Concert #822 - Dave Alvin, Syd Straw & Peter Case at McCabe's Guitar Shop (March 24, 2018)

This was the second in a series of special shows celebrating the 60th anniversary of McCabe's, with a portion of the proceeds going to Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation. Featuring three of my favorite singer-songwriters - Dave Alvin, Syd Straw and Peter Case - the show did not disappoint.

Seated side-by-side, Dave, Syd and Peter delivered a round-robin set that included lots of storytelling  and yes, also an occasional song, here and there. Normally I would complain about shows where the spoken word outweighs the music, but last night the spoken word turned out to be hilariously funny, the music was great, as expected, so I went home totally happy.

The proceedings were kicked-off by Peter Case with an outstanding rendition of his "Try Me One More Time", followed in order by Syd, Dave, then Peter again and so on. Needless to say, this was an extremely casual affair, with no scripted lines and no set lists - at times it felt like I was in a living room and having a good time with a bunch of musician friends.

To these ears, the evening's best moments were Syd Straw's epic delivery of "Love And The Lack Of It", Dave's low-key "Downey Girl" and Peter's "Somebody Told The Truth". Another highlight was George Jones' "What Am I Worth", performed with intensity by Dave and Syd at the end of their set. And speaking of covers: their extended encore included a thoroughly funny interpretation of Chip Taylor's "Wild Thing" and also a sing-along, Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land". For the latter, our main protagonists were joined on stage by the exuberant Cindy Wasserman and Frank Drennen, collectively known as the Dead Rock West, and also by Cindy Lee Berryhill.

I can't wait for the third special anniversary show!

Dave Alvin, Syd Straw & Peter Case at McCabe's

Dave Alvin & Syd Straw at McCabe's

Peter Case at McCabe's

Syd Straw at McCabe's

Dave Alvin at McCabe's

The Grand Finale: This Land Is Your Land

Dave Alvin & Dead Rock West at McCabe's

The stage

Sign in the window at McCabe's

Concert #806 - Dead Rock West at McCabe's Guitar Shop (August 11, 2017)

Most folks don't know much about Dead Rock West, so let me tell you who they are. Occasionally described as a hidden treasure, they are a duo consisting of Frank Lee Drennen and Cindy Wasserman, are based in Los Angeles and specialize in a hard-to-define genre that mixes various different styles, so - for the sake of convenience - let's just call it Americana with an increased decibel level. Here are the highlights of this sold-out event:

- Cindy Wasserman's voice and singing style
- The outstanding vocal interaction between Cindy and Frank
- The quality of the band that took the stage in support of Cindy and Frank
- Their catchy songs, most of them culled from "More Love", their brand new album

Even though the duo's set list had far more originals than covers, I found their offering quite accessible, as most of the self-penned songs were catchy and engaging even at first blush. Their choice of covers deserves kudos as well - I particularly liked "Gone Gone Gone" and "Price Of Love", both from the repertoire of the Everly Brothers and "Ain't No Grave", an old song that keeps popping up with regularity.

Consisting of Geoff Pearlman (guitars), Phil Parlapiano (keys), Taras Prodaniuk (bass) and D.J. Bonebrake (drums), the band that accompanied Cindy and Frank was nothing short of sensational. I happened to be seated in a perfect position to observe the hands and faces of D.J. and Taras, two musicians I had seen many times before, and what a treat it was to be able to watch such a world-class rhythm section in action from just a few steps away!

Now let the photos do the talking.

The Dead Rock West at McCabe's

Cindy Wasserman at McCabe's

Frank Lee Drennen at McCabe's

Frank Lee Drennen & Geoff Pearlman at McCabe's

Phil Parlapiano at McCabe's

Taras Prodaniuk at McCabe's

The set list

The stage

Concert #651 - Val McCallum at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 29, 2012)

Last night I attended another one of those concerts that keep bringing me back to McCabe's time and time again. Guitarist extraordinaire Val McCallum, accompanied by a few friends, put on a fabulous two-hour-long show that was filled with lots of musical joy and laughter.

Last night, Val's guests were two singers whose voices have been heard by millions around the world, namely Jackson Browne and Colin Hay of Men At Work fame. The appearance of the former was somewhat predictable, but everyone in the room was thoroughly surprised when Val brought out Colin Hay. I myself was unaware of any earlier connection between the two.

The evening coincided with the release of "At The End Of The Day", Val's debut album. The concert kicked-off with Val singing the title song, the very same number he picked to end his first-ever solo show three months ago. The first song of the evening was also the only time we saw Val unaccompanied on the stage. First, he was joined by the lovely Cindy Wasserman for the singing of five slower songs of a personal nature, all taken from the new album. "Digging For Gold" and "Tokyo Girl" were my favorites. Jackson Browne dropped in to sing backup vocals on "Tokyo Girl", a song written by Val for Shelli, his wife of many years. The pace picked up considerably when Val swapped his acoustic guitar for an electric one to sing and play one of the album's strongest songs, "Ghost Town".

For years I had been fantasizing about seeing Colin Hay live at McCabe's, so I screamed with excitement when Val brought him out. Colin made us laugh with his unique sense of humor and his heavy Scottish accent only helped matters. Sadly, he only sang two songs, "Don't Wait Up", from his solo years, and "Overkill", the mega-hit from his days with Men At Work. Both songs were received very warmly by the crowd. Colin's easy-to-recognize voice was as strong as ever and his confident stage presence was a sight to see. Cecilia Noel, Colin's Peruvian wife, sang backup vocals on "Overkill".

Val McCallum with his guest Colin Hay at McCabe's

The arrival of drummer Fritz Lewak and bassist Tyler Chester brought another jolt of energy to the stage, so by the time Jackson Browne took the stage, the place was ready to rock. Jackson sat down behind his keyboards and went on to deliver a good size set of six songs, all taken from his vast back catalog. "Rock Me On The Water", "The Pretender" and especially "Doctor My Eyes" were out of this world, with the band working as a well-oiled machine, playing loud and rocking the house with power and precision. Val McCallum's solos on electric guitar were some of the best I've ever heard at McCabe's or anywhere else, for that matter.

Jackson Browne and Chavonne Stewart at McCabe's

Jackson Browne's set benefited tremendously from the presence of his recent backup vocalists, Alethea Mills and Chavonne Stewart. I enjoyed very much watching their moves and I certainly liked their voices.

Val McCallum, Alethea Mills & Chavonne Stewart

Val McCallum, Alethea Mills & Chavonne Stewart

The concert continued with Val and Cindy Wasserman. They performed Val's own "Rarebird" and a few great covers, such as Neil Young's "Pocahontas" and John Doe's "Burning House Of Love". Again, Val's electric guitar took center stage with a few blistering solos.

The set list

Another set list

For the encore, Val came out wearing a cowboy hat and talking pretty much like Beau Shit, his Cochtotan-based alter-ego. Together with Cindy and the band, he delivered a fast-paced version of "Wrecking Ball", a song I first heard with the Knitters a few years back.

Val McCallum as Beau Shit, with Cindy Wasserman

All-in-all, it was a wonderful concert that offered quite a variety of musical styles, from slow ballads to fast and loud rock & roll. With so many great musicians coming and going, the show was thoroughly entertaining. Special kudos go to Val McCallum, a musician I learned of only in 2005, but who since then has given me tons of musical pleasures.

Jackson Browne saying goodbye

Val McCallum signing autographs after the show

Shelli McCallum, aka the Tokyo Girl

Mikki Itzigsohn kicking off the proceedings

The stage before the show

Val McCallum's autograph on my new CD

 

Concert #597 - Jill Sobule & John Doe at McCabe's Guitar Shop (July 9, 2011)

This was the second of two sold-out shows at McCabe's featuring the unlikely pairing of two artists from different generations and different musical backgrounds. Yet Jill Sobule and John Doe got along just fine, as if they had been playing together for a lifetime. It almost felt like watching two old friends jamming in a living room, that's how relaxed and comfortable with each other they appeared to be. It's always the case: when the performers are having fun, so is the audience, and we all had a lot of fun, with great songs and good humor that just kept coming and coming.

The stage, photographed just before the show

Frequently alternating between various stringed instruments, both acoustic and electric, Jill and John played songs from "A Day At The Pass", their current joint album, as well as some of their older material. Jill was in perfect vocal shape and I was delighted to once again hear "Where Is Bobbie Gentry", "Good Life", "Mexican Wrestler" and "San Francisco", among her other songs. Watching her intense delivery from my front-row seat was pure joy - if you have not seen Jill live, you don't know what you're missing. John Doe was equally good. I enjoyed all of his new material, but what I liked the best was his punk-ish delivery of "White Girl", from his days with X.

I typically don't like the use of profanities on stage, certainly not by female performers, but Jill's use of the F-word in her "We Want Our America Back" was nothing short of hilarious.

Throughout the evening, Jill and John were accompanied by bassist Dave Carpenter. Toward the end of the show, local songstress Cindy Wasserman popped in for a song.

What? No roadies? Jill and John setting up before the show.

The set list

Jill Sobule and John Doe at McCabe's (July 9, 2011)

The show was opened by singers Sean Wheleer & Zander Schloss, with the latter doubling up as an able multi-instrumentalist. Although somewhat dissimilar in terms of their musical backgrounds, Sean and Zander combined well to play a listenable set of self-penned songs. Zander's use of the bouzouki added more color to their set.

All-in-all, it was yet another great evening of music at McCabe's.

Alan Kanter (left) and Wayne Griffith, with a combined 75 years of sound engineering experience at McCabe's

Window poster at McCabe's