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 #520 - Pieta Brown at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 20, 2009)

I first saw Pieta Brown when she opened for J.J. Cale at McCabe's in March 2009 and I liked her quite a bit. Her headlining gig, also at McCabe's, was a somewhat different experience. The show wasn't bad, but it lacked changes of pace and was a little short on variety - Pieta writes good songs, but they all fit the same mold, more or less. But I don't mean to sound exceedingly negative, Pieta is a talented performer who will be around for many years to come.

The standout tracks were "Ring Of Gold" and "How Many Times", with some great guitar work from husband Bo Ramsey. She also sang her own "In My Mind I Was Talkin' To Loretta", plus a few classic folk-blues covers.

At no time did Bo Ramsey's electric guitar overpower Pieta's voice. On the contrary, his tasteful and understated playing was a great complement to Pieta's songs.

Bo Ramsey and Pieta Brown

The opening act was Dead Rock West, a Los Angeles-based folk-rock band featuring Cindy Wasserman on vocals.