Concert #481 - McCabe's 50th Anniversary Concert at UCLA's Royce Hall (October 2, 2008)

I caught wind about this concert many months before it actually took place and from the very beginning, all I wanted was to lay my hands on a pair of great tickets, even if I had to pay a little extra to get them  - after all, this was supposed to be the Concert Of The Year. Well, in the end, "the little extra" turned out to be $550 for a pair of third row seats, bought from a scalper operating legally as a "ticket agency". Bastards!

I had never paid as much for two tickets and I hope I never will, but in this case, I just had to do it, as my other attempts to get good seats via UCLA Live and directly from McCabe's yielded sub-par results. And there was yet another reason for my insane spending: I went to the concert with a European guest, a huge music connoisseur himself, and I just had to offer him the best possible experience and indeed, I also wanted the very best for myself.

And what an experience it was ... for about four hours we watched a parade of many different musicians who had one thing in common: sometime during their careers, they had all performed at McCabe's. With one notable exception, that is. I'm not talking about Los Lobos, as they had actually played there decades earlier, before anyone knew who they were, opening for Flaco Jimenez. The exception was Chrissie Hynde, who somehow managed to talk herself into the line-up, and I'm glad she did. Accompanied by virtuoso guitarist James Walbourne, Chrissie-the-Intruder performed two songs from her then-new album "Break Up The Concrete" and she was definitely one of the highlights of the evening.

And speaking of highlights: Odetta's powerful rendition of "House Of The Rising Sun" did not seem to be coming from a seventy-eight year old wheelchair-bound woman who was only two months away from the end of her life, then later, during the evening's grand finale, she once again impressed us with her strong vocals on "This Land Is Your Land".

Odetta, with Lincoln Myerson, Jackson Browne and Jennifer Warnes (photo by Sherry Rayn Barnett)

For an outstanding photo gallery showing most of the evening's protagonists, please visit Sherry Rayn Barnett's page at http://www.myspace.com/sherrybarnettphotography/photos

LIST OF PERFORMERS

Richard Thompson

Jennifer Warnes

Odetta

Los Lobos

Blind Boys Of Alabama

Loudon Wainwright

Peter Rowan

David Lindley

Peter Case

Bonnie "Prince" Billy & Matt Sweeney

Ditty Bops

Dan Hicks

Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band

Ricky Jay

Chrissie Hynde

Jackson Browne

Rosanne Lindley

Van Dyke Parks

Kami Thompson

Michael Jerome (drums)

Debra Dobkin (percussion)

David Keyes (keyboards, with Odetta)

Taras Prodaniuk (bass)

James Walbourne (guitar, with Chrissie Hynde)

Eric Andersen (grand finale only)

Richard Thompson led the house band that also included drummer Michael Jerome, bassist Taras Prodaniuk, and percussionist Debra Dobkin. Throughout the evening, Richard kept a relatively low profile, but at one point he did step up to deliver a great version of "1952 Vincent Black Lightning". I  would have liked to hear more from RT, but it wasn't to be.

LIST OF MC's

Nancy Covey

Lincoln Myerson

John Chelew 

Bobby Kimmel

Most of the MC'ing was handled by Nancy Covey and she did a good job. Surprisingly, the current Concert Director at McCabe's, Lincoln Myerson, was given only a secondary role.

McCabe's is a rather modest venue and, appropriately, there were no fancy stage decorations at UCLA's Royce Hall, only a few guitars and folding chairs hanging on the back wall of the stage, all of them borrowed from McCabe's, of course. It wasn't particularly pretty, but it did bring to UCLA the "look and feel" of McCabe's, and when I say "feel", I mean the pain experienced by anyone who has ever sat on those metal chairs for more than 30 minutes!

Folding chairs and acoustic guitars hanging on the back wall of the stage

The Ditty Bops sang two songs of their own, then later they turned into Dan Hicks' Hot Licks. Together, they sang Dan's "I Scare Myself".

The Blind Boys Of Alabama performed "Amazing Grace", but with a twist: they sang it to the tune of "House Of The Rising Sun".

Peter Rowan sang his gorgeous "Midnight Moonlight". 

After having been introduced by Lincoln Myerson, Bonnie "Prince" Billy surprised me with an excellent performance that made me want to see him as a headliner.

Jennifer Warnes sang Arlo Guthrie’s “When a  Soldier Makes It Home" and one other song.

Playing a slide guitar, David Lindley duetted with his daughter Rosanne. They were OK. Later in the evening, David came out once again to play with Jackson Browne.

Jackson Browne (left), with David Lindley

Kudos go to Loudon Wainwright, who showed up after his own headlining gig in Santa Barbara. He managed to reach UCLA shortly after 11 PM, sang one song, then joined everyone else for the grand finale.

A touch of nepotism was in the air, as Richard Thompson and David Lindley brought along their singing daughters, Kami and Rosanne, respectively. They were OK, but I would have preferred to see some of the quintessential McCabe's artists who had delighted me over the years, such as Peter Himmelman, Dave Alvin, Michelle Shocked, Chris Smither or John Hammond. I guess whoever said "You can't have it all" was right ...

The grand finale was grand, indeed. Most performers came out for their final salute to McCabe's and they all had they brief solo moments, as they sang, "Hard Times (Come Again No More)" and "This Land Is Your Land". Van Dyke Parks went down into the crowd with his accordion. Jennifer Warnes asked for Eric Anderson to join the celebration and he did. A beaming Odetta was there as well, and so were all of the evening's emcees. Modestly, Richard Thompson remained in the background with his outstanding house band. The crowd was on its feet and I immediately knew that I was part of something special, something one would normally see on TV but rarely get to experience in person.

The Grand Finale, as it began

The Grand Finale, with everyone on stage

The Grand Finale

The Grand Finale - Jackson Browne, Jennifer Warnes & Loudon Wainwright (far right)

The Grand Finale - Eric Anderson, Jennifer Warnes, etc.

The Grand Finale - Van Dyke Parks

And now for a few negatives and there weren't many of those. I was less impressed with the sets delivered by the Savoy-Doucet Band (not my style) and Peter Case, who chose to perform two long songs that I don't believe were among his best. Jackson Browne sang three songs that sounded quite boring to me. Magician Ricky Jay's card-throwing act was nothing special and definitely out of place.

But it's not right to end my write-up on a negative note. Without a doubt, the show was one of the very best I have ever witnessed, and I did witness a few.

Backstage: Taras Prodaniuk, Jennifer Warnes & Jackson Browne

Backstage: McCabe's founder Gerald McCabe, with Nancy Covey

Backstage: McCabe's founder Gerald McCabe, with Jennifer Warnes

 

Concert #607 - Shelby Lynne at McCabe's Guitar Shop (October 14, 2011)

This was the first of her two sold-out shows at McCabe's, but this time - unlike in July 2010 - there was no Val McCallum to accompany her. Yes, I did miss Val's devilishly good guitar playing, but other than that, Shelby's solo performance was near-perfect and - had she included just one song from her Dusty Springfield tribute album - I would have written "absolutely perfect".

Shelby's focus was on "Revelation Road", her newly released album. Using two acoustic guitars and never sitting down, she sang each and every song from the album - you may say that's a lot of new songs delivered in quick succession, but no one had a problem with that - the songs were all good.

Shelby's voice is a separate chapter in itself. I can't think of any other singer who can match the purity and sweetness of her voice. I particularly love the goosebumps-producing lower half of her vocal range.

The crowd laughed out loud when, a couple of times during the show, Shelby talked about her somewhat dysfunctional family and how that benefited her songwriting.

Surprisingly, Shelby had her own personal roadie who popped in every time she switched guitars ... roadies handling acoustic guitars ... now that's something you don't often see at McCabe's! There were three cameramen as well, so one fine day we may get to see the whole show on DVD, that would be nice.

Shelby Lynne at McCabe's

 After the new album was out of the way, it was time for a bunch of Shelby's better known songs. The crowd's best response came after her stellar delivery of "Old Dog", "Leavin'" and "Where I'm From", which lead to two well-deserved standing ovations.

The set list

Autographed concert poster

Concert Director Lincoln Myerson welcoming the first fans

Shelby Lynne T-shirts

Concert #609 - Tom Russell at McCabe's Guitar Shop (October 22, 2011)

This was my sixth time to see Americana maestro Tom Russell in concert. Just like the last time, also at McCabe's, Tom came out with Thad Beckman, an outstanding guitarist who also sang backup vocals. The concert went on for well over two hours, something one would always welcome, but certainly not immediately after a long and physically exhausting trip - I had just returned from a six-day walking tour of Manhattan, and toward the end of the show I would have gladly exchanged my front row seat for a cot or even a pallet on McCabe's' floor.

Once again, Tom proved that he is a name-dropper's name dropper. I wish I'd thought of writing down all the names brought up by Tom - the list would have amazed you, both in length and breadth - he mentioned countless musicians, filmmakers, actors, boxers, some dead, others alive, but no one's name came up more often than Monte Hellman, whose "Road To Nowhere" movie's theme song was composed by Tom himself. By the way, Monte was present in the audience, but kept a low profile.

Tom sang many of the songs from "Mesabi", his latest release. I was unfamiliar with the new album, but I found his new material to be quite accessible, not unlike everything else Tom touches. He also sang a few "oldies", such as "Stealing Electricity", "The Pugilist At 59", "Blue Wing" and "East Of Woodstock, West Of Vietnam", but once again there was no "Gallo Del Ciello", nor "Navajo Rug".

All-in-all, the concert was good, but not great. Tom spoke maybe a little too much, but most everything he said was interesting and humorous. Still, after having seen him so many times in not too many years, I feel it's time for me to take a sabbatical from Tom for a few years. I'll be back, though. Guaranteed.

The set list

Tom Russell (right) & Thad Beckman at McCabe's (October 2011)

The final bow

Concert poster

Nadine Russell at the merch table

 

Concert #606 - Ollabelle at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 30, 2011)

Here's yet another younger act playing the kind of music that sounds great to older ears. Not unlike the Secret Sisters, Ollabelle's repertoire consists of a well-balanced mix of older gems and self-penned numbers that blend together quite well. But there's a lot more to Ollabelle than just their appealing song selection - these guys have talent, lots of talent. They write good music, sing their hearts and souls out, excel at their instruments and then how many quintets can you name where all five members are capable of soloing on vocals?

One may also refer to Ollabelle as "democracy in action", as none of them appeared to be above the others - they all had their moments and they all received virtually equal exposure, with the possible exception of drummer Tony Leone.

With vocalist Amy Helm on maternity leave, the band came out with a worthy replacement in the person of Aoife O'Donovan of Crooked Still fame. Seamlessly integrated into the act, Aoife (pronounced Ee-fah) sounded and looked fabulous with her uncontained cheerfulness and, in my opinion, no one on stage sounded better.

Byron Isaacs, Aoife O'Donovan and Fiona McBain at McCabe's (September 30, 2011)

  Band line-up

Aoife O'Donovan - vocals, tambourine

Byron Isaacs - vocals, bass guitar, upright bass, drums

Tony Leone - vocals, drums, percussion

Fiona McBain - vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, ukulele

Glenn Patscha - vocals, keyboards, piano

In terms of their instrumental virtuosity, pianist Glenn Patscha impressed me the most. Bassist Byron Isaacs was great, too.

The show was exceptionally well-paced, there were no lulls in action and there was minimal chatter, just the way a concert is supposed to be. With so much vocal and instrumental variety on the stage, we were thoroughly entertained, I know I was. The band left behind two set lists, which were identical in content but written by two different hands.

List #1

List #2

Picking a highlight is no easy task, but if pressed, I'd pick "Soul Of A Man" and "No More, My Lawd". I also liked "Lovin' In My Baby's Eyes", sung quite well by drummer Tony Leone. The band got a well-deserved standing ovation.

The stage before the band came out

Fiona McBain and Aoife O'Donovan signing autographs

Glenn Patscha chatting with fans after the show

Poster in the window at McCabe's

Autographed Ollabelle poster

Concert #605 - Jennifer Warnes at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 24, 2011)

Last night's concert at McCabe's Guitar Shop felt more like an impromptu meeting of buddies singing and playing some of their favorite songs in someone's living room, and that's always a good thing.

Jennifer's "orchestra" consisted of guitarist Billy Watts, lately of Eric Burdon's band, and bassist Taras Prodaniuk, whom I had seen before accompanying Richard Thompson. Billy and Taras brought much more to the show than just their outstanding musicianship - with their humorous and relaxed demeanor, they were outstanding complements to a just as humorous and relaxed Jennifer Warnes.

Last night's show can also be described as "Musicians Hiding Behind Music Stands", or at least that was the impression of the folks sitting in the first few rows, maybe even further back. Okay, so I didn't get to see much of Billy's face, but that was only a minor glitch in an otherwise outstanding evening of great music and stellar sound.

"A Singer's Tribute To Her Favorite Songwriters" is yet another way of describing the show, as Jennifer handpicked and lovingly delivered sixteen of her favorite songs, penned mostly by well-known musicians but also by a couple of composers that were new to me, namely Michael Smotherman and Zachary Richard.

Twice during the show, Jennifer said "We're getting on", a direct reference to the age of most folks in attendance, including the ones on the stage. Yet her trademark vocal inflections and singing style were as instantly recognizable last night as they were decades ago. There were no attempts to hit super-high notes and no one missed them either. What we all wanted was Jennifer's warmth, her beautiful voice, a bunch of great songs and we got all that. And then some.

Jennifer Warnes at McCabe's (with Billy Watts and Taras Prodaniuk hidden behind stands)

Jennifer's set list included quite a few songs I had not heard before and when it came to the ones I knew, I don't think I could have picked better ones. The concert's best songs, to these ears at least,  were "It's Raining", "Ain't No Cure For Love" and Dylan's "When The Deal Goes Down". Ian Tyson's "Blue Mountains Of Mexico" was also exceptionally good.

A few words about "It's Raining", a song I first heard on Jennifer's 2001 album titled "The Well". Written by a certain Naomi Neville, this song alone is worth the "admission price" - just listen to Jennifer's soulful voice and her exquisite delivery. I had no clue who the songwriter was, until Jennifer revealed to us that Naomi Neville was the pseudonym used by the great Allen Toussaint in his early days. So when I got home after the concert, I looked up my copy of "The Allen Toussaint Touch", and lo and behold, there was the original version of "It's Raining", sung by Irma Thomas, yet another huge favorite of mine. Irma's version is quite different, but equally good.

Jennifer Warnes will be back at McCabe's in October 2011 and you can bet your life that I'll be there again.
 

Fans lined up in front of the venue

The crowd settling in



Concert #604 - Mary Gauthier & Lori McKenna at McCabe's Guitar Shop (September 17, 2011)

This was a rare double-header at McCabe's, coming six months after the rather disappointing triple-header involving Dave Alvin, Chris Smither and Peter Case. Just like the aforementioned trio, Mary and Lori received equal billing, but one of them had to go first, so the task of kicking off the proceedings went to Lori McKenna, and for a good reason: most of the people there, myself included, came to see Mary Gauthier.

I'm always open to new artists and new sounds and since I couldn't call myself a Lori McKenna connoisseur, I gave her my full attention. But there was nothing much for me there. Lori's melodic sense and mine are definitely not in alignment. Nor did I find her voice and singing style appealing. Same goes for her guitar playing, which consisted of not much more than just endless strumming. Was it just me? Maybe so, because she was well-received by the crowd, no doubt about that.

And that highlights the problem with double-headers: if one of the acts doesn't do much for you, then all you get is an abbreviated set from the other performer, as was the case with Mary Gauthier's short, but otherwise great performance. She took the stage for just barely over fifty minutes, and that left me craving for much more.

Throughout the show, Mary Gauthier was accompanied by Canadian fiddler Tania Elizabeth, who also provided harmony vocals. Mary was in her typical great form, vocally and otherwise. She sang nothing but her own compositions, not a single dud among them. "Mercy Now" was conspicuously absent from her set, but there were plenty of other great songs. The ones I liked the best were "Drag Queens And Limousines", "I Drink", "Christmas In Paradise", "Karla Faye" and "Wheel Inside The Wheel".

Mary Gauthier's song list (not the actual set list)

The final bow - Mary Gauthier (right), with Tania Elizabeth

Mary Gauthier chatting with fans after the show

Lori McKenna at McCabe's

Lori McKenna's set list

A rather modest poster in the window at McCabe's

Tania Elizabeth

My Beter Half was with me and so were Nancy, Jim and Steve, we all had a good time chatting before and after the show.

Nancy and My Better Half, seated at McCabe's

And now for the part titled "Lessons Learned": The next time they announce a double-header, I have to be a little more circumspect, but knowing myself, I'm afraid I'll be first in line once again, no matter what. So much for "lessons learned"...