Concert #692 - Garland Jeffreys at McCabe's Guitar Shop (November 9, 2013)

 

Writing about Garland Jeffreys' concert last night at McCabe's is a daunting task, if there ever was one. Simply put, I'll have a hard time describing the mind-blowing performance of this rock & roller, who, at the tender age of seventy, can run circles around musicians who are half his age. Or younger.

I saw Garland for the first time last year, also at McCabe's. I went to that show not knowing what to expect and he just blew my socks off. Different situation last night, one might think, as I knew exactly what to expect, yet in spite of my much raised expectations, Garland's live act managed to once again knock me out.  I can't think of too many musicians in the "over sixty" category who are as vibrant, energetic and still relevant as Garland. And he sounds great, too - the quality of his voice is something to behold.

No better way to describe the pace of the concert than quoting Garland himself, who - toward the end of the show - told us that "We don't do any ballads anymore, there's not enough time left in life, a ballad is like a waste of time", a statement that served as a signal for the band to launch into a rousing rendition of "96 Tears", possibly the only cover song of the evening. Many of the other songs we heard last night were high-tempo and high-energy songs, soulfully delivered by the indefatigable Garland with frequent shouts of "hey".

Garland Jeffreys at McCabe's

Garland's set consisted of songs from all five decades of his career as a recording artist. None of those songs sounded dated. My favorites were "35 Millimeter Dreams", "Hail Hail Rock 'N' Roll" and "'Til John Lee Hooker Calls Me". From "Truth Serum", his latest album, Garland sang "Any Rain", "It's What I Am" and the title track, three songs that measure up favorably to his best material.

Garland Jeffreys at McCabe's

Garland Jeffreys singing "Truth Serum"

Garland brought with him the same band that delighted us last year. Just like then, these guys played their hearts out. While all four band members deserve kudos, I particularly liked Tom's drumming and Adam's guitar playing. Here's the line-up of the band:

GARLAND JEFFREYS' BAND

Adam Roth (electric guitar)

Charlie Roth (keyboards, mouth harmonica, backup vocals)

Tom Curiano (drums, backup vocals)

Brian Stanley (bass)

The set list

Just like last year, Garland told us how much he liked performing at McCabe's. "We love it here. Great place", he said. In return, the crowd gave Garland its full appreciation via an extended standing ovation and applause that went on and on. A couple of times during the show, while singing, Garland left the stage and walked into the crowd, shaking hands and hugging some of his fans.

The encore consisted of only one song, "Moonshine In The Cornfield", performed without the backing of the band.

Garland Jeffreys during his encore (with Tom Curiano standing by)

Adam Roth at McCabe's

An incredible moment took place in the venue's front room, after the show, when Garland duetted with a fan on "Christine", one of his songs from 1980's "Escape Artist". Following that, he signed autographs and mingled with his fans.

I went home totally happy, wishing and hoping that I'll get the chance to see Garland again sometime in 2014.

Garland and a fan singing "Christine" after the show

McCabe's Guitar Shop, minutes before show time

The stage

 

Concert #691 - Ben Harper at the Bridges Auditorium (November 6, 2013)

Sadly, there aren't too many world-class concerts happening close to where I live, so typically I have to drive fifty miles or so to get to where the action is. Ben Harper's Wednesday night's appearance at the Bridges Auditorium in Claremont was a welcome exception - being able to leave home at 7:40 PM in order to catch a show announced for 8:00 PM was something truly special.

The concert was a homecoming of sorts for Ben, who lived a considerable part of his life in Claremont. That may explain the surprisingly high turnout - although not officially confirmed as a sell-out, it appeared to me that all 2,500 seats of the venue were occupied. Visibly mixed in terms of age groups, the crowd can be described as loving and certainly knowledgeable.

The concert started at 8:15 PM and ended at 10:45 PM, so we all got our money's worth. There were two encores, which added about forty-five minutes to an already generously long first set. Ben played a variety of stringed instruments (lap steel guitar, banjo, guitars of the electric and acoustic kind, ukulele), and sat down at the piano as well.

Ben Harper at the Bridges Auditorium

Ben Harper at the Bridges Auditorium

To these ears, the unmistakeable star of the show was Ben's voice and I loved his singing style, too. Wednesday night I heard lots of old-school phrasing, but there was always something modern in the way he delivered his music. His diction was perfect - each and every word he said or sang came across loud and clear and yes, the acoustics of the concert hall were great, too.

To me, the best part of the concert was the first encore, which kicked off with stellar deliveries of "Trying Not To Fall In Love With You", "Trust You To Dig My Grave", "Steal Your Kisses" and "With My Own Two Hands", four outstanding songs written by Ben himself. Also during the first encore, Ben duetted with his mother, Claremont's own Ellen Chase-Verdries, a talented singer in her own right. According to Ben, the two songs they sang together - "City Of Dreams" and "Born To Love You" - will be released in 2014 on an album to be titled "Childhood Home".

Ben and Ellen singing "City Of Dreams"

Ben and Ellen singing "Born To Love You"

The song selection was very good overall, but I would have loved to hear a few more up-tempo numbers. As far as I can tell, the overwhelming majority of the songs were Ben's own, with two exceptions: "Fade Into You", and old songs from the repertoire of Mazzy Star, and Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah". 

 

Set List

The Long Road Home

Welcome To The Cruel World

Excuse Me Mr.

Fight Outta You

Roses From My Friends

Another Lonely Day

Diamonds On The Inside

Forever

Fade Into You

All My Heart Can Take

Lifeline

Don't Give Up On Me Now

Burn One Down

1st Encore

Trying Not To Fall In Love With You

Trust You To Dig My Grave

Steal My Kisses

With My Own Two Hands

City Of Dreams (with Ellen Chase-Verdries)

Born To Love You (with Ellen Chase-Verdries)

Suzie Blue

2nd Encore

Hallelujah

Waiting On An Angel

Ben Harper at the Bridges Auditorium

Ben Harper at the Bridges Auditorium

On the minus side, Ben spoke a bit too much, certainly during his first set. At one point, he went on for seventeen uninterrupted minutes, that was excessive.

Overall, the concert was a memorable event. The sound of Ben's soulful voice and passionate singing still rings in my ears and I have a strong desire to dig a bit deeper in Ben's body of work - I'm sure there are plenty of hidden gems there.

The stage

The facade of the Bridges Auditorium

The main lobby

Ben Harper merchandise

The Bridges Auditorium

Concert #690 - Martha Redbone at the Scripps College (Claremont) (September 27, 2013)

Presented by Pasadena's Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts, this was a free concert that took place at the gorgeous Scripps College located in the equally gorgeous city of Claremont. Elizabeth Levitt Hirsch, the sponsor of the Levitt Concert Series, is a Scripps College alumna, hence her inclination to bring live music to her alma mater.

Until not too long ago, "Martha Redbone" was just a name I would occasionally see here and there on the Internet. I showed up at last night's concert strictly on the strength of a few randomly picked YouTube clips - the videos were good, but seeing the vocal powerhouse that is Martha Redbone in a live setting is a different matter altogether.

Martha's voice is something to behold. She's got range. She's got power. She's got soul. With her outstanding ability to control her voice, she can be gentle, loud, passionate, you name it, and I can go on and on praising her vocal abilities without overstating a thing. Yet Martha is much more than just a great  voice - her warm and humble personality impressed me at least as much as her singing ability.

Martha Redbone in Claremont

Most of the songs we heard last night came from Martha's 2012 album titled "The Garden of Love - Songs of William Blake", produced by an old favorite of mine, John McEuen of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Not surprisingly, William Blake gets the credit for all the words, while the music credits go to co-writers Martha, John McEuen and Aaron Whitby. The latter also happens to be Martha's husband and longtime musical collaborator, or - as Martha put it - "my partner in crime". All songs of the album are top notch. Go buy it and you will be listening to one of the best releases of the last few years.

As the members of Martha's band took their places, I immediately recognized the often-seen Debra Dobkin, who's probably best known for her work with Richard Thompson. I liked the band, they sounded great.

Band line-up 

Aaron Whitby - Keyboards, melodica

Nick Kirgo - Guitars, banjo

Debra Dobkin - Drum, percussion

Simeon Pillich - Upright bass

Martha Redbone, Nick Kirgo & Debra Dobkin

To these ears, the best songs of the evening were "Garden Of Love", "How Sweet I Roamed", "On Anothers Sorrow" and "This Train". Were there any weak songs? Not a single one.

PARTIAL SET LIST

Garden Of Love

A Poison Tree

Hear The Voice Of The Bard

How Sweet I Roamed

A Dream

The Fly

On Anothers Sorrow

Drums (from Johnny Cash's Bitter Tears album)

This Train

Introduced as an all-female hand-drum group from Sherman Indian High School, the White Rose Singers performed a twenty minute set at the mid point of the concert. I liked their voices and found their music very appealing.

The White Rose Singers

For the final part of their set, the White Rose Singers were joined by Martha, with the singers forming a tight circle around her. I felt moved by their song, even though I did not understand its message. 

Martha Redbone and the White Rose Singers

About two hundred folks showed up for the concert, which started in broad daylight at 5:30 PM. The proceedings ended just before 7:00 PM, with the sun long gone. All in all, I loved the show and I'm pretty sure that I will see Martha again, someday. 

Martha Redbone and her band in Claremont

Concert organizer Karen Fagan kicking off the evening

Concert #689 - The Dustbowl Revival at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 20, 2013)

This was my fifth time to see the Dustbowl Revival since March 2012. Yes, I'm a fan, and a huge one at that. Friday night I came with a group of ten buddies which included a lady visitor from faraway India. I just can't help it - whenever I see something that, musically speaking, is out of the ordinary, I feel compelled to bring along more and more of my friends, so that hopefully they get the same pleasure I get. So did they? Read on to find out.

In this blog, opening acts typically get mentioned toward the end of the post, when I'm done writing about the headliner. It takes somebody special to make me break this rule and the T Sisters were most definitely special. Their forty-minute opening set was a delight from start to finish. With their gorgeous vocal harmonies and the old-time feel of their self-penned songs, the three T Sisters - Rachel, Chloe and Erika Tietjen - were received exceptionally well by the crowd. I liked everything they did, but what impressed me the most was the quality of their songwriting. Other than Paul Simon's "American Tune", I believe they sang nothing but their own material and there was enough variety there to please everyone. For the last few songs, the sisters were joined by a few members of the Dustbowl Revival and they sounded great together.

The T Sisters at McCabe's

The Dustbowl Revival opened their set with "Won't You Tell Me So", an uptempo dixieland number and uptempo remained pretty much the theme of the evening. What followed was a veritable avalanche of fantastic music played with total abandon, with countless rousing solos delivered by each and every band member in a clear display of musical democracy. Caught in the frenzy generated by the band, bassist Josiah Mory attempted to play his upright bass like a guitar, it was a blast.

"Guitarist" Josiah Mory at McCabe's

The female vocals were handled by Liz Beebe, a new addition to the band. Her singing of "Riverboat Queen" was one of the many highlights of the show. I also liked her contribution to the evening's quietest moments, namely her duets with Zach Lupetin. Standing right at the edge of the stage, they sang two old cowboy songs. I knew the first one, "My Rifle, My Pony And Me", a tune sung by Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson in the movie Rio Bravo. I was unfamiliar with the second one, which was most likely titled "Rodeo Joe".

The band strayed away a bit from the studio version of "Dan's Jam" and I loved the faster pace of the live rendition. We did not have a chance to applaud as the band transitioned straight into "Orange Blossom Special", complete with Connor Vance's pizzicato and a devilishly fast pace that drove everyone crazy.

From left to right: Connor Vance, Daniel Mark, Liz Beebe, Zach Lupetin

The contribution of the band's brass section cannot be overstated. Ulf Bjorlin (trombone), Matt Rubin (trumpet) and Nate Ketner (sax and clarinet) played their hearts and lungs out, I had a blast listening to them.

The brass section

Other highlights: "John The Revelator", "Soldier's Joy" and "Whiskey In The Well", the latter featuring a great drum solo by the mostly hidden Josh Heffernan as well as a washboard interlude delivered by Liz Beebe.

Drummer Josh Heffernan, with trombonist Ulf Bjorlin

Invited by Zach to join the revivalists, the T Sisters returned to the stage to provide backup vocals for the singing of "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot". It was the most moving moment of the evening. But the band wasn't done: one after the other, all musicians stepped down onto the floor, from where they delivered three more songs that ended with "When The Saints Go Marchin' In".

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot (with the T Sisters)

Without exception, all of my friends loved the show. And how could they not?  How often one get to see so much talent and so much energy right there, in front your eyes?

I went home totally exhausted by the boundless energy of this incredible band and, needless to say, I can't wait to see them again. As for Zach Lupetin, the leader of the collective, I'm in awe of his talent. I hope more and more folks will get to see and hear what he does. 

Zach Lupetin at McCabe's

Some of my friends

More of my friends

Concert #688 - Denny Laine at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 15, 2013)

Q: So last week you witnessed a British Invasion of sorts.

A: Indeed. Three days after the outstanding show of the acoustic Zombies (Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone), I saw Denny Laine perform at the very same venue. Casual fans don't know much about him, but the solo career that he embarked on after the dissolution of the Wings is still going strong.

Q: How old is he now?

A: He is one month short of his 69th birthday, yet he is still capable of putting on an entertaining live show. He sang well and his energy level was quite high.

Denny Laine at McCabe's

Q: Did Denny play solo?

A: No, he came out with a band, four musicians in all - trouble is I did not catch their names, not even a single one. I hope one of the readers will email me their names, I'd love to know who they were. Anyway, the band consisted of a guitarist, a keyboard player, a bassist and a drummer. They were all very good.

Update (December 15, 2013), based on the comment left by "Anonymous":

BAND LINEUP

Jeff Alan Ross - keyboards, backing vocals and occasional guitar (sang lead on "Baby Blue")

Brian Pothier - lead guitar

Bill Cinque - bass, backing vocals (a couple of lead lines on "No Words") 

Steve Aho - drums. 

Q: So how was the concert?

A: It took me some time to "get the feeling". Four songs into the show I was just sitting there, unaffected by the events, questioning the wisdom of my decision to show up. The dueling electric guitars that comprised the instrumental part of "No Words" was the first noteworthy moment of the evening. Then things started to click. Everything that followed "No Words" was top notch and the "grand finale", the two Paul McCartney mega-hits, brought everyone to their feet.

Denny Laine (left) & Brian Pothier

Q: How was the band?

A: They were outstanding. No flashy solos, just lots of teamwork. I loved Jeff Alan Ross' faux-bagpipes on "Mull Of Kintyre" and his equally artificial French accordion on "Boulevard De La Madelaine", which happened to be the third Moody Blues song of the evening ("Go Now" and "I'll Go Crazy" were the other two).

Q: Was there a set list and did Denny stick to it?

A: Yes, there was a list, but it wasn't followed to the letter. The encore was "Band On The Run", not "Live And Let Die" and there was one other minor detour.

The set list

 Q: Did Denny talk about Paul McCartney and his years with the Wings?

A: Yes, he did, but not excessively.

Q: Best songs?

A: "Go Now" and "The Ghost Of The Scrimshaw Carver" were excellent, and so were the Paul McCartney covers, without exception. I also liked "Baby Blue", the Badfinger hit of the early 70s, sung very well by Jeff Alan Ross while accompanying himself on acoustic guitar.

Jeff Alan Ross delivering "Baby Blue"

 Q: Was there an opening act?

A: Nope.

Q: Anything else worth mentioning?

A:  Billy J. Kramer attended the show.

Denny Laine at McCabe's

Denny Laine signing autographs

The stage