Concert #615 - Peter Case at McCabe's Guitar Shop (December 3, 2011)

Great show last Saturday at McCabe's. Almost three years after his unexpected open heart surgery in January 2009, Peter Case appeared to be in great shape in all respects - showing no signs of slowing down, he played two sets of decent length, gave an encore and spent time with his fans not only before and after the show, but also during the intermission.
 
Peter's stage decoration was the most elaborate I've ever seen at McCabe's, and I've seen close to three hundred concerts there. In addition to the routine stuff - guitars, piano, amps, wiring and the like - there were flowers, candles, a coat hanger, hats, a miniature Christmas tree, books, more flowers, a hand painting and a vintage American flag with forty-eight stars.

Stage - Front view

Stage - Side view

The show was recorded for a long-overdue "Peter Case Live At McCabe's" album, yet I did not get the impression that there was a predetermined set list. Peter talked a lot between songs and I don't mean it as a negative - everything he said was captivating, informative and quite often funny. In terms of the song selection, the main focus was on his own songs, both old and new, but there were plenty of covers, mostly classic blues numbers from the masters of the genre (Sleepy John Estes, Sony Boy Williamson, Jimmy Smith, Leadbelly and others).

Peter switched frequently between his electric and acoustic guitars and played a few numbers at the piano as well. There was an "anything and everything goes" feeling on the stage, which is exactly the opposite of what one would think a recording session is like.

Peter Case - Electric

Peter Case - Acoustic

For me, the highlights of the show were "Beyond The Blues", "Words In Red" and "Ain't Gonna Worry No More". "Put Down The Gun" was good as well.

There was a three-song encore that included "Which Side Are You On", the old labor anthem, and his own "Hidden Love". He performed the entire encore from the floor, standing right in front of the stage. For the labor song he was joined by folkies Cindy Lee Berryhill and Phranc, but their contributions were minimal.

All in all, this was the best Peter Case concert I have ever seen.

The final bow

Some of the stuff brought along by Peter

Peter Case chatting with fans after the show

Peter Case with fellow musician Matt Cartsonis

Concert #502 - Loudon Wainwright & Friends (Peter Case Benefit) at McCabe's Guitar Shop

This was the first of three sold-out concerts organized at McCabe's to benefit Peter Case, whose medical expenses had amounted to much more than his wallet could bear. Tickets cost $50 per night, a small amount to pay for a good cause, not to mention the chance to see a plethora of great musicians who offered their time and talent to help out a fellow musician in need.

Announced as "Loudon Wainwright III & Friends", the evening sold out ina couple of days.

LIST OF PERFORMERS

Loudon Wainwright III

Van Dyke Parks

Inara George

Phranc

George Gerdes

Peter Case

Leland Sklar

Grant Geissman

The concert kicked off with Van Dyke Parks and Inara George, who played a few songs from their earlier collaborative effort, Inara's "An Invitation" album. Not bad for a short set, but not my cup of tea for a full evening.

Inara George & Van Dyke Parks

Phranc's set was short, but quite good. She sang one of my favorite Phranc songs, "I Like You", then she followed up with "I'm A Peter Case Lover", a paraphrase of her own "Live Lover".

Phranc

Loudon Wainwright brought out a somewhat reluctant Peter Case, at his first public appearance after his open heart surgery in January 2009. Looking understandably weak and out of shape, Peter brought the house down with his version of Blind Willie McTell's "Broke Down Engine Blues".

Peter Case

Loudon's long-time friend and collaborator George Gerdes popped in for a couple of songs, while the legendary Leland Sklar and guitarist Grant Geissman provided accompaniment during much of the evening.

Leland Sklar

The show was closed, as expected, by Loudon Wainwright. It was my seventeenth time to see him live in concert, which probably explains why I can't remember a single song he played that night. But he was his usual good self, that I know.

All-in-all, it was a fun evening, with a few great artists coming and going in quick succession, which kept all of us fully engaged until the lights went on.

Concert poster in the window at McCabe's (with unwanted street reflections)

Concert #545 - Phranc at McCabe's Guitar Shop (February 27, 2010)

I can't say that it was a great concert. I can't say it was bad either, just a bit different and it wasn't because my gender was in the minority there. That I expected.

Phranc introduced herself, redundantly, as the All-American Jewish Lesbian Folksinger, then went on to celebrate her sexual orientation in words and music, much to the enthusiastic approval of the crowd. She was in "OK" vocal shape, sang a few good songs, but overall, her show was uni-dimensional and by the time the proceedings ended, I was ready to head home.

I can recall only a few songs: "Bulldagger Swagger" and "M-A-R-T-I-N-A", dedicated to Martina Navratilova, of course.

The evening started with a big surprise: there was no opening act on the bill, yet - out of the blue - Exene Cervenka showed up and played a good set of decent length, with vocal accompaniment by Cindy Wasserman. Exene sang songs from her then-current album, titled "Somewhere Gone".

Exene Cervenka