did have the appearance of a show that was just slapped together.
I had another shot to see Los Lobos when it performed Saturday night at the Shubert in New Haven and, I’m glad to say, I can’t think of anything negative to say about this concert.
The group was tight — as you would expect from a band that’s been together for more than three decades — and the song selection was superb. All the tunes worked well together, with singer-guitarists David Hidalgo and Cesar Rojas splitting the vocals.
Everything worked and the very receptive crowd was into it from the start. These were dedicated fans, calling out requests for songs that probably never received any airplay. In other words, nobody was shouting for “La Bamba.”
There were a few Los Lobos favorites that I wish they had played — “Will the Wolf Survive?,” “One Time One Night, ” “Shakin’ Shakin’ Shakes” and “Set Me Free (Rosa Lee),” to name a few — but that doesn’t detract one iota from the good feelings I had long after the two-hour show ended.
As for “La Bamba,” the band’s cover of the Ritchie Valens classic, it didn’t make the set list Saturday night and no one seemed to mind. A bit odd that a group could get away with omitting its biggest hit, but it happened.

March 9, 2008

Command performance

Posted by Sean on 11:48 PM | Comments (0)

Friday night, it was back to the Fairfield Theatre Company for a show from The Commander Cody Band, which I have missed on its previous stops at the venue. It turns out, I had been missing out on a lot.
What a fun time it is when the Commander takes the stage, though you would hardly know it from watching him amble up there. Not to be too unkind, but the veteran rocker looks every bit his 60-plus years . . . and then some.
Still, he and his bandmates put on a heck of a good-time concert. I wasn't too familiar with Commander Cody's music other than what I know from seeing a few concerts at FTC by Bill Kirchen, the guitar wizard from Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen.
It was fun to listen to Commander Cody's versions of several of the same songs as Kirchen, naturally, focuses on his Telecaster and Commander Cody plays keyboards. I must confess that, as much as I enjoyed Friday night's event, Kirchen's live show is still the better of the two.
Friday night's opening act, Professor Louie and the Crowmatix, was almost as much fun. I had seen this group before, at a WPKN fundraiser in Newtown about six years ago, so I kind of knew what to expect.
Apparently, I forgot how solid this band is. With Professor Louie at the keys and, later on, accordion, the FTC crowd was treated to an uplifting performance, highlighted by a cover of The Band's "Ophelia."
Professor Louie and the Crowmatix hails from the Woodstock, N.Y., area and worked with The Band on its final three records, as well as solo discs from Garth Hudson and Rick Danko. If memory serves, Hudson accompanied the band at that WPKN fundraiser.
The set switched from fun and loose to respectful and poignant when Professor Louie dedicated a song to deceased bassist-singer Danko, the title track from the posthumous release "Times Like These." Very touching.

Coco concert continued

Posted by Sean on 3:12 PM | Comments (0)

As I mentioned in my previous posting, I left the Fairfield Theatre Company after three hours Friday night, before bluesman Coco Montoya finished his show. A friend of mine who was in attendance e-mailed Saturday to tell me what I missed. In his words, "not much."
He did say that the concert ended around midnight and that blues artist Debbie Davies, who now calls Derby home, joined Montoya for a few songs. That shouldn't have come as a surprise since the two guitarists have worked together in the past and are both graduates of the late Albert Collins' band.
It's just a shame that, according to my spy, only about 50 or so people made it to the end of the show to see those two collaborate.

March 7, 2008

Coco concert at FTC

Posted by Sean on 6:26 PM | Comments (0)

I went to see bluesman Coco Montoya at the Fairfield Theatre Company Thursday night and I must say I left a little confused. Did people drop $42 to see opening act Johnny A. or to see the headliner?
I left the office a little late, so Johnny A. was already on stage when I arrived at the 7:30 show at a little before 8. The Boston-based guitarist led his trio through an extended set of instrumentals, which were both clever and engaging.
He did some very imaginative covers of Jimi Hendrix’s “The Wind Cries Mary” and Jimmy Webb’s “Wichita Lineman,” as well as some interesting originals.
The crowd thoroughly enjoyed his time on stage, but it just went on way too long for an opening act. Montoya didn’t even hit the stage until nearly 10 and, on a weeknight, that’s way too late.
Montoya also had the misfortune of technical difficulties at the onset of his show, which was plagued by nasty feedback and monitors that weren’t working right. The crowd was growing increasingly restless as the bugs were worked out.
For those unfamiliar with Montoya, he’s an electric bluesman of the highest order, having served time with the late great Albert Collins on his way up. He’s also worked on a few projects with Derby resident Debbie Davies, another Collins alum.
Montoya is on tour to promote his latest album, “Dirty Deal,” and, once he got going, he was mesmerizing. The man can flat out play and he matches that with an incredibly soulful voice.
That was why it was kind of sad to see members of the audience leaving early. He deserved better. More to the point, he deserved to go on at a decent hour. Maybe there was something going on backstage that I’m not aware of, but the supposed star of the show should not be hitting the stage nearly 2½ hours after the concert’s start.
I must admit that, as much as I enjoyed Montoya’s performance, I couldn’t stick it out to the end, either. I was supposed to meet up with a friend to go over plans for an upcoming Boston trip, so at 11:15, when the concert should have been long finished, I left.
I just wonder what Montoya, after battling through the show’s early problems, thought when the house lights went up and he noticed that half of the crowd had departed. I hope he didn’t take it as too much of an insult, but what can you do? Some people just can’t stay out all night and get up early for work.
The late start wasn’t fair to Montoya or the people that shelled out the money to see him.

February 25, 2008

Wilco at the Shubert

Posted by Sean on 5:57 PM | Comments (0)

I really have to stop going to Wilco shows with any pre-conceived notions. I’m always wrong.
Having spent the better part of two weeks with the group’s new album, “Sky Blue Sky,” firmly entrenched in my car’s CD player, I was expecting a more laid-back concert Sunday night at the Shubert in New Haven than past performances.
Again, I was wrong.
Sunday night, at the sold-out and very intimate venue, Wilco conducted what seemed like a musical revival meeting, with frontman Jeff Tweedy in the role of the preacher to the adoring crowd.
The first few notes of every song elicited loud cheers as fans were treated to a two-hour set that spanned the group’s entire 12-year career. Not surprisingly, given the dedication of Wilco’s followers, the new material was greeted just as warmly as older favorites.
Whereas “Sky Blue Sky” is more contemplative and moodier than earlier records, the show was typical high-energy Wilco. A lot of the credit for that has to go to lanky guitarist Nels Cline. Whether it was lap steel or just plain old electric, Cline was a live wire on stage, all herky-jerky motion and screaming guitar.
In fact, if I didn’t know better, I’d swear some of the new songs were used as mere starting points for Cline’s histrionics.
What else was I wrong about? I guessed that the concert would pay stricter attention to “Sky Blue Sky,” or even the previous studio record, 2004’s “A Ghost is Born.”
Only six of the 25 songs performed Sunday were from “Sky” and two from “Ghost.” Compare that to six songs from 1996’s “Being There” — including the last four songs of the encore — and five from 2002’s groundbreaking “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot” and you can understand why Wilco devotees sitting near me were constantly talking about the “great mix” of old and new songs.
As if two hours of Wilco wasn’t enough, I also thoroughly enjoyed opening act John Doe, formerly of Los Angeles punk pioneers X. His set lasted 45 minutes and featured Cindy Wasserman ably handling the female vocals on a few duets, most notably the X classic “White Girl.”
As a bonus, Wilco’s Cline came out to add steel guitar to one of Doe’s songs.

Wilco set list
Remember the Mountain Bed/California Stars/Company in My Back/Pot Kettle Black/A Shot in the Arm/Radio Cure/You are My Face/Side with the Seeds/Pick Up the Change/Hotel Arizona/I’m Always in Love/Impossible Germany/Jesus, etc./Misunderstood/Airline to Heaven/Theologians/Walken/I’m the Man Who Loves You/On and On and On
Encore: Hate it Here/Heavy Metal Drummer/Red-Eyed and Blue/I Got You (At the End of the Century)/Monday/Outtasite (Outta Mind)

February 18, 2008

Havin' a Ball

Posted by Sean on 5:07 PM | Comments (0)

I have this friend, we’ll call him Wilbur, who has been raving to me about Marcia Ball for years now and I never truly got it. I heard of couple of her studio albums and they were OK, but nothing that could trigger such devotion as Wilbur’s.
“You have to see her live,” he’d say again and again.
Well, I finally got the chance to catch her on stage Friday night at Fairfield University’s Quick Center and all I can say is: “You were right, Wilbur.”
Watching this slender, 58-year-old grandmother tear through her New Orleans/Texas boogie-woogie blues was a sight to behold. She was a force of nature, her crossed leg in constant motion as she sat at the keyboards.
Of course, I had an inkling it would be a good show after listening to her last album, "Live! Down the Road," which captured a Ball live performance from 2004.
But now, I know something Wilbur doesn’t know: the songs from her new album, "Peace, Love & BBQ," are a blast. Ball tried out tunes from the record, due out in early April, during Friday’s concert and they are all keepers.
I only hope she translated some of her live energy onto the record.
Opening the concert was BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet, a veteran band of Cajun musicians from Louisiana. I didn’t know what to expect from this group, but I was amazed at how much I liked the music.
I was even going to break down and buy a copy of BeauSoleil’s new live CD, but I didn’t feel like plunking down $20 in the lobby. I’m sure I’ll find it at a much more reasonable price online.

January 23, 2008

Ringo riled

Posted by Sean on 6:15 PM | Comments (0)

Ringo Starr walks off the set of "Live with Regis & Kelly" because they wanted him to cut his performance to under 2½ minutes and all I could think was: Why on Earth would a morning chat show put any limits on an ex-Beatle?
Ringo even agreed to trim some of his number, but it wasn't good enough for "Live" and producer Michael Gelman. Well, shame on the whole "Live" team. If you get a living legend willing to appear on your show, you cut him some slack.
Ringo is out promoting his new record, "Liverpool 8," and has managed to appear on several programs without incident. Ringo should never grace the set of "Live" again, unless he gets an on-air apology first.
And what was so important that they had to rush Ringo? Segments with designer Michael Kors and the winners of "The Amazing Race."
Shameful.
Scheduled to perform with Ringo's band was his producer, Dave Stewart, formerly of The Eurythmics. He wasn't nearly as forgiving as Ringo in a statement he released Tuesday. The best quote from Stewart: "Mr. Gelman apparently felt Ringo's musical legacy should take a back seat to additional banter about the size of Ms. Ripa's derriere.”
Such is the world of these vacuous morning shows.
By the way, Ringo's "Liverpool 8" is the best record he's done in many years, led by the nostalgic title track. A few of the songs are of the cloying "Love is beautiful" sentiment and the Latin-flavored "Pasodobles" should have never seen the light of day. Overall, it's true Ringo - lightweight and somewhat disposable, but still a nice listen.

November 17, 2007

Stevie Wonder concert review

Posted by Sean on 5:22 PM | Comments (0)

It took a while to get going, but when it did, Stevie Wonder’s concert Friday night at the Mohegan Sun Arena finally turned into the uplifting event the sellout crowd of about 10,000 had expected.
Wonder started slowly, addressing his fans with his reasons for this tour, which began as a short summer tour to honor his mother, who had passed away in May of 2006. But the “A Wonder Summer’s Night” tour was such a success that it expanded into this leg, now called “A Wonder Autumn Night.”
Wonder was joined by daughter Aisha Morris for the opening number, “Love’s in Need of Love Today,” and that song, as well as the next two, failed to captivate the audience. Even when Wonder turned into a firebrand preacher at the end of “Visions,” calling for a halt to the evils plaguing the world today, the crowd seemed reserved.
That ended as soon as Wonder dipped into his catalog of hits for “Living for the City” and “Master Blaster (Jammin’)” that had everybody on their feet singing along.
Wonder then had a little fun with his talk box, distorting his voice as he noodled around on his keyboards, singing snippets of songs such as “She Loves You,” “I Heard it Through the Grapevine”and “Never Can Say Goodbye.” It was an amusing departure and segued nicely into a rousing “Higher Ground.”
My one gripe about the first half of the show was how Wonder dragged out the ending of his songs, sometimes it was magical and sometimes it seemed pointless. The worst offense was how he turned “Ribbon in the Sky” into a 15-minute bore, complete with a yawn-inspiring call-and-response session where you heard the phrase “There’s a ribbon in the sky” about 100 times.
He followed with three more slow songs, including another duet with his daughter on “How Will I Know,” before things changed for the better. A switch was flicked somewhere because the rest of the concert was transcendent as Wonder burned through most of the biggest hits of his four-decade career.
The only glitches the rest of the way was when Wonder finished “Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours” and tried to make a country song out of it – it didn’t work – and then told a rambling story about the writing of “My Cherie Amour.”
But musically, the last hour of the 150-minute concert was everything you could have hoped for if you are a fan of Wonder. Classic song followed classic song with no let-up and the crowd ate it up, the roar of approval seemingly getting louder with the start of each song.
Wonder chose to wrap things up on a poignant note with the song “As,” letting his faithful followers know that he’ll “be loving you always.” The feeling was mutual.

The set list
Love’s in Need of Love Today/Too High/Visions/Living for the City/Master Blaster (Jammin’)/Higher Ground/Golden Lady/Ribbon in the Sky/Overjoyed/When I Fall in Love/How Will I Know/Don’t You Worry ’Bout a Thing/Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours/My Cherie Amour/Uptight (Everything’s Alright)/For Once in My Life/Do I Do/Sir Duke/I Wish/You Are the Sunshine of My Life/Superstition/I Just Called to Say I Love You/As

October 22, 2007

An awesome Experience

Posted by Sean on 9:21 PM | Comments (0)

It’s almost a shame that Saturday night’s Experience Hendrix concert was held at the Palace Theatre in Waterbury. Not because there’s anything wrong with the venue — it’s beautiful and a great place to see a show — it’s just that more people should have been able to witness this event.
The amount of talent that graced the stage during the event should have been enough to sell the Palace out many times over, but for those of us on the inside, the intimate theater was ideal.
The funny thing is, that while the show was terrific, no one performer stood out over the others. Some of the artists, I couldn’t help but wonder why they would go out on the road with a tour like this when they’re only on stage for a fraction of the concert.
Former Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor, The Doors’ Robby Krieger and blues legend Hubert Sumlin, who played with Howlin’ Wolf and Muddy Waters, were just three of those involved that didn’t seem to have much time in the spotlight.
I guess the lure of performing the music of Jimi Hendrix was enough.
The night started off with the less-famous names on the bill. First was a fiery performance by Eric Gales, followed by an equally rousing two songs from Mato Nanji, the singer-guitarist for the Native American rock band Indigenous.
Doyle Bramhall II, who has accompanied Roger Waters and Eric Clapton on tours in addition to his own recordings, was up next, joined by Living Colour singer Corey Glover. Bramhall did a transcendent version of Hendrix’s “Angel,” but his time on stage seemingly was cut short by a technical problem near the end of his rendition of “Rock Me Baby.”
Supplying the connection to the music of Hendrix was two of his bandmates — drummer Mitch Mitchell from The Jimi Hendrix Experience and bassist Billy Cox of Band of Gypsys. Cox even showed himself to be a heck of a singer, especially during the blues song “Red House.”
One of the night’s biggest ovations was when young guitar-slinger Kenny Wayne Shepherd appeared with the singer from his band, Noah Hunt. Shepherd blistered his way through three songs, cementing his reputation as a logical successor to Stevie Ray Vaughn, himself a disciple of Hendrix.
I write that Shepherd got “one of the night’s biggest ovations” because the next artist received, without a doubt, the warmest welcome. It was the great Buddy Guy.
Guy had the most time on stage and, strangely, didn’t play a Hendrix tune. This struck me as very odd because I seem to remember him doing one of Jimi’s tunes at this summer’s Gathering of the Vibes.
Sumlin joined Guy during his set, giving the Waterbury audience the opportunity to see two of the greatest remaining links to the old-time blues era.
(Here’s a personal note to the man in the crowd who screamed “play a [bleep]ing Hendrix song” at Buddy Guy: Please don’t go to any more concerts. You’ll probably just embarrass yourself some more. If you can’t sit quietly while two men who paved the way for Hendrix perform, then you should be kept separated from the rest of the music-loving public.)
With all of the talent on hand, it was left to young pedal-steel guitarist Robert Randolph to wrap up the three-hour show. He was joined by Krieger for “Purple Haze,” before Shepherd and Hunt returned for “Voodoo Child (Slight Return).”

October 6, 2007

Van Halen concert review

Posted by Sean on 6:45 PM | Comments (1)

There’s been a rash of reunion tours in the past two months that have played Connecticut – The Police, Crowded House, Genesis – but none of those comebacks was as unlikely as the one between Van Halen and its original lead singer, David Lee Roth.
Bad blood over Roth’s departure from the band in1985 has led to more than two decades worth of verbal sniping in the press, so when this tour was announced, even the least skeptical VH fans had to raise their eyebrows. Even though there was tons of money to be made, could Roth and his longtime nemesis, guitar god Eddie Van Halen, play nice together and keep things on track.
The two made like best friends at the press conference this summer announcing the reunion tour, smiling and mugging for the cameras, but you had to have doubts they could pull it off. Even as recently as three weeks ago, a source at the Mohegan Sun told me that the rumor was that the project wouldn’t last long enough to make it to the casino’s arena.
But, Friday night, there they were: Roth front and center, surrounded by Eddie to his left, drummer Alex Van Halen directly behind him, and, bassist Wolfgang Van Halen, Eddie’s son, to his right. (That figures: Van Halen finally gets Roth back for the first time in two decades and bassist Michael Anthony gets replaced.)
Admittedly, I rolled my eyes when I first heard of the planned reunion. Past attempts at reconciliation have all ended badly, so I just chalked it up as a money grab by a couple of aging rock stars searching for relevancy. If it came around the area on a day that was convenient, I’d check it out, but I certainly wouldn’t have gone out of my way to see the show.
Well, I’m certainly glad it came around because it was a tremendous concert. There was a certain joy in hearing nothing but the songs from the six albums Roth made with the group from 1978 through 1984. Not that the records and tours with Roth’s replacement, Sammy Hagar, weren’t fun, but to many people the original lineup was the only Van Halen that really mattered.
Even though Van Halen kept some of the Roth-era hits in the set lists with Hagar, it just wasn’t the same.
Friday night’s concert started, fittingly enough, with a cover of The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me,” the first single from Van Halen’s debut album, and from then on, it was one classic-rock gem after another.
Roth, who turns 54 Wednesday, has always been one of rock music’s preeminent showmen, but he’s wise enough at his age not to try to act like he did when he was 25. He limited his mugging, preferring to play the rock star instead of the jester. He may not be as strong vocally as he was when he was first leading VH, but who other than the most optimistic fan could have expected him to be?
The common thread through Van Halen’s three decades of success has been Eddie’s innovative guitar playing. He set the bar high from the start and his imitators still haven’t caught up. He alone makes Van Halen a sight to behold.
As for 16-year-old Wolfgang, he did well, joining with uncle Alex to form a tight rhythm section. I would have liked to have seen Anthony with the band – his soaring backing vocals were missed – but if this is as close to seeing the original band as I’ll ever get, I’ll take it. On the plus side, no Anthony meant no bass solo.
There was, alas, a lengthy drum solo after the group’s take on Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Woman,” but that provided a chance to run up and grab a Diet Coke.
Eddie’s guitar solo, coming after a rousing rendition of “Panama,” is a different story. It is not to be missed. Reviews of previous shows on this tour remarked that his time alone on stage goes on too long. I disagree. His solos aren’t just him noodling around with his guitar, but rather well-structured pieces that incorporate many bits of the instrumentals that have appeared on VH albums. It wasn’t essential to the show, but it kept me in my seat.
If you were on the fence about dropping scalper prices for tickets to one of the five upcoming VH appearances in the region, know that if you can afford it, it’s definitely worth checking out. These shows are in Boston (Oct. 30), East Rutherford, N.J. (Nov. 3), Worcester, Mass. (Nov. 6), Uniondale, N.Y. (Nov. 8) and at New York’s Madison Square Garden (Nov. 13).
According to the Van Halen Web site, www.van-halen.com, all of these are listed as sell-outs, except the Worcester show. Check with Ticketmaster for availability, as quite often there are extra tickets released to the public closer to the date of the show.

The set list
You Really Got Me/I’m the One/Runnin’ with the Devil/Romeo Delight/Somebody Get Me a Doctor/Beautiful Girls/Dance the Night Away/Atomic Punk/Everybody Wants Some/So This Is Love?/Mean Street/Pretty Woman/Unchained/I’ll Wait/And the Cradle Will Rock/Hot for Teacher/Little Dreamer/Little Guitars/Jamie’s Cryin’/Ice Cream Man/Panama/Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love
Encore: Jump

October 3, 2007

Springsteen in Hartford

Posted by Sean on 3:03 PM | Comments (1)

“And so it begins.”
Those were the words of Bruce Springsteen Tuesday night as he embarked on a 26-city tour of North America and Europe with one of his usual high-energy concerts at the Hartford Civic Center.
The expectations were high as Springsteen had re-assembled his E Street Band for the first time in four years and created a record, “Magic,” that was generating significant buzz even before its official release, also Tuesday. That most of the 16,000 or so packed into the sold-out Civic Center probably hadn’t heard much of the new record – me included – didn’t seem to dampen the enthusiasm for the new material.
In fact, the Springsteen faithful earned points for staying put during the unfamiliar songs, whereas fans of a lot of artists may have found that an ideal time to hit the restrooms or concession stands. But for The Boss, respect was given and attention was paid to his “Magic” moments.
It helps that Springsteen is a marvel on stage and brought the same gusto to the new tunes as he did to his classics. Maybe more, as its obvious that he feels strongly about his new project, including eight of the 12 tracks from “Magic” in his set.
I must admit to being a little ticked off at the start of the show, which started an hour late. I almost wanted to check the ticket to see if I mistakenly attended a Guns N’ Roses concert.
But soon, I was as caught up as anybody in the arena, as Springsteen came out of the blocks with his new single (which begins sounding suspiciously similar to Tommy Tutone’s “867-5309/Jenny”) before raising the crowd noise exponentially with “The Ties That Bind.”
A wily veteran, Springsteen knew better than to throw too much “Magic” at his fans, opting instead to sandwich new songs between his hits. Only twice in the 135-minute show did he play new tunes back-to-back – near the beginning when he followed “Gypsy Biker” with the new disc’s title track and near the end of his set when he played “Last to Die” and “Long Walk Home.”
On both occasions, he followed with incredible performances. After the first double-dip, his version of “Reason to Believe” was so electrifying, it almost made me forgive his butchering of the song on his solo tour of 2005. Coming after the second two-fer was a transcendent version of “Badlands” that closed his set.
After a very brief time off-stage, Springsteen led his bandmates back for an encore that began with the new “Girls in their Summer Clothes,” followed by “Thundercrack,” a very early Springsteen song that had been unreleased until finally seeing the light on his 1998 collection of rarities, “Tracks.”
Finally, Springsteen played “Born to Run,” probably his signature tune, before ending the night with “Waitin’ on a Sunny Day” from 2002’s “The Rising” and “American Land,” a song from one of the versions of his “Seeger Sessions” traditional folk album.
Aside from closing with a folk song, two things sort of surprised me about Tuesday night’s concert. The first was that Springsteen gave his wife, backup singer Patti Scialfa, a turn in the spotlight, singing a duet with her on the song “Town Called Heartbreak” from her recent solo album, “Play it as it Lies.”
The second was how overtly political Springsteen seems to be these days. He brought up a few of the issues he has with the current administration – similar monologues also are included in his introduction in the tour program – and his feelings also find their way into a few of the new songs.
Springsteen campaigned for Democrat John Kerry in the last presidential election, taking part in the music tour called Vote for Change. I guess the only change that occurred is that Springsteen no longer feels he has to bite his tongue when it comes to politics.
Good for him, but not so good for people who believe in the separation of powers, in this case politics and entertainment.

The set list
Radio Nowhere/The Ties That Bind/Lonesome Day/Gypsy Biker/Magic/Reason to Believe/Night/She’s the One/Livin’ in the Future/The Promised Land/Town Called Heartbreak/Darkness on the Edge of Town/Darlington County/Devil’s Arcade/The Rising/Last to Die/Long Walk Home/Badlands
Encores: Girls in their Summer Clothes/Thundercrack/Born to Run/Waitin’ on a Sunny Day/American Land

September 21, 2007

A Tab worth picking up

Posted by Sean on 8:39 PM | Comments (2158)

I was dreading walking into the Fairfield Theatre Company Thursday night with the sinking feeling that nobody would turn out to see Louisiana bluesman Tab Benoit perform.
We ran a nice feature on him in Thursday’s paper, but I didn’t know if Benoit had the name recognition to get people to drop $40 or so to see him. But, lo and behold, there was a nice crowd at FTC. There’s nothing worse than seeing an incredibly talented performer play before a meager crowd.
I’d like to think my story helped get people off their butts and out to the show, but I often like to give myself too much credit.
Anyway, Benoit was an eye-opener. I like his new album, “Power of the Ponchartrain,” and I’ve enjoyed a few of his older discs, especially the ones he did with Jimmy Thackery, but nothing in his recorded output prepared me for Thursday night.
I was blown away, to say the least, and ended up doing something I hadn’t planned on: staying for the whole show, plus the encore. I am so glad I did. I knew it would be a fun show, but I just sat there, mesmerized by Benoit’s guitar work.
And I was not alone, as the audience was into it from the very first song, “I Got Loaded.” Benoit is a wizard with the guitar; a wonderfully gritty singer; and, as he showed in his encore, not a bad drummer.
He also was dryly humorous, with a sharp wit and cutting comeback for some of the interruptions yelled out by audience members. He was a lot less serious than he was in our recent phone interview, where he launched into a 20-minute diatribe on the conditions along the Gulf Coast, especially New Orleans, and the erosion of the surrounding wetlands that has been going on for years.
Benoit played most of the night with two members of Louisiana’s LeRoux, but he also shined during the three songs he performed solo at the beginning of his second set. Included in that stretch was a charming cover of Hank Williams’ “My Bucket Got a Whole In It.”
Benoit made it known he’d like to be asked back to FTC and it’s a safe bet everyone in attendance Thursday night will be back if that happens. It’s also a safe bet that they’ll tell their friends and the small theater near the Fairfield train station will be rocking louder than any passing Amtrak.

September 17, 2007

Genesis in Hartford

Posted by Sean on 5:48 AM | Comments (0)

Before heading to the Hartford Civic Center for the Genesis concert Sunday night, I checked the Internet for recent set lists so I could get a sense of what to expect. The song lineup was definitely not what I expected.
I wrongly guessed that the band would play two hours of its radio-friendly hits amassed after drummer Phil Collins took over the singing duties from Peter Gabriel in the mid-1970s. Instead, the reunited group revisited its entire career, all the way back to the prog-rock of the Gabriel years.
In fact, the concert did start out much like I initially envisioned when, after a merging of two instrumentals from the 1980 album “Duke,” Genesis cranked out three of its classic-rock standbys in a row – “Turn It On Again,” “No Son of Mine” and “Land of Confusion.”
It was during “Land of Confusion” that Collins pulled the smooth move of the night, taking the cell phone from somebody in the front row and singing into it. I can’t imagine what the person on the other end of the call was thinking, but the audience got a big kick out of Collins’ antics.
“Are there any old people here tonight . . . apart from us?,” Collins, 56, asked. “We’re going to do some old songs tonight and I mean old. Some of us even had hair when these were written.”
Genesis would follow a pattern of bunching its older tunes together, almost forming a musical suite. The first of these groupings included “In the Cage” (from 1974), “The Cinema Show” (’73) “Duke’s Travels” (’80) and “Afterglow” (’77).
That was another surprising aspect of Sunday night’s concert: The Genesis fans at the sold-out Civic Center cheered just as loudly for the more obscure works as they did for the well-known hits. I underestimated the dedication of the true Genesis fans, who obviously were on the bandwagon long before the group became staples on radio and MTV.
Before heading to Hartford – and with set list in hand – I listened to a few of the songs with unfamiliar titles and I’ll admit I didn’t really care for the songs. They hadn’t aged very well and had me dreading those parts of the concert.
Fortunately, they were handled by the Genesis of today and not 30 years ago. By playing just parts of the tunes in a medley, the band – Collins, Mike Rutherford (guitar/bass) and Tony Banks (keyboards), augmented by longtime sidemen Daryl Stuermer (guitar/bass) and Chester Thompson (drums) – didn’t draw the songs out, which helped keep the show flowing nicely.
One of these unknown (to me) songs, “I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe),” turned into my favorite portion of the concert. During the song, the video screen behind the stage showed images of Genesis members from the early days and, just as Collins was on stage banging the tambourine with his head, knees, elbows and feet, an old clip ran of him doing the same maneuvers (albeit with long hair and a full beard).
Other highlights were “Domino,” one of the few non-hit songs from Genesis’ 1986 multimillion selling album “Invisible Touch,” and a so-called “Drum Duet” between Collins and Thompson that was amusing, even to this drum-solo hater.
The concert, which lasted nearly three hours, concluded with “Tonight Tonight Tonight” leading into the band’s only No. 1 single, “Invisible Touch.”
The two-song encore started with one of Genesis’ last hit songs, 1991’s “I Can’t Dance,” and finished with another Gabriel-era tune, “Carpet Crawlers” from the 1974 record “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway.”
If you couldn’t get tickets for Sunday night’s concert – or if you couldn’t bear the thought of missing the Yankees-Red Sox or Patriots-Chargers games – Genesis will be at Madison Square Garden in New York on Sept. 25 and at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Sept. 27. Tickets for both shows are available through all Ticketmaster outlets or by phone at 368-1000 (Bridgeport) and 624-0033 (New Haven).

The set list
Behind the Lines-Duke’s End/Turn It On Again/No Son of Mine/Land of Confusion/In the Cage-The Cinema Show-Duke’s Travels-Afterglow/Hold On My Heart/Home By the Sea-Second Home By the Sea/Follow You Follow Me/Firth of Fifth-I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)/Mama/Ripples/Throwing It All Away/Domino/Los Endos/Tonight Tonight Tonight/Invisible Touch
Encore: I Can’t Dance/The Carpet Crawlers

August 13, 2007

Gathering of the Vibes - Sunday evening

Posted by Sean on 1:48 AM | Comments (0)

Well, my first Gathering of the Vibes ended tonight at around 8 and I'm kind of looking forward to a little normalcy after a hectic four days at Seaside Park.
Since filing my story for Monday's Connecticut Post, I've finally had the chance to enjoy a decent meal, do some laundry, clean up around the apartment and spend some quality time with the pooch.
My feet are killing me, I'm so tired I can't sleep and yet, I think I'll miss the controlled insanity of the Vibes. Walking around the site, talking to campers, constantly trying to arrange my writing chores around the times that my favorite bands will perform. In hindsight, it was all kind of fun.
But in less than 12 hours, I'll be back at my desk for another 40-hour work week. Then I'll most certainly be missing the Vibes.
But four days seems like just the right amount of time for this event. I think I need a break from large crowds, stilt-walkers, hula hoops and young women walking around wearing bikini tops. (All right, I'm lying about that last part.)
I hope the festival returns to Bridgeport next year. Now that I'm no longer a Vibes virgin, I'm sure I'll have even more fun the second time around.

August 12, 2007

Gathering of the Vibes - Sunday afternoon

Posted by Sean on 5:39 PM | Comments (0)

I don't know if it's the heat or the three solid days of partying, but the Vibes has definitely hit the wall in terms of the energy level. And you have to figure a good portion of the people there have long drives ahead of them after tonight's Los Lobos show.
(License plates I have seen: Connecticut (obviously), Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Mississippi, Virginia, North Carolina, Florida and Ontario, Canada.)
I actually thought more campers would have gotten a jump on traffic by leaving earlier today. Sunday's lineup was strong, but all the Grateful Dead-related bands were finished after Bob Weir and Ratdog's show late Saturday night.
I'm just hoping to not get caught in a traffic nightmare after Los Lobos. Wish me luck, I'm going back in.

Gathering of the Vibes - Saturday night

Posted by Sean on 5:17 AM | Comments (1)

I caught the second half of Keller William’s set at the Gathering of the Vibes late Saturday afternoon and, while he has a sizeable following, I don’t quite get him. It’s obvious he’s a good guitarist, but it’s all just a bit too goofy for me.
Williams’ performance did end on a high note, but that was mainly because he was joined by Bob Weir of Grateful Dead and Ratdog fame. Williams is presently on tour with Weir and Ratdog, so the collaboration was no surprise. Still, the two did an excellent version of The Dead’s “Scarlet Begonias” that was one of Saturday’s highlights.
Next up was Les Claypool, of Primus, Oysterhead and several other projects, and I really took to his offbeat show.
At first.
After a while, it just started to seem monotonous. He’s one of the most interesting bass players I have ever seen and he’s got an out-there personality – he wore a pig mask for most of his time on stage – but I just lost interest after about 30 minutes.
It was nice that he talked about his returning to Bridgeport – he was here for Vibes 2000 – and joked about how special sixth anniversaries were and he managed to make a connection with the huge crowd. His demeanor changed about an hour into his show when he apparently was hit with some sort of debris and, while remaining calm, said that whoever threw it should have instead stuck it . . . well, let’s just say put it elsewhere and leave it at that.
Claypool’s set also ended strongly and, once again, it was thanks to members of Ratdog, who joined him for the last three or four songs. For Claypool’s last tune, a whacked-out cover of The Beatles’ “Tomorrow Never Knows,” Weir himself joined in after being introduced by Claypool as “Mr. Edward Van Halen.”
Then it was finally time for Ratdog, which seemed to be the band most of the thousands at Seaside Park were there to see. Vibes master of ceremonies Wavy Gravy led the crowd in sending out some good thoughts to Ratdog’s missing guitarist, Mark Karan, who is sitting out this summer tour as he battles throat cancer, before Weir and Co. took the stage.
After a bit of a warm-up jam, Weir offered the first of his Grateful Dead songs, “Shakedown Street,” on which he was joined by former Dead singer Donna Jean Godchaux, who seems to have sat in with just about every band during the festival’s first three days.
Though I’m sure I don’t qualify as a Deadhead – I only went to one show – I am a fan of The Dead’s music and enjoyed Weir and Ratdog. But as midnight neared, I’d seen and heard enough and started to work my way to the exit.
I would have liked to have made it to the end of Ratdog’s performance, but I had a ratty old dog at home that needed to be tended to after too many hours on her own.

August 11, 2007

Gathering of the Vibes - early Saturday evening

Posted by Sean on 6:49 PM | Comments (0)

There may have been a few types of music spread out over the Gathering of the Vibes' three stages, but the more Grateful Dead-like the music, the happier the concert-goers seem to be.
Grateful Dead percussionist Mickey Hart brought his band to the Terrapin Stage Friday night and had local singer Jen Durkin helping out on vocals. The show itself was nothing special, as Hart himself noted, saying the band "was very unrehearsed, but enthusiastic."
Durkin would later lead Deep Banana Blackout out for one of the funk group's rare reunion shows.
It seemed that everything was leading up to Saturday night's show by another Grateful Dead alum, Bob Weir. The performance by his band, Ratdog, seems to be the most eagerly awaited of all the acts in the lineup. It should be interesting, to say the least.

Gathering of the Vibes - Saturday afternoon

Posted by Sean on 6:42 PM | Comments (0)

4:30. I stopped by a promotional booth run by the Magic Hat Brewing Company of Burlington, Vt., and took part in a game of chance. If you sign up for the company’s newsletter, you get three rolls of a pair of dice and if you total nine — after a brand of their beer — you win what most certainly would be a fabulous prize.
Well, my luck held true to form and I rolled a five, an eight and another five. I didn’t win anything, but I was offered a consolation prize of a Magic Hat condom.
I know alcohol can lead to unexpected pregnancies, so I’m certainly not going to take any chances with a free prophylactic given to losers of a dice game by a beer company. Even if it is a Magic Hat.

August 10, 2007

Gathering of the Vibes - Friday afternoon

Posted by Sean on 6:12 PM | Comments (0)

I’ll be honest, I had never been to a multi-day music festival and didn’t think I’d have the patience to deal with such large crowds for that length of time. But this Gathering of the Vibes has definitely altered my thinking.
Friday afternoon was rainy and cold and my hands were feeling a bit numb as I tried to scribble down the quotes I was taking during my reporting duties. But one thing that never seemed to change was the general good feeling I got while walking the festival grounds.
I can’t imagine getting roughly 10,000 or so people without any trouble, but that’s what’s happening so far at Seaside Park. Despite the weather, people were still smiling and kind and close to the stage there were still people dancing and otherwise enjoying themselves.
The cynical might say it’s because of the alcohol or other “medication,” but believe me, it’s the people here that are different.
You don’t think the typical Dave Matthews Band crowd has access to alcohol or is otherwise “medicated”? And look at how much trouble happens year after year at those concerts.
These people at the Vibes are practicing what they preach and, as the prophet Nick Lowe once wrote, “What’s So Funny ’Bout Peace, Love and Understanding?”

August 9, 2007

Gathering of the Vibes - Thursday evening

Posted by Sean on 9:25 PM | Comments (0)

Now this is more like it.
After an afternoon with not much happening, the Gathering of the Vibes now feels like a festival. People are no longer wandering around, getting used to their surroundings, but are laughing and dancing and singing along to The Dark Star Orchestra.
This is what I expected a Vibes to be like and the attendees do not disappoint me.
There are people dressed like bears, a couple on stilts, guys in dresses (bad idea), white guys with dreadlocks (really bad idea) and women playing with giant hula-hoops. And finally, after a day spent watching people throwing around Frisbees and footballs, I had my first Hacky Sack sighting.
And it wasn’t listed on any press release, but apparently there was a Ridiculous Hat Contest because there were some people wearing lids that Huggy Bear would be too embarrassed to sport.
What I took away from my first evening at the Vibes was the general good feeling I felt from the people. With five or six thousand people getting together, there wasn’t one hint of menace. No matter if a person would accidentally bump into you or vice versa, a smile or a simple apology was all that was needed.
And I saw a man drop a $20 on the ground behind him and three people rushed to stop him and give him his money back. It’s fair to say that that doesn’t happen often in Seaside Park.

Gathering of the Vibes - Thursday afternoon

Posted by Sean on 9:03 PM | Comments (0)

It's around 4 p.m. and it appears that all the campers at this Gathering of the Vibes have settled in and are just waiting for the major festivities to begin.
I see a lot of milling around as the people are getting the lay of the land at Seaside Park, which looks absolutely beautiful on this sunny day. If I didn’t see so many familiar landmarks, I would never imagine that this was the same park that I spent so much time in when I was growing up.
My father used to run a baseball team in the Senior City League and the field, called Seaside 1, was where they played a bulk of their games. In my youth, I was the batboy and also a foul-ball chaser for those teams, so being back at Seaside Park brings back a lot of happy memories.
Eventually, I would play baseball on the diamond there, but I still think back to my childhood whenever I’m at the park.
So it was definitely a shock to see Seaside 1 with a bunch of tents set up on it Thursday. And the concession stand, where I would get a post-game cheeseburger, has been transformed into a miniature market of sorts. The times they are a-changin' (if only temporarily).
Anyway, it’s good to see this jewel of a park being put to good use by so many people from outside of the area. They can now see that there’s plenty to like about Bridgeport.

August 6, 2007

Crowded House at Foxwoods

Posted by Sean on 12:57 AM | Comments (0)

Crowded House has reunited for its first tour in more than a decade and while it was much less hyped than The Police’s reunion, it was no less welcome.
The group kicked off its tour Friday night at Foxwoods and gave the crowd of about 1,400 at the Fox Theatre everything it could have hoped for musically, with the group’s warmth and humor putting the concert over the top. It was practically impossible to walk out of the venue without a smile on your face.
My infatuation with Crowded House started years after the band broke up in 1996, when I picked up a copy of “Recurring Dream: The Very Best of Crowded House” at a used CD store. In addition to the handful of songs that made it to radio or MTV, I discovered that I loved every song on the album.
Soon, it wasn’t enough to just have the hits. I had to search out the group’s entire catalog and, I’m happy to report, there wasn’t a bad disc in the bunch. The group, and leader Neil Finn in particular, knows how to craft a pop song and, though Crowded House fizzled commercially after its hit debut album, it never stopped putting out catchy records.
I haven’t (yet) picked up a copy of the new album, “Time on Earth,” so I was unfamiliar with the seven new songs mixed into Friday night’s set. Still, each one was a gem and blended perfectly with the classics.
Naturally, those hits – “Don’t Dream It’s Over,” “Something So Strong,” “Weather With You,” etc. – were greeted with the most applause, but the new tunes were welcomed almost as warmly.
The group managed to bridge the gap between performer and audience with some interaction that started when bassist Nick Seymour noticed someone near the front of the stage dining on fish and chips. Finn took up the cause, pleading for an order, which soon appeared on stage. After a sampling, Finn took it upon himself to pass out the remains to whichever audience member came up to the stage.
Hokey? Sure, but the crowd loved it. After all, how many times do you see a pop star taking the time to make sure his fans are well-fed?
After attending The Police’s mega-tour Tuesday and all the hassles involved with a stadium show, it was so refreshing to be at a show that was all about the music. The good feeling I had after seeing Crowded House lasted well after the long ride home from the casino. The good feeling I had from The Police’s performance dissipated with the loooong walk to my car and the hour-long wait to get out of the Rentschler Field parking lot.
When it comes to concerts, bigger, very often, is not better.

The set list
Locked Out/World Where You Live/Heaven That I’m Making/Nobody Wants To/Recurring Dream/Fall at Your Feet/Don’t Stop Now/Pour Le Monde/Don’t Dream It’s Over/When You Come/Italian Plastic/You Are the One to Make Me Cry/Silent House/Distant Sun/Something So Strong
Encore: Pineapple Head/She Called Up/Weather With You

August 1, 2007

The Police in Hartford

Posted by Sean on 3:59 AM | Comments (1)

For a concert tour more than two decades in the making, there seemed to be a lack of electricity attached to the show by The Police Tuesday night at Rentschler Field in West Hartford.
The set list was solid, the musicianship was as good as it ever was and Sting’s vocals sounded fine. In fact, it was a very good concert and the crowd of about 30,000 seemed pleased. Still, there was a missing intangible, a spark that was lacking, that kept the show from being labeled a great concert.
It would have been foolish to head into the stadium expecting the trio of bassist-singer Sting, guitarist Andy Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland to bring the energy they possessed on their last tour, which ended in early 1984. Maybe the excitement captured on the “Synchronicity Concert” video from that final tour is too ingrained in my memory for me to accept the rather stationary, and decidedly middle-aged, men on stage before me Tuesday.
And it’s also quite possible that the return of The Police doesn’t measure up to other much-hyped reunions. The band only released five albums in its six years together and broke up right after achieving its greatest success with the album Synchronicity.
Of the three, only Sting has found solo success, but that, too, has been flickering. When last we saw him, he was further confusing fans by singing Elizabethan-era songs to the accompaniment of a lute player. If any good comes out of this tour, hopefully it will be that Sting remembers his rock roots are decades old, not centuries.
The set lists on this Police tour have been pretty constant, with a song substituted here and there, but there is nothing wrong with the group’s choice of material. Some fans might have had a personal favorite left out, but the 20 tunes selected give a very good overview of the band’s career in the 105-minute concert.
Fans of early Police walked away happy as five songs were included from the debut album of 1978, Outlandos d’Amour, with the main portion of the concert ending with the group’s first worldwide smash, “Roxanne,” and the encores closing with “Next to You.”
The Police also performed five songs apiece from Synchronicity and 1980’s Zenyatta Mondatta, with some attention going to 1979’s Regatta de Blanc (3 songs) and 1981’s Ghost in the Machine (2).
Pre-tour talk of radical re-workings of classic Police cuts turned out to be just that – talk. The songs were done mostly as originally arranged, maybe a shade slower. “Wrapped Around Your Finger” seemed the most revamped to me and the differences were, again, basically negligible.
Only one song from the group’s greatest hits album was missing and that was “Spirits in the Material World” off Ghost in the Machine, a minor hit. That’s the beauty of seeing a band on a reunion tour (or a greatest-hits tour), you know the bulk of the show is going to be comprised of the best that act has to offer.
And so it was Tuesday night as the Rentschler Field crowd got the best of The Police. It may not have been the 1984 Police, but it was still good. Just not great.
FOR OPENERS: Fiction Plane, a trio led by Sting’s son, Joseph Sumner, 30, opened the show and was a bit of a disappointment. The group started off OK with a solid power-pop song, but seemed to lose its way in the course of its eight-song set. Fiction Plane never seemed to grab an identity, with sounds varying from new wave to prog-rock to classic power-trio rock, often in the same song. Not awful, but d finding a the band probably would benefit from narrowing its focus and finding its definitive sound.

The set list
Message in a Bottle/Synchronicity II/Walking on the Moon/Voices Inside My Head/When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What’s Still Around/Don’t Stand So Close to Me/Driven to Tears/Truth Hits Everybody/The Bed’s Too Big Without You/Every Little Thing She Does is Magic/Wrapped Around Your Finger/De Do Do Do De Da Da Da/Invisible Sun/Walking in Your Footsteps/Can’t Stand Losing You/Roxanne
Encores: King of Pain/So Lonely/Every Breath You Take/Next to You

July 25, 2007

Roger at the Red Door

Posted by Sean on 6:36 PM | Comments (0)

I checked out the Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers concert at The Red Door music café in Watertown Tuesday night and left the show wondering once again why this band isn’t hugely successful.
Clyne flirted with stardom as the driving force behind The Refreshments, which had a minor hit with “Banditos” off its 1996 debut album Fizzy Fuzzy Big and Buzzy. The group’s music also is known by fans of the Fox animated series “King of the Hill,” for which The Refreshments supplied the theme music.
I admit to not knowing much about Clyne’s “new” band — which released its first album, Honky Tonk Union, in 1998 — until a copy of the group’s latest, No More Beautiful World, came across my desk a few months ago. I popped it in my car stereo and it’s managed to stay in a heavy rotation ever since.
That’s why I was moved to drive the 35 or so miles from Bridgeport to Watertown at 9 p.m. on a Tuesday. Not exactly a prime party night. However, I wasn’t disappointed in the show or the little rock club which hosted it.
From what I gathered talking to a bouncer, The Red Door’s owner has a connection with Clyne and that’s how he ends up playing the venue on his stops in Connecticut. It really is a great place to see a concert, especially an act with a national following, but it specializes in bringing in local bands for weekend shows.
Clyne and his bandmates put on an incredible performance, gracing the stage for more than two hours and running through his four-album catalog, as well as a handful of songs from his days with The Refreshments.
Clyne’s music is All-American rock ’n’ roll, with a southwestern flair. The characters in the Arizona native’s song often drift across the border to Mexico and you can feel that country’s pull in the music.
Surprisingly, Clyne also adds a reggae beat to some of his tunes and it never seems forced or derivative.
The 200 or so people at The Red Door kept the energy level high as they very often sang along with Clyne or, when prodded, sang the lyrics for him. And Clyne is a true rock star with his stage patter and his interaction with audience members. It’s good to know that even in a remote outpost in Connecticut, Clyne is popular enough to draw people out on a Tuesday night and that they are all familiar with his music.
It’s a shame Clyne toils in relative obscurity while so many lesser talents play to thousands of people each night in amphitheaters across the country. If he’s disappointed, it didn’t show Tuesday as Clyne was engaging and seemed to really be enjoying himself.
There were a few glitches at The Red Door where the sound was a little off and the lack of air conditioning was more and more evident the closer I got to the stage. It was very much like a smaller version of New Haven’s Toad’s Place, right down to the smell of the beer-soaked wooden floor.

July 13, 2007

Kept in thrall by Krall

Posted by Sean on 4:39 AM | Comments (0)

Let me start by saying I’m not a jazz fan. I own, at most, three jazz CDs and normally don’t go out of my way to see jazz concerts. I will admit to enjoying some of the free concerts on the New Haven Green, but usually the jazz is just background music to meeting friends or catching up on some reading while the sun is still out.
But while doing some research on Diana Krall in advance of an interview that didn’t pan out, I found myself not only listening to her new album, “From this Moment On,” but liking it. Still, I spent Thursday afternoon at the office thinking up reasons to blow off Krall’s concert at the Chevrolet Theatre in Wallingford.
Since I had already committed through Krall’s PR person and since I couldn’t think of a convincing reason not to attend, I jumped on the Merritt Parkway pointing north and off I went. And, for the most part, I’m glad I did.
Krall stuck mostly to the standards, with an emphasis on songs from Peggy Lee and Nat King Cole. As I’m also shamefully ignorant of the Great American Songbook, I didn’t know too many of the songs in Krall’s set list because she obviously takes great pains not to just rehash the tunes Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra and singers of that ilk turned into hits decades ago.
Sure, I vaguely recall hearing versions of “Let’s Fall in Love” and “S’Wonderful” at some point in my life, but the only songs that I truly recognized were the two she performed from the new album, “Exactly Like You” and “Little Girl Blue.” And yet I still came away very impressed by the show.
Krall’s smoky, smooth vocals and deft piano work were more than complemented by her band, which included guitarist Anthony Wilson, drummer Jeff Hamilton and the extremely gifted bassist John Clayton. You didn’t have to be a jazz buff to know these guys were good.
Krall, on her first tour since giving birth to twin sons in December, also added some dry humor to the concert in her between-song chatter, especially in responding to an audience member’s shout.
She had the funniest line of the night when someone yelled, “How are the twins?” She casually looked down at her chest and said, “They’re OK. They’re finally getting smaller.”
Krall ended the evening with a song that seems to be everywhere these days, The Bee Gees’ “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart.” Maybe this was just Krall getting a head start on the Great Australian Songbook.
The opening act Thursday night was Chris Botti, a jazz trumpeter known to many for his time as the bandleader on the short-lived “Caroline Rhea Show.” Botti’s set was fine and his band was top-notch, but his kind of jazz really isn’t for me. It was OK, I guess, but I just get bored listening to jazz instrumentals. (It would have been ideal for an afternoon of reading on the New Haven Green, however.)
He did a nice turn on “Someone to Watch Over Me,” but I really didn’t care for his versions of two songs by Leonard Cohen, “Hallelujah” and “A Thousand Kisses Deep.” Maybe it was because I’m familiar with Cohen’s originals and could feel what was missing. Or maybe, Botti’s interpretations just weren’t that good.
But what do I know? Maybe a jazz aficionado would find them brilliant.

Diana Krall’s set list
I Love Being Here with You
Let’s Fall in Love
’Deed I Do
I’ll String Along with You
Exactly Like You
Let’s Face the Music and Dance
You're Getting to Be a Habit with Me
If I Had You
Devil May Care
Gee Baby, Ain’t I Good to You
Little Girl Blue
I Don’t Know Enough About You
Encore
S’Wonderful
How Can You Mend a Broken Heart

July 9, 2007

Going Underground

Posted by Sean on 12:16 AM | Comments (0)

I saw my first show at the Webster Underground in Hartford Friday night and I have to say I liked the place. It’s basically just three small rooms in the same building as the Webster Theater, but it was perfect for the poorly attended show like I went to with The Tossers and The Street Dogs.
I was surprised at the low turnout because The Street Dogs is the band fronted by original Dropkick Murphys singer Mike McColgan and plays similar music – punk with an Irish feel. And the drummer for the band is Joe Sirois, who used to pound the skins for The Mighty Mighty Bosstones.
The Tossers brings even more Celtic influences to its music, as the seven-piece group from Chicago uses, at times, a mandolin, tin whistle, accordion and fiddle.
Both bands were wildly entertaining and, if I still had the energy of my youth, I would have been up in front moshing the night away.
If there was one drawback to the Webster Underground, it’s that you can’t drink a beer in the room that houses the stage. Me and the two other beer-swillers I attended the show with were forced to watch from the adjacent barroom so the show would be available to an all-ages crowd.
A small sacrifice to make to see two great bands in an intimate setting.
One other thing that struck me as interesting was the different cultures on hand Friday night. At the Webster Underground, you had the punks with their spiked hair and piercings. At the much-larger Webster Theater, the place was swarming with aging metalheads waiting for the concert featuring Tesla to start.
Well, different strokes, eh?

July 1, 2007

The filth and the funny

Posted by Sean on 8:12 PM | Comments (1)

Opie and Anthony’s Traveling Virus infected the Mohegan Sun Arena Saturday night and was, as you would expect to find at a concert featuring several comedians, a hit-and-miss affair. And, as you also would expect from anything put together by the successful radio shock jocks, it was filthy.
Rich Vos, a third-place finisher on the first season of NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” program, started the show with 10 minutes of stand-up and was just dirty and offensive enough to show why he probably wasn’t destined to win a comedy competition on broadcast television. He was funny, though, even when working “clean.”
“I’m not a radio host, so I can’t lose my job,” Vos said after one racially insensitive comment, alluding to Don Imus’ firing. (I also will find myself unemployed if I reprint any of the jokes from Saturday night.)
After his 10-minute set, Vos served as the host of the bulk of the concert as Opie & Anthony didn’t even make an appearance until two hours into the show.
The second comedian was Frank Caliendo, who wasn’t filthy, but also wasn’t that funny. He spent his 10 minutes doing his impersonations of NFL analyst John Madden, presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton and a lame Al Pacino. His Pacino as Darth Vader fell especially flat.
Caliendo may be a talented mimic, but on this night, the material was lacking. However, he did score some points at the end of his set with a Chris Farley as Batman skit.
The night’s lone black comedian, Patrice O’Neal, killed during his time on stage with racially charged humor that was daring and hilarious. A true professional, he didn’t need to rev up the shock value of his jokes to make his points or pander to get laughs.
Unfortunately, that could not be said of the next act.
Otto & George was a ventriloquist act which mainly consisted of wooden dummy George saying something vile and the human dummy Otto merely replying “Don’t say that” or words to that effect. It was filth for filth’s sake and, in the end, utterly humorless.
Up next was the unknown-to-me Bobby Kelly, who my friend pointed out was a featured player in Dane Cook’s HBO show “Tourgasm.” Well I know who he is now as he had a strong comprehension of how to work “blue” while not forgetting to be uproarious. In other words, he’s no dummy.
The first half of the show closed with Bob Saget, who is the anti-Danny Tanner, his role on the sickly sweet sitcom “Full House.” The man is disgusting and I mean that in the most positive way. The only thing that limited my enjoyment of Saget’s set was my lack of knowledge about “Full House,” which I detested.
You didn’t have to be a fan of the show to get some of his stream-of-consciousness comments about sleeping with certain cast members, but judging by the audience reaction, it helped. Saget wrapped with a few songs, the last of which was the very funny “Danny Tanner Was Not Gay.”
After Saget came an unconscionable 30-minute intermission, which gave the lonely men in the crowd another chance to gawk at the strippers on stage and on a small platform set up in the back of the arena. No, the women didn’t strip and didn’t even dance for the most part. They just kind of stood around looking slutty. Obviously a talented troupe of “dancers.”
Opie & Anthony finally appeared to kick off the second set – after an old radio bit of theirs, now in cartoon form, aired on the screens. Anthony Cumia added some humor, relating his tales of winning money the night before at the casino, while drunk, of course. Gregg “Opie” Hughes really added nothing to the festivities, but then again, Opie and Anthony’s Traveling Virus really didn’t need Opie or Anthony.
Louis C.K. was, to me, the best of the whole lot. His ruminations on being in his 40s, being married with kids and how happy he was to be white were hilarious. His riff on 40-year-old men trying to act 20, with “orange tans, fake hair and muscles that don’t look like they belong,” was a riot.
Jim Norton, a regular contributor to Opie & Anthony’s program on XM Satellite Radio, followed and was another of the comedians who understood the right way to walk the tightrope between being funny and filthy as opposed to being filthy just for the sake of it. It’s easy to see why his star is on the rise in comedy circles and why he seemed to be the favorite of the radio show’s fans in attendance.
The show – which ran a ridiculously padded 3-1/2 hours – ended on a downer with Stephen Lynch, whose “comedic” songs fell flat. Watching his inane performance, it was hard for me to believe this guy packs theaters all over the country. Lynch was nominated for a Tony Award nomination for his role in “The Wedding Singer” and I request he stay on the Great White Way.
Obviously, with his success, that won’t happen.
It was just reassuring for me that a lot of people started streaming toward the exit after a couple minutes of his idiotic songs. It was surprising to me how lame he was because I was looking forward to seeing what the buzz attached to Lynch was all about. Unfortunately, I think I needed to be buzzed to laugh at any of his schtick.

June 22, 2007

Celtic Woman in Bridgeport

Posted by Sean on 6:18 AM | Comments (1)

If there was such a thing as the rock music writers club, I’m sure I’d be thrown out for what I’m about to write. On the other hand, to paraphrase my hero Groucho Marx, I wouldn’t join any club that would have me as a member.
The point is, I actually enjoyed the Celtic Woman concert at the Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport Thursday night, much more than I thought I would. My taste in Irish music runs from Tommy Makem and The Clancy Brothers to Dropkick Murphys and The Pogues, so I never imagined I would ever write that about Celtic Woman.
Now I’m mainly from Irish stock, but I have never been a huge fan of Celtic Woman’s music or the live concerts taped for repeated PBS airings. It was all just a little too sweet for me. After all, I had owned a dozen Clancy Brothers records before I had my first Beatles album - and that was at least eight years or so after The Fab Four broke up – so I prefer my Irish music a little more traditional and a little more rowdy.
As for Celtic Woman, I had seen bits and pieces of the group’s PBS specials and it was just a little too pretty for me, almost a little too perfect. But such was not the case Thursday night.
It’s almost hard to fault any part of a concert that featured four pretty young singers and an equally fetching fiddle player all at the top of their games. Even if the beauty of the performers didn’t pull you in, the true artistry of their singing and musicianship would.
In an interview prior to the group’s arrival in Bridgeport, singer and harp player Olga Fallon attributed the band’s success to Celtic Woman’s “variety of music” and the fact that the music itself is “very uplifting.” Turns out she wasn’t embellishing, but I had to witness the concert in person to realize it.
In all honesty, I had never watched the PBS specials in their entirety, so I was a bit surprised by how many of the songs were solo performances. Occasionally, there would be another Celtic Woman or two helping out, but for the most part, it was seemingly a showcase for each individual artist.
And the women of Celtic Woman shined when called upon. Highlights for me were Lisa Kelly singing “Caledonia” and “The Voice”; Meav Ni Mhaolchatha on “Danny Boy”; Fallon singing and playing the harp on “Carrickfergus”; and Chloe Agnew performing “The Prayer.”
But whenever the concert would drag a bit, out would come Celtic Woman’s not-so-secret weapon, violinist Mairead Nesbitt. The diminutive Nesbitt provided a jolt of energy each time she stepped into the spotlight and often provided the perfect musical bridge between her colleagues’ solo moments.
Though all five members of Celtic Woman are Irish, the group is obviously steeped in the history of American pop music. The songs the group covered Thursday included Simon & Garfunkel’s “Scarborough Fair,” Bobby Darin’s “Beyond the Sea” and the Judy Garland classic, “Over the Rainbow.”
Celtic Woman also performed Enya’s hit “Orinoco Flow,” which was slightly less irritating than the original.
Some of the show’s highlights were actually newer songs, written or co-written by musical director David Downes. Those included the rousing “At the Ceili” and “Sing Out.”
The two-hour show ended with, as Fallon promised, something uplifting, the song “You Raise Me Up,” before a pseudo-encore. The singers said good night to the crowd and walked off stage, but the music didn’t stop. Nesbitt played on with the other musicians before the rest of Celtic Woman retook the stage and breathed some life into the traditional “Spanish Lady” to bring the concert to a close.

May 31, 2007

In love with LaVere

Posted by Sean on 5:15 PM | Comments (0)

Café Nine in New Haven served up another fine show Wednesday night and, unless you were one of the 30 or so people there, you missed out on another gem.
Amy LaVere showed she is even more engaging in concert than on her albums, no small feat considering the level of talent she brings to her two albums, This World is Not My Home, released in January of 2006, and her new album, Anchors & Anvils.
I realize it isn’t easy for a lot of people to head to a nightclub on a Wednesday night, but surely there must be more than 30 people in New Haven and Fairfield counties who appreciate good music.
In an ideal world, LaVere would have achieved the same level of stardom as Norah Jones, whose fans, by the way, would have loved Wednesday’s performance. LaVere, however, would never be called “Snorah,” as some of the nastier critics have dubbed Jones.
Unlike Jones’ piano-based music, LaVere’s music is driven by the guitar, which she augments with her solid upright bass playing. On tour, LaVere, petite and attractive, is getting stellar guitar work from Mark Miller, the new bass player for country traditionalists BR549. Miller also contributed harmony vocals, which meshed nicely with LaVere’s dreamy voice.
LaVere touched on both albums in her set and added her take on Leonard Cohen’s “Tonight Will Be Fine” in addition to the covers she recorded on Anchors & Anvils, Carla Thomas’ “That Beat” Bob Dylan’s “I’ll Remember You.”
The 90-minute show ended on yet another high note with LaVere leading her band in a rousing version of The Byrds’ “Mr. Spaceman.”
It would have definitely been worth it if you had made the effort to get to Café Nine to see LaVere. You might have been a little tired Thursday, but you could have always caught up on your sleep over the weekend.

May 21, 2007

Ride on

Posted by Sean on 4:01 PM | Comments (0)

I caught the last hour of The New Riders of the Purple Sage show at the Acoustic Cafe in Bridgeport Saturday night and came away impressed. Of course, that often happens when I go to concerts with zero expectations.
I was never a fan of NRPS and the only song I knew was "Panama Red," which I got there too late to hear Saturday, but what I did hear of the band I liked. It was easy to catch on to why the band was successful as its Grateful Dead roots showed throughout each song (the band started as a Jerry Garcia side project).
If you want a more biased opinion, my friend Carol was at the show and she is a longtime fan of the band. Carol couldn't believe how good the band sounded after all these years and she and her sister were both sporting extra-wide grins by the end of the show.
My highlight was when opening act Reid Genauer joined the band for a run-through of The Dead's "Friend of the Devil." I didn't get to see Genauer's set, but I will atone for that when I see him at Gathering of the Vibes this summer in Bridgeport as a solo artist, with his band Assembly of Dust and with the reunited Strangefolk.

May 15, 2007

Refreshing record

Posted by Sean on 7:35 PM | Comments (0)

I must admit to not knowing anything about Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers, but when a copy of the album No More Beautiful World crossed my desk I knew there had to be more to this band.
After all, how many unknown bands have such impressive packaging, as well as a bonus 80-minute DVD?
It turns out Clyne was the voice of The Refreshments, which had a minor hit in the '90s with the song "Banditos" from the album Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy, in addition to recording that twangy theme song for the animated "King of the Hill."
Anyway, I'm extremely glad I gave the disc a listen as it soon became one of those CDs I couldn't bring myself to take out of my car's stereo. From the uplifting opener, "Hello New Day," to the reggae-tinged "Bottom of the Bay," this is acoustic-based rock at its best.
Clyne's southwestern roots make appearances throughout, most notably on the song "Andale," and he's quite adriot at turning a phrase, a talent that, to me, can't be overlooked.
Not only do I love this album, but it's led me to go back into my CD collection and dig out Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy and its follow-up, The Bottle & Fresh Horses.
You can find out more about Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers at www.azpeacemakers.com.
It was while browsing that site that I discovered the Clyne will be in Connecticut on July 24 at The Red Door in Watertown and I plan on making the trip north to check out the show. If you're interested, call the Red Door at (860) 945-6688.

April 16, 2007

Livin' on blues power

Posted by Sean on 5:21 PM | Comments (0)

Caught the second of two shows by The Muddy Waters Band at the Fairfield Theatre Company Saturday night and I have to admit I was more than pleasantly surprised.
I knew "Steady Rollin'" Bob Margolin would be good, having seen him twice in New Haven - at Cafe Nine recently and at the Blues Cafe a few years back.
But to see drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith do his thing gave me chills. There is nothing fancy to his playing, but you don't need to show off to be great. He even sang a few old Chicago blues numbers and I now regret I didn't buy one of his albums at the show.
Mark Naftalin, who lives in the Southport section of Fairfield, sat in for the first half of the show on piano, a position he held for many years with The Paul Butterfield Blues Band. If you didn't know better, you could have sworn he was a visiting college professor, with his light tan suit and sweater vest, but the man can still tear it up.
Naftalin was soon replaced by the third guest of honor, blues piano giant Pinetop Perkins. The mere fact that he's still out on the road at the age of 93 deserves respect, but he can still play and sing.
I remember seeing Perkins at the Chicago Blues Festival in 1997 or '98 when the festival's main concert was dedicated to piano masters. There was Perkins, followed by Charles Brown (who didn't perform because of an illness) and then Ray Charles. People told me then I was lucky to see Perkins because, at 83, he might not be around too much longer.
It's kind of funny that he's still doing it and Brother Ray is no longer with us.
The opening act was West Haven's Rocky Lawrence and Steve McLean, doing their acoustic blues thing. Their set was very well-received and if you get a chance to see the duo, take it. And do it soon as Lawrence informed me that McLean is moving back to California in the fall.

March 25, 2007

Goo Goo Dolls at SHU

Posted by Sean on 4:37 AM | Comments (547)

The set list
Dizzy/Slide/Feel the Silence/Black Balloon/January Friend/Tucked Away/Name/We’ll Be Here (When You’re Gone)/Become/Stay With You/Smash/Without You Here/Broadway/Better Days/Iris/Let Love In
Encore: Acoustic #3/Give a Little Bit