Concert #505 - T Bone Burnett & Friends (Peter Case Benefit Concert) at McCabe's Guitar Shop (May 3, 2009)

Only at McCabe's. Where else can you have a front-row center seat and see the heavyweights I got to see on May 3, 2009. But front-row center seats don't come easy - they have to be earned, so there I was at the door, first in line, more than two hours before they allowed people in. My friends may be right after all - I am crazy.

This was the third and final night of Peter Case benefit concerts held at McCabe's. Tickets cost $50, just like for the first two nights

LIST OF PERFORMERS

T Bone Burnett

Richard Thompson

Katie Melua

Eric Idle

Syd Straw

Joe Henry

Geoff Muldaur

Bob Neuwirth

Sam Phillips

Peter Case

Carla Olson

The concert was kicked off by T Bone himself, who played five newer songs. He used two old vintage microphones that stayed on the stage for the entire duration of the concert.

Syd Straw came out with none other than Richard Thompson - it appeared to me that they had been chatting upstairs and when time came for Syd to take the stage, Richard simply tagged along, to Syd's utter surprise.

Syd Straw

Joe Henry's set was very well received - he played two well-crafted songs in his inimitable style.

Joe Henry at McCabe's (photo by Roman Cho)

A yet-to-be-fully-recovered Peter Case, accompanied by a string quartet, played "A Million Miles Away", the biggest hit the Plimsouls ever had. Following that, Peter was joined by Eddie Munoz and David Pahoa, his former Plimsouls bandmates, and together they played "Oldest Story in the World".

Carla Olson, helped out by Eddie Munoz and David Pahoa, played "Now", a song written by Peter Case during his Plimsouls days.

Helped by the same string quartet, Sam Phillips, T Bone Burnett's ex-wife, sang "Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us", and received a huge applause for her outstanding delivery.

Sam Phillips

During the intermission, just as I was standing against the stage, Eric Idle came out to prepare for his upcoming set. Our eyes met, Eric winked at me and I nodded back in approval. That was my chance to quip "Say no more" in response to his wink, but that brilliant idea came to me only after the show. Eric then took the stage and sang two utterly funny songs meant primarily for adult audiences.

Eric Idle

T Bone Burnett came out to introduce Katie Melua, a European mega-star little known in the States, who happened to be in Los Angeles for a recording session with T Bone. I had been very familiar with her music and her stature, so seeing her up-close was the undisputed highlight of the evening. Katie sang the beautiful "Nine Million Bicycles" and I was in heaven.

Katie Melua at McCabe's (photo by Roman Cho)

Here's Katie Melua delivering "Nine Million Bicycles" pretty much like she sang it at McCabe's:

Geoff Muldaur and Bob Neuwirth delivered good sets consisting of two songs each.

Richard Thompson, the final solo performer of the evening, played four songs, among them "The Dimming Of The Day", then everyone came back for the grand finale, which was Hank Williams' "Your Cheatin'  Heart". And so ended an unforgettable night like I may never see again.

Concert #506 - Alela Diane at McCabe's Guitar Shop (May 9, 2009)

 

In my case, a trip from my home to McCabe's and back adds 102 miles to my odometer, which is just another way of saying that I have to make my concert choices carefully. So what made me want to see Alela Diane? Well, it was primarily her "Pirate's Gospel" song and not much else, because I didn't know much else. In other words, I took a chance and ended up going home pretty much empty handed, so to speak.

The show opened with Mariee Sioux, who turned out to be an utter sleeper, essentially one long boring song after another, all sounding the same. Alela's set was definitely better. I liked her voice, but I had a problem with her repertoire, mostly self-penned songs, which lacked inventiveness and variety. And in the end, there was no "Pirate's Gospel", her best known song, which only added to my overall feeling of disappointment. 

Alela was accompanied by a guitarist named Tom Menig, who turned out to be her father. A very young-looking father, who sounded good, too. All-in-all, it was a so-so evening at best, an opinion shared by my friend Steve as well.

Alela Diane with Tom Menig, her father

Concert #507 - Carrie Rodriguez at McCabe's Guitar Shop (May 10, 2009)

My second time to see Carrie, after my highly enjoyable introduction to her music, a couple of years earlier, when she performed alongside Chip Taylor. This time Carrie was the headliner and she did not disappoint. Accompanied by a small band that included Hans Holzen on guitar and Don Heffington on drums, Carrie played songs from "She Ain't Me", her newly-released album, as well as some older material.

I sat in the front row, maybe a bit too close to the band. I liked the catchier songs from the new album, especially the title track and "Absence". From among the older tracks, the powerful "Never Gonna Be Your Bride" stood out. Carrie was quite comfortable in her headlining role and played the guitar and fiddle with great confidence.

The proceedings were opened by Romantica, a Minneapolis-based band led by Irish vocalist Ben Kyle. They played one of the strongest opening sets I had ever seen at McCabe's. Their best song, I thought, was "The National Side".

Romantica's Ben Kyle (center)

Concerts #238, 239, 508 - Jennifer Warnes at the Miner Cook Athenaeum and McCabe's Guitar Shop (February 14, 2001 - May 17, 2009)

Where else but in Southern California can one get to see Jennifer Warnes perform in small venues and not just once, but multiple times?

My first encounter with Miss Warnes took place on February 14, 2001, at the Miner Cook Athenaeum, on the beautiful campus of the Claremont McKenna College. The concert was announced as “An Evening With Jennifer Warnes”, and what an evening it was! In perfect vocal shape, she seemed to enjoy performing for the distinctly intellectual crowd of about two hundred fortunate folks who filled the Athenaeum to capacity. Jennifer sang a few songs from her then-current album, “The Well”, including the title track and the dreamy “The Panther”. Not unexpectedly, there were also four Leonard Cohen songs, but ten years after the event, I can only recall “Ain’t No Cure For Love” and “Coming Back To You”. She was accompanied by an outstanding band that had the following lineup:

Billy Watts, guitar
Skip Edwards, keyboard
David Jackson, bass
Lee Spah, drums
Hani Nasser, percussion
Matt Cartsonis, mandolin
Chris Darrell, mandolin

Ten days later, Jennifer performed at McCabe’s with the very same band and needless to say, I was there, together with my wife, and our good friends Ken and Marilyn. Jennifer's set pretty much mirrored her Claremont gig, which was fine by me. Like many other fans, I was hoping for a Leonard Cohen appearance, but no such luck. A few years later, I found a photograph at www.jenniferwarnes.com that shows Leonard and Jennifer chatting backstage at McCabe’s, so at least I can claim that Leonard Cohen and I were under the same roof for a couple of hours. Here’s the photograph:

Jennifer Warnes and Leonard Cohen at McCabe's (February 2001)

Well, there was no Leonard Cohen, but there was Jackson Browne, who sat quietly in the second row, right next to my wife, who had no clue who her neighbor was. At one point during the show, Jennifer invited Jackson to take the stage and the crowd went bananas, to put it mildly.

Once again, Jennifer dazzled the crowd with her impeccable voice and style. Later in the show, she mentioned her big radio hits, but did not sing any of them, to no one's chagrin.

A few years later, in May 2009, Jennifer Warnes performed once again at the intimate McCabe's, in front of 150 spectators who were lucky enough to grab tickets before they were all gone. I grabbed a couple, here's one of them:

Ticket for Jennifer's appearance at McCabe's in 2009

The concert was the final show of a short West Coast tour, with stops in Vancouver, Seattle and Portland. I sat in the front row, together with my wife. Once again, Jennifer - backed by a group of top-notch musicians - put on a great show. The highlight of the concert was the superb "Song For Bernadette", lyrics by Leonard Cohen and music by Jennifer Warnes herself - regretfully, the lyricist did not make a surprise appearance.

Band Lineup

Jeff Pevar, guitar

Debra Dobkin, percussion

Chris "Kazz" Caswell, keyboards

Steve Postell, guitar

L to R: Jeff Pevar, Debra Dobkin, Chris Caswell, Jennifer Warnes and

Steve Postell at McCabe's (2009)

The concert had a short and decidedly unusual non-musical detour: using a screen lowered from the ceiling, Jennifer presented a tribute to her late mother, complete with photographs and heart-warming stories about her life.

Seeing the great Jennifer Warnes up-close at McCabe's remains one of the high points of my concert-going career.

Concert #591 - Richard Thompson at McCabe's Guitar Shop (May 7, 2011)

  

For me, Richard Thompson's Japan disaster benefit concert at McCabe's on May 7, 2011, was  the Concert Of The Year and the year is not nearly over. But no one can do better than RT, except maybe RT himself, who will be back at McCabe's on May 27 for yet another benefit show, for the very same cause.

Dressed all black and wearing his usual beret, Richard opened his set with "She Twists The Knife Again" and one could immediately tell that he was in great form. Sitting in the front row, directly in front of him, I watched his guitar work in amazement. As expected from an RT fanatic like myself, I knew very well most of the songs and overall I declare myself quite happy with the songs Richard picked for the evening. 

SET LIST

She Twists The Knife Again

Good Things (this may not be the true title)

The Woods Of Darney

Turning Of The Tide

Sunset Song

1952 Vincent Black Lightning

Stumble On

Hamlet

Persuasion

Crawl Back

Down Where The Drunkards Roll

Sidney Wells

Dimming Of The Day

I Feel So Good

Pharaoh

Beeswing

Madame Bonaparte 

ENCORE

Maurice

Two Left Feet

Waltzing's For Dreamers

Richard is 62 years old, yet he showed no signs of slowing down. His vocals were as strong as ever, his fingers could still do the job and there was nothing wrong with his energy level. He remains a massive favorite of mine, and - to paraphrase the great Chick Hearn - I can't say that Richard is the best, but there's no one better.

Show-opener Alistair Anderson joined Richard for the last three songs of the set, then again for the three songs of the encore. Their interaction was something to see - they made frequent eye contact and mutual smiles were often present as they were challenging each other, especially during the playing of "Two Left Feet". Alistair's humorous body language and facial expressions were fun to watch. Overall, he was a great addition to Richard's set. 

 

I was a little less impressed with Alistair's show-opening set, which I thought was about fifteen minutes too long. A virtuoso of his instruments - English Concertina and Northumbrian Pipes - Alistair is probably the best in his field, so the problem may lie in my inability to fully appreciate his musical territory. 

Richard Thompson and Alistair Anderson at McCabe's (May 2011)

The set list

Stage setup

Alistair Anderson (left) chatting with my friend Steve after the show

Concert Director Lincoln Myerson, after the show

Ralph and Laura at their first-ever RT concert

Signs in the window at McCabe's

Concert #509 - Luka Bloom at McCabe's Guitar Shop (May 22, 2009)

Luka Bloom - now we are talking about an artist who has been extremely close to my heart since 1991, when I discovered his brilliant "Riverside"album. I own all his recordings and listen to them often. I try to catch all his LA area appearances which, sadly, are rare and far between. Over the years, I had exposed many of my friends to Luka's music, so I had an easy time mobilizing fourteen of them to join me for Luka's much-expected gig at McCabe's.

Without a doubt, this was one of the best concerts I've ever seen at McCabe's or anywhere else, for that matter, and my guests were just as impressed as I was.

FULL SET LIST

I Hear Her Like Lorelei
There Is A Time
Tribe
As I Waved Goodbye
See You Soon
I Love The World I'm In
City Of Chicago
No Matter Where You Go, There You Are
Eastbound Train
Peace On Earth
Dreams In America
Gone To Pablo
Rainbow Day
Everyman
The Acoustic Motorbike
Sunny Sailor Boy
I'm On Your Side
Don't Be Afraid Of The Light That Shines Within You
You Coudn't Have Come At A Better Time
Medley (The Man Is Alive & The Hill Of Allen)

Luka was his usual self - friendly, humorous and gentle - but when it came to music, it was serious business. I won't even try to pick a show highlight, the whole affair was of the highest quality in all respects, from the beginning to the very end. I loved his guitar playing on "Peace On Earth" and "The Hill Of Allen", it was fun singing along on "Sunny Sailor Boy" and I screamed with excitement when I heard the first chords of "The Acoustic Motorbike".

After the show, Luka mingled with the crowd and signed autographs.

The opening act was a young singer-songwriter named Birdie Busch. She did not leave a lasting impression.

Some of my friends, before the door opened

The stage, a few moments before Luka Bloom came out

Luka Bloom at McCabe's (May 2009)

Kevin & Kirsti

Ralph, Laura, Maria and Wayne

Ann & Jess

Luka Bloom shaking hands with Yours Truly

Luka Bloom autographing for Kirsti