Concert #649 - O'Brien Party Of Seven at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 9, 2012)

Last night's incarnation of "O'Brien Party Of Seven" featured a grand total of six musicians, yet - in spite of the shortfall - there was still plenty of talent on the stage and I don't think anyone in the audience at McCabe's felt shortchanged. The uncontested leaders of the gang were Grammy-winners Tim O'Brien and his sister Mollie, but everyone else held their own and the end result was a show with plenty of variety, great vocal harmonies, some stellar mandolin playing and an overall feeling of fun and joy.

Most of the folks on stage were from Mollie's side of the family. She introduced guitarist and singer Richard Moore as "my current husband". Lucy and Brigid, her two daughters, were also there, while Tim brought along his bass-playing son Jackson. The missing "party member" turned out to be Tim's other son, who apparently had decided to forgo folk music in order to pursue a higher education.

Mollie & Tim O'Brien at McCabe's

Richard Moore (left) with Jackson and Brigid

Tim O'Brien, flanked by Mollie and Lucy

It is quite unusual for a show to open and close with the same song, but that's what they chose to do and I'm glad they did, as I really enjoyed their two different renditions of "King Of The Road", Roger Miller's signature song. Most of the songs we heard last night came from their "Reincarnation" album which consists of nothing but Roger Miller tunes, most of them obscure.

The O'Briens and the Moores took turns at lead vocals. Tim soloed on Dylan's "Farewell Angelina" and Roger Miller's humorous "Hand For The Hog", among others. Mollie lead the way on the title track as well as Jesse Winchester's heart-warming "Lonely For A While", which was one of the evening's highlights for me. Brigid was the lead vocalist on "Swiss Maid", a minor Del Shannon hit penned by Roger Miller, who else. Jackson sang "Guv'ment", a song taken from "Big River", a musical with all songs written by, your guess is right again, Roger Miller. Lucy sang lead on "Tall Tall Trees" and she sounded quite good. I must also mention Lucy's piano playing skills.

Some of the evening's finest moments came when all six musicians were on the stage at the same time - their harmonizing was great. With so many vocalists taking turns, the whole evening was a dynamic affair further augmented by their mostly uptempo and decidedly catchy songs, with lots of good humor thrown in for good measure. Tim's mandolin playing was absolutely superb and his voice sounded pretty much like twenty years ago, when I first discovered him.

Other songs worth mentioning are "Shut De Do" and the evening's encore, "Sweet Sunny South", from the repertoire of the Carter Family, both songs featuring the entire clan.

The set list

Mollie & Tim saying goodbye

Tim O'Brien's instruments

All in all, last night's concert was pure delight, from start to finish. I enjoyed everything about it, even though I heard many of the songs for the first time. I will now start looking for the original versions of these songs and special kudos go to Tim and Mollie, without whom I would have probably never heard these Roger Miller hidden gems.

Concert poster in the window at McCabe's

Concert #648 - Jackshit at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 8, 2012)

This was my 25th time to see the Boys From Cochtotan in a headlining role. Most reasonable folks would say that I'm insane and maybe I am, but this is the kind of insanity that's perfectly fine to leave as is. For me, watching Jackshit live remains an exhilarating experience unmatched by anything else I've ever seen. For those of you unfamiliar with the band, here's who the members are:

Pete Thomas (drums, vocals): Rock & Roll Hall-of-Famer and long-time partner of Elvis Costello. As a session musician, has drummed for countless big names, such as Johnny Cash, The Corrs, Sheryl Crow, Neil Finn, Joe Jackson, Los Lobos, Joan Osborne, Pearl Jam, Bonnie Raitt, Squeeze, Richard Thompson and Rufus Wainwright.

Dave Faragher (bass, vocals): One of Elvis Costello's Imposters and coveted session bassist. Has recorded and toured with the Monkees, David Crosby, John Phillips, Wanda Jackson, Dusty Springfield, Bonnie Raitt, Sheryl Crow, Susanna Hoffs, Joan Osborne, Ronnie Montrose, Allen Toussaint, Buddy Guy, Willy DeVille, Elton John, Leon Russell and many others.

Val McCallum (electric guitar, vocals): Lead guitarist for Sheryl Crow, Jackson Browne, Lucinda Williams, Gregg Allman and many others.

Last night's sold-out show was - what else is new? - exceptionally good, even though there were no surprise guests. Val and Dave were their usual funny selves, while the typically more reserved Pete was unusually smiley and talkative. Val's guitar playing was out of this world and so were Dave's two bass solos. Dave also outdid himself with a few soprano falsettos that were both powerful and comical. Pete's finest moments came during the singing of "Lazy Day" and the epic grand finale of Johnny Horton's "I'm Coming Home", a song that invariably brings the audience to its feet.

The Shit Horns reported to duty as they often do, making their entrance from the back of the room while playing the trumpet parts of "Ring Of Fire". They followed up with a rousing rendition of Herb Alpert's "The Lonely Bull", a song that appears as "Lonesome Bull" on the band's set list. The Shit Horns came back a few songs later to help with the playing of "Ghost Riders In The Sky" and the "Theme From The Magnificent Seven", both new additions to the band's repertoire. There is a family connection between the latter song and Val McCallum, as Charles Bronson, Val's step-father, was one of the main protagonists of "The Magnificent Seven", the monumental film from the early 1960s.
 By the way, Jackshit's rendition of the song was particularly good.

There was one other new number last night, "Tulane", a song instantly recognizable as one of Chuck Berry's. Among the old favorites, "Pretty Polly" and "Ugly And Slouchy", complete with its fabulous rock & roll medley, received the best crowd response. Dave's vocal performance on "Jesus Is Just Alright" was yet another highlight in an evening that wasn't short of highlights. Playing a vibraslap, Charlie, Dave's son, made a brief appearance.

Val McCallum & Dave Faragher at McCabe's

The set list

The tongues are out during the playing of "The Lonely Bull"

Val, Dave and the Shit Horn Lady (name?)

Quite compulsively, I keep telling everyone about Jackshit's marvelous live shows and, modesty aside, I have results to show. Over the course of a few years, I have brought to McCabe's a grand total of one hundred and six friends to see the Boys from Cochtotan. Many of them have become "repeat customers" who in turn have spread the word further. Last night's newcomers were my coworkers Daniel and Chris, as well as Rachel, Chris' wife. They all had a blast.

From left: Manan, Saphire and newbie Daniel

From left: Alejandro, Veronica and Octavio

First-timers Rachel and Chris

Jackshit's next appearance at McCabe's will be their annual Christmas concert in mid-December, which is guaranteed to sell out.

The stage

Val McCallum's music stand

Val McCallum with fans after the show

Pete Thomas, chatting up the ladies

Concert poster

Concert #647 - Mary Poppins at the Ahmanson Theatre (August 29, 2012)

Less than a year after attending the fabulous Broadway production of Mary Poppins in New York, I couldn't resist the temptation of reliving the experience, so I shelled out the big bucks and got myself three front row seats at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles. Unlike in New York, having front row seats was an absolute necessity, as I was planning to bring along my grandson Austin, who at the age of almost eight was certainly old enough to appreciate the whole affair.

Unavoidably and also unfairly, I couldn't help but compare what I saw Wednesday night at the Ahmanson with last year's Broadway show. Although with somewhat different stage setups and all new actors, the two productions were quite similar, so the surprise element was not there Wednesday night. But no matter, I enjoyed both shows in equal measure and I'm happy to report that Austin immersed himself totally into the show and was quite impressed with everything in general and the special effects in particular.

I was hoping to see Gavin Lee once again - his portrayal of Bert on Broadway was nothing short of sensational. Well, there wasn't Gavin Lee, but there was Nicolas Dromard, whose Bert was also great. Rachel Wallace looked and sounded good in the title role. I also liked Michael Dean Morgan and Elizabeth Broadhurst in the roles of Mr. & Mrs. Banks, respectively.

Rachel Wallace & Nicolas Dromard

Michael Dean Morgan & Elizabeth Broadhurst

Come to think of it, I liked all performers, but the actor who stole the show was Q. Smith, who played both the dreadfully mean Miss Andrew and the gentle Bird Woman, two roles that require opposite acting and singing skills.

Q. Smith as the Bird Lady

The kids were played by Julianna Rigoglioso and Eli Tokash and both were up to the task. Interestingly enough, the show's official printed program listed two pairs of kids and neither of them were Julianna and Eli.

The music was great, especially the original songs written by the Sherman Brothers. Of the newer material, "Brimstone and Treacle" was the best, thanks to a great extent to Q. Smith's powerful delivery.

Sitting in the front row was an experience in itself. The stage was not exceedingly wide, so we had no trouble following the action. Seeing everyone's facial expressions just like one would see them on TV was very special and getting to occasionally peek into the orchestra pit was an added bonus.

The Ahmanson Theatre

Curtain call

Curtain call

The Banks Family

The Ahmanson Theatre

The Ahmanson Theatre

The three of us

The merchandise booth

The conductor's book

The orchestra pit

The brass section

Concert #646 - Kelly Hogan at McCabe's Guitar Shop (August 12, 2012)

The motto of Kelly Hogan's concert last night at McCabe's was "Fail with gusto, rather than succeed with timidity", a phrase repeated by Kelly more than once. Yet there was not a trace of failure in anything she touched and how could she have failed with that gorgeous voice of hers and those great songs, most of which came from her new album, "I Like To Keep Myself In Pain", produced by the legendary Booker T Jones.

I got introduced to Kelly's music in the early 2000's, via my interest in Bloodshot Records, Chicago's outstanding alt-country label that is home to a few of my favorite musicians and an endless source of interesting music that is hard to categorize.

The show started with "Dusty Groove" and "We Can't Have Nice Things", the same two songs that also open Kelly's new album. Even without the sounds of Booker T Jones' organ that is featured so prominently on the album, the songs sounded good, thanks to Kelly's outstanding backup band, made up of these fine musicians:

Jim Elkington - Guitars, backup vocals

Casey McDonough - Bass, backup vocals

Kevin O'Donnell - Drums

I particularly liked Jim Elkington's guitar playing. Kevin's subdued drumming and Casey's bass guitar created a groove that was not unlike that of Kelly's studio recordings.

Kelly Hogan with Casey McDonough at McCabe's

Kelly gave credit to each and every songwriter whose tunes she chose to play and there were quite a few big names among them: Robbie Fulks, John Wesley Harding, Robyn Hitchcock, Vic Chesnutt, Jon Langford and Margaret-Ann Rich, also known as Mrs. Charlie Rich. The latter's "Pass On By" was one of the many show highlights, or as my friend Bill put it, "this song by itself was worth the admission price".

Immediately after delivering Vic Chesnutt's "Ways Of This World", she followed up with an a-cappella rendition of Vic's "Soft Picasso". Very nice. Surprisingly, Kelly also sang "Just Once In My Life" the Righteous Brothers classic penned by Gerry Goffin and his then-wife Carole King.

But Kelly is much more than "just another pretty voice". "Sugarbowl" and "Golden", her compositions from 2001 and 2012, respectively, were at least as good as anything else we heard last night.

Kelly Hogan at McCabe's

Other stand-out songs: Jon Langford's "Haunted", John Wesley Harding's "Sleeper Awake" and the Handsome Family's "The Green Willow Valley", all from Kelly's new album.

One of the set lists

A second set list

 All-in-all, Kelly's show was pure delight, from start to finish. I hope and pray for a return engagement, the sooner, the better.

Kelly Hogan merchandise

The concert room

Concerts #437, 449 - Girlyman at McCabe's Guitar Shop ( April 22, 2007 - October 13, 2007)

Today, Girlyman is a quartet of some renown, but back in 2007 they were a little-known trio that could be best described as multi-gender, multi-ethnic and most certainly multi-talented. When they were first booked to play McCabe's in early 2007, I checked them out on the Internet, liked what I heard, so not only that I grabbed a ticket for myself, but I also talked two good friends, Ralph and Laura, into joining me. We all went home happy. So happy that later that year we caught them in action once again, also at McCabe's.

Featuring three distinct voices and three distinct personalities, Girlyman can entertain on multiple levels. Their style is hard to categorize, but the "folk-rock" label probably suits them best. Here's their 2007 lineup:

Ty Greenstein - Vocals, string instruments, percussion

Doris Muramatsu - Vocals, string instruments

Nate Borofsky - Vocals, guitar

With lots of humor, great vocal harmonies and surprisingly good songwriting, Girlyman won me over in no time. One does not often get to hear songs as good as "Kittery Tide", "On The Air" and "Amaze Me" and who else but the zany Nate Borofsky would think of singing "Rock Me Amadeus" in German?

Singer-songwriter Chris Pureka opened the April 2007 show and I must admit that her music did not touch me at all. On the other hand, my friends Ralph and Laura turned into huge Pureka fans, as they heard something there that obviously eluded me.

Chris Pureka

Five years after my introduction to Girlyman, I still listen to them quite often and I look forward to their next concert in the area, preferably at McCabe's.