Concert #816 - Vonda Shepard at McCabe's Guitar Shop (December 9, 2017)

This is a brief write-up on a concert that I attended in December 2017.

I went to the show with two Canadian friends who were visiting us. I was hoping to offer them a top-notch concert at my favorite venue, but things did not work out quite the way I wanted. First, Vonda may have been a bit under the weather, so she did not have a good vocal day. Then there was her set list. While I absolutely love the way Vonda covers other people's songs, I have always had a harder time embracing her original music and, in that respect, my hopes of hearing one cover after another were not fulfilled

Vonda came out with an outstanding band consisting of Andrew Raiher (guitar), Jim Hanson (bass) and Fritz Lewak (drums). Later in the show, Vonda invited to stage three other musical guests: guitar ace Val McCallum, bassist/vocalist Davey Faragher and keyboardist Jeff Young. They were all good.

My guests liked the show and that is what really mattered.

Vonda Shepard & Jim Hanson at McCabe's

Vonda Shepard at McCabe's

Val McCallum at McCabe's

Davey Faragher & Fritz Lewak at McCabe's

The set list - Page 1

The set list - Page 2

L to R: Jim, Andrew, Fritz, Vonda, Jeff & Val after the show

Vonda Shepard merchandise

 

Concert #782 - Vonda Shepard at McCabe's Guitar Shop (July 16, 2016)

A sentence such as "Vonda is loved by many, but known by few" does not seem to be particularly logical, but somehow, paradoxically, it does ring a bit true. Vonda's appearance at McCabe's sold out in the end, but it took weeks and weeks to get there - this supports the "know by few" part, but let me tell you, whoever was there, showered her with their full love and adulation. Standing ovations are quite frequent at McCabe's, but how often can one witness there a musician performing in front of a crowd that just does not want to sit down? Well, that's precisely what happened during Vonda's final few songs of her set, a strong sign that, indeed, she is loved by many.

 

Vonda Shepard at McCabe's

I'm not a Vonda Shepard expert. Over the years, I have paid attention mostly to her cover songs, to the detriment of her original compositions, so there I was last week at McCabe's, hoping to hear nothing but covers and frowning a bit every time she launched into a self-penned number. As it turned out, her own material dominated the evening - at first blush, I did like some of her songs, while others would definitely require a few more listens.

I enjoyed tremendously her soulful and passionate delivery of Dan Penn's "Sweet Inspiration" and John Fogerty's "Proud Mary". Equally good were her renditions of "Walk Away Renee" and "Respect Yourself", both well-known radio staples from decades ago.

A few words about Vonda's outstanding band: James Ralston (guitar), Jim Hanson (bass, backup vocals) and Michael Urbano (drums) were very good individually and also collectively, as one would expect from musicians who have been playing together for years. Assuming a somewhat lower-key role, producer Mitchell Froom played his keyboard in the corner of the stage, partially obscured by the other musicians. Vonda sat behind her keyboard for most of the show, but took center stage for a couple of songs toward the end of the show.

Vonda Shepard & Jim Hanson at McCabe's

Comprised mostly of Vonda Shepard connoisseurs, the crowd responded with enthusiasm to her performance throughout the evening, then brought her back for not one, but two encores, each consisting of one song, first Don Covay's "Chain Of Fools", then finally, the much-covered "You Belong To Me".

Vonda's set list

It took me some after-the-concert googling to identify Vonda's unannounced guest, namely Jeff Young, who contributed backup vocals and some spirited keyboard playing on a couple of songs.

This concert will be hard to forget. Vonda's voice and singing ability are something to behold and I will never forget her intensity and, most of all, her gorgeous smile.

Vonda Shepard at McCabe's

Vonda Shepard, Jim Hanson & Jeff Young at McCabe's

Mitchell Froom at McCabe's

James Ralston tuning his guitar before the show

The merch table

More merchandise

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Concerts #731 & 732 - Jackshit at McCabe's Guitar Shop (December 5-6, 2014)

Announced as The Fifth Annual Have A Shitty Christmas Spectacular, these two shows did not need a lot of time to sell out - five hours after the announcement went out, all tickets for the Saturday show were gone and a few days later, the Friday show sold out as well.

This blog contains many other write-ups that focus on Jackshit, the band, so I won't repeat the real names of the band members, nor their assumed  monikers.

The band was in their usual great form, both in terms of music and humor, with Rock & Roll Hall-Of-Famer Pete Thomas being more talkative than ever before.

As a tribute to the recently passed-on Jack Bruce, Jackshit played a great version of "White Room", featuring Shorty's outstanding vocals. Beau stayed away from the guitar lines of Cream's original recorded and came up with his own tasty riffs.

As always, the band's Christmas shows generated a certain buzz, as we were all wondering who the surprise guests might be. This year we must declare ourselves happy with the crop of guests who popped in for a few songs each. Here are their names:

Friday: Jackson Browne, Tammy Faye Starlite, Larry Goldings, Charlie Faragher, Nick Vuckovich
Saturday: Dave Alvin, Vonda Shepard, Charlie Faragher, Nick Vuckovich, Pammy & Jimmy Faragher

Unannounced guest Jackson Browne at McCabe's

Let me first say that Jackson Browne can no longer be described as a "surprise"guest, as he comes out to play with the band more often than not. As always, Jackson delivered his songs in a low-profile kind of way that was well received by the crowd. After his Friday night's set of four-songs, he came out again for the encore to play "Take It Easy", which transitioned seamlessly into "Our Lady Of The Well". By the way, the song abbreviated as ROE on Friday night's set list is "Running On Empty", as you might have guessed.

Guest Dave Alvin at McCabe's

Dave Alvin's appearance during the Saturday show was truly special. Adding outstanding storytelling and good humor to his stellar guitar playing and songwriting, Dave, a.k.a. No Shit, brought the house down like only he can. His musical chemistry with Val McCallum came in evidence as they were trading guitar licks while exchanging humorous looks. Watching the two feeding off of each other was definitely one of the highlights of the evening.

Guests Larry Goldings and Tammy Faye Starlite

Introduced as Tammy Chick Shit, Hoboken singer Tammy Lang introduced us to her Tammy Faye Starlite character and what an introduction that was: with her coarse language, faux-anti-semitism and excessive facial make-up, Tammy Faye stood in sharp contrast with your typical McCabe's female performer. Supported by Grammy-nominee Larry Goldings, Tammy Faye sang Willie Nelson's "Crazy" and Loretta Lynn's "Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year".

Youngsters Charlie Faragher (drums) and Nick Vuckovich (vocals), both members of a pre-teen band named Bang, joined Val McCallum and Davey Faragher to deliver "Nobody's Fault But Mine", from the repertoire of Led Zeppelin. In spite of their young age, Charlie and Nick did exceptionally well.

Guest Nick Vuckovich

Introduced as Sassy Shit and Soul Shit, Davey Faragher's siblings Pammy and Jimmy took the stage to deliver two up-tempo classic soul numbers. I knew one of them - "Lovey Dovey", recorded by Otis Redding & Carla Thomas - but I had to look up the other one, a late sixties hidden gem titled "Soulshake", recorded among others by Delaney & Bonnie and Peggy Scott & JoJo Benson. I was very impressed with Pammy and Jimmy's vocal prowess and I know that I will remember Pammy's unconventional dance moves for a long, long time.

Guests Pammy & Jimmy

Saturday night was my first time ever to see Vonda Shepard in action. Looking and sounding great, Vonda delivered her own version of Willie Nelson's "Crazy". There were few parallel's between Vonda's rendition and the one performed the night before by Tammy Faye Starlite.

Guest Vonda Shepard

Here are the set lists of the two shows:

Set list - December 5

Set list - December 6

Overall, I enjoyed both shows very much, especially the second night, when we got to hear "Ugly And Slouchy", the band's "country-oldie-cum-rock & roll-medley" that, to these ears, was pure delight.

Val McCallum at McCabe's

Val and Pammy

Davey Faragher at McCabe's

Val McCallum and Jackson Browne at McCabe's

Pete Thomas at McCabe's

Concert Director Lincoln Myerson announcing the show

The stage

Concert posters