Concert #231 - Jackie DeShannon at McCabe's Guitar Shop (March 23, 2001)

When I first saw the concert announcement, my knees got weak. Without delay, I called the venue and got myself four tickets to see the great Jackie DeShannon, someone I have always admired. "You Know Me", Jackie's comeback album, had just been released and she was touring in support of her new music. I went to the show accompanied by my Better Half and our good friends Bob & Lynne. The place was jam-packed, needless to say. 

Jackie came out with a band of six musicians with whom she delivered an outstanding set consisting of old gems and a few newer songs. The new songs were good, but the undisputed highlights were her well-known hits from the sixties and seventies, among them "Put A Little Love In Your Heart", "Bette Davis Eyes" and "What The World Needs Now Is Love". Somewhat surprisingly, she also included Bob Dylan's "Dont Think Twice It's Alright" and "Can't Find My Way Home", the old Blind Faith classic.

I was impressed by how well Jackie looked and how fabulous she still sounded. Her energy level was high and one could easily tell how much she enjoyed performing for her fans. We went home happy.

Band line-up

Michael Pizzuto (guitar & background vocals)

Matt Forsyth (drums)

Tony TerBorg (keyboard & background vocals)

Joakim Ekberg (percussion)

Paulo Gustavo (bass & background vocals)

Jimmy Zavala (harmonica, sax, flute)

Poster sold at McCabe's for $12

Concert #426 - The New Christy Minstrels at the Haugh Performing Arts Center in Glendora (November 19, 2006)

Although I've always liked the New Christy Minstrels, I went to see them in concert for one reason and one reason only: to be in the same room with one of my long-time idols, Barry McGuire, who had just rejoined his old band for a couple of shows. So I got to see Barry, he was phenomenal, but to my surprise, the evening turned out to be so much more than just Barry.

The concert took place at the Haugh  Performing Arts Center on the campus of the Citrus College in the City of Glendora. Sitting in the second row of the auditorium, I witnessed a rare reunion of the original members of the band, a little detail that had not been advertised.

Band line-up

(bold names indicate original members)

Randy Sparks

Barry McGuire

Jackie Miller Davidson

Gayle Caldwell

Clarence Treat

Art Podell

Dolan Ellis

Becky Jo Benson

Bill Boycott

Chuck Cole 

Barry's  delivery of P.F. Sloan's "Eve Of Destruction" gave me the goosebumps, and I'm not exaggerating. I was amazed by how well his trademark voice still sounded, forty years after his hit song first came out. Equally impressive was the pure joy that he exuded through his every pore - while everyone on stage had a lot of fun, no one enjoyed the moment more than Barry.

Barry McGuire

Randy Sparks, the unmistakable leader of the band, gave plenty of room to every band member to showcase their talents, but the evening's finest moments came when they all pooled their voices together. As expected, "Green Green" was a highlight and so was "Greenback Dollar". They also sang many songs I did not know, but everything they touched sounded great.

After the show, I had the immense pleasure to shake hands with Barry. Unforgettable.

The Haugh Performing Arts Center

 

Concert #423 - Brian Wilson at UCLA's Royce Hall (November 1, 2006)

Four years after the exceptionally good show put on by Brian Wilson & Friends at UCLA's Royce Hall, I returned to the same venue expecting to relive the great moments of the 2002 event. Long story short, I went home somewhat disappointed. The show had its moments, but as a whole, it wasn't special. Then there was this young lady sitting right in front of me. It seemed that buying a ticket for her son was cheaper than getting a baby-sitter, so she brought him along. I put up for a while with their endless interaction, but at one point I couldn't hold back any longer and asked her to cut it off. By then, though, my evening had been ruined.

This was the first outing of a short Pet Sounds tour. Fittingly, Brian played many songs from his legendary album, along with a healthy dose of Beach Boys hits. His voice sounded shaky at times, in spite of his band's efforts to beef up the overall sound. Brian remained seated at his keyboard for almost the entire duration of the show.

SET LIST

Surfer Girl

Drive-In

Please Let Me Wonder

Add Some Music To Your Day

You're Welcome

Then I Kissed Her (lead vocals: Al Jardine)

Breakaway

Dance, Dance, Dance

Do It Again

In My Room

California (lead vocals: Al Jardine)

Do You Wanna Dance

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

Come Go With Me (lead vocals: Al Jardine)

When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)

I Get Around

California Girls

Sail On Sailor

Marcella

Good Vibrations

Intermission

Wouldn't It Be Nice

You Still Believe In Me

That's Not Me

Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)

I'm Waiting For The Day

Let's Go Away For Awhile

Sloop John B.

God Only Knows

I Know There's An Answer

Here Today

I Just Wasn't Made For these Times

Pet Sounds

Caroline No

Encore 1

Johnny B Goode

Help Me Rhonda (lead vocals: Al Jardine)

Barbara Ann

Surfin' USA

Fun, Fun, Fun

Encore 2

 Love And Mercy

Al Jardine's unannounced appearance was definitely one of the highlights of the show. He took the stage while Brian was playing "You're Welcome" and the crowd went absolutely wild. Al took the lead vocals on a few songs and sounded great. Looked great, too. Sometime late in the show, he approached Brian and put his arm around him in a loving way. Very touching.

Brian was accompanied by the same able band that I saw in 2002. They did a good job recreating the intricate sounds of "Pet Sounds", the album.

Brian's band

Jeff Foskett

Bob Lizik

Paul Mertens

Darian Sahanaja

Nicki "Wonder" Walusko

Probyn Gregory

Taylor Mills

Scott Bennett

Jim Hines

Nelson Bragg

Gary Griffin

The show opened with an unconvincing set delivered by UK's newly revived Scritti Politti and its leader, Green Gartside. Also in the band: Alyssa McDonald, Dicky Moore, Rhondri Ferrett and Ralph Phillips.

Scritti Politti's Green Gartside

UCLA's Royce Hall

Concert #704 - Steve Forbert at McCabe's Guitar Shop (March 7, 2014)

Steve Forbert is one of those performers whose concerts I have attended many times in the past, so I know exactly what to expect from his next show and the one after that. So why do I keep going back to see him as often as I do? The answer is simple: there aren't too many singer-songwriters out there quite as prolific and as talented as Steve. He's been cranking out quality material for a few decades now and, based on what I saw Friday night at McCabe's, he shows no signs of slowing down.

Friday night, Steve put on an outstanding show that included old gems as well as newer songs. In terms of quality, the new material was right up there with his older music and that says a lot about Steve's songwriting. Some of the best numbers of the evening - "All I Need To Do", "That'd Be Alright" and "Baby I Know" - came from "Over With You", his most recent studio album, released not fewer than thirty-four years after his acclaimed 1978 debut.

Steve opened the show with "It's Been A Long Time", which transitioned seamlessly into "Something's Got A Hold On Me". As expected, he threw in a few songs he did not write, namely Jimmie Rodgers' "My Blue-Eyed Jane" and "Waiting For A Train". He also had some fun with Nilsson's "Coconut", from which he sang a few amusing lines.

Steve Forbert at McCabe's

PARTIAL SET LIST

It's Been A Long Time

Wild As The Wind (Ode to Rick Danko)

Romeo's Tune

Tonight I Feel So Far Away From Home

Going Down To Laurel

The Oils Song

Midsummer Night's Toast

What Kinda Guy

It Sure Was Better Back Then

You Cannot Win If You Do Not Play

There's Everybody Else (And Then There's You)

Blackbird Tune

The Sweet Love That You Give

Something's Got A Hold On Me

All I Need To Do

That'd Be Alright

Baby I Know

The Beast Of Ballyhoo

Thirty More Years

My Blue-Eyed Jane

Waiting For A Train

Throughout the evening, Steve Forbert's performance was "vintage Steve Forbert", complete with his unique vocals, idiosyncratic harmonica playing and total immersion into his music. His guitar playing was as good as ever. There was no predetermined set list and he played quite a few audience requests. A couple of times during the show, he asked the crowd to sing along and I must say the crowd did very well.

Overall, I had a great time and I know that it won't be long before I see Steve again.

Steve Forbert saying good night to his fans

The evening kicked off with an excellent, but sadly short set delivered by Eric Brace and Peter Cooper, two musicians who most definitely deserve a wider audience. They write outstanding songs, sound great together and, to top it all off, have pleasant personalities as well. Most of the songs they sang came from their recent CD titled "The Comeback Album". I liked everything they played, especially "Ancient History", "Nobody Knows" and "Wait A Minute". The latter, an old tune from the repertoire of the Seldom Scene, may have been their set's only song they did not write.

Eric Brace (right) and Peter Cooper at McCabe's

Eric and Peter's set list

Steve Forbert merchandise for sale

Concert #703 - Lucinda Williams at McCabe's Guitar Shop (March 1, 2014)

This was Lucinda's second stop on her World Tour of Los Angeles 2014 - good for Los Angeles, not so good for the rest of the world. The event marked my second time to see Lucinda in concert, but only the first time as a headliner.

Carrying an acoustic guitar, Lucinda took the stage all by herself and opened with "Passionate Kisses", arguably her best-known song. For the second song, she was joined by guitarist Stuart Mathis, a long-time member of the Wallflowers, followed one song later by bassist David Sutton, then finally by drummer Butch Norton. These guys were absolutely fabulous - as much as I enjoyed listening to Lucinda, what really floored me was the band. I sat directly in front of Stuart and his amplifier. Watching him play from just a couple of feet away and getting to hear every note he played with outstanding clarity was something truly special. At times, his playing literally hijacked me, as I found myself following his parts with an attention level usually reserved to lead vocalists.

Lucinda was in great vocal form and kept getting better with every song. She pretty much followed her predetermined set list, although we did not get to hear "Still I Long For Your Kiss". I was very impressed with her newer compositions, especially "West Memphis", "Everything But The Truth" and "Burning Bridges". The evening had many high points, among them "Overtime", a Lucinda Wiliams song covered by Willie Nelson, "Lake Charles", a song about an old friend killed by his own lifestyle, and "Side Of The Road", a twenty-five year old self-penned gem. "Concrete And Barbed Wire" sounded great, too. In addition to her own material, Lucinda threw in a couple of compositions by Dan Penn and JJ Cale, but I do not recall their titles.

Lucinda Williams and Stuart Mathis at McCabe's

Lucinda with her electric guitar

Lucinda's focus was on her music. She did speak to us in-between most of her songs, but she kept her stories short and to the point. The concert ended at 11:30 PM, so we all got our money's worth. By the way, tickets did not come cheap: at 55 bucks each, Lucinda's gig was one of the priciest ever at McCabe's.

Lucinda's set list

Lucinda Williams at McCabe's

I can't call myself a connoisseur of Lucinda's music, nor can I claim that I listen to her albums all the time. But seeing Lucinda in a live setting is a different thing altogether. The same raw voice that has a lesser appeal to me on a CD, is the real deal for me when she's on stage. In that respect, Lucinda is quite a bit like Marianne Faithfull.

Lucinda enjoying Stuart Mathis' guitar work

Lucinda thanking the crowd

Once again I must mention the quality of Lucinda's band. Butch, David and especially Stuart were out of this world - watching them play was pure joy. I'd love to see them again sometime.

Stuart Mathis at McCabe's

The evening kicked off with the outstanding Kenneth Brian Band, a self-described ensemble of country rock. They sounded great and they looked the part, too. Kenneth possesses a voice that is perfect for the kind of music they play. I liked their overall sound, essentially a pleasant mix of electric and acoustic guitars. I was unfamiliar with their music, yet every song they played sounded familiar without being derivative and even though I would have liked them to rock a little harder, their best song turned out to be "Fall On Me", a slower ballad. The band was joined for a few songs by the attractive Lillie Mae Rische, who played the fiddle and soloed on her own "Wash Me Clean".

Kenneth Brian (left) and Travis Stephens at McCabe's

The Kenneth Brian Band & Lillie Mae Rische at McCabe's

The Kenneth Brian Band's set list

Sound Engineer Robin Danar in action

Stuart Mathis' guitars

Lucinda's guitars

The stage

The merch table

T-shirts for sale

Concert poster

Concert #702 - Eleni Mandell at McCabe's Guitar Shop (February 28, 2014)

Casual music fans, most likely, have not heard of Eleni Mandell and that's their loss. Friday night at McCabe's, about one hundred fans in the know were treated to a truly wonderful evening of quality songwriting and outstanding vocals, the kind one does not get to hear too often. Eleni's set did not include a lot of up-tempo scorchers, but I thoroughly enjoyed the laid-back feeling that emanated from her slower songs, and when I say slower, I certainly don't mean sleepers, as there weren't any of those.

The set kicked off with Allen Toussaint's "It's Raining", a gorgeous number first recorded by Irma Thomas decades ago. This may have been the evening's only song not written by Eleni herself and what followed was a veritable cavalcade of fine songs, with no throw-aways among them. It's not often that a songwriter's melodic sense and mine are in perfect alignment, but that was definitely the case with Eleni's compositions that she sang for us Friday night.

Then there was her voice. Smooth and warm, always precise and always full of feeling, Eleni's vocal abilities are something to behold. Her sultry and seductive delivery of "Magic Summertime" was one of the show's many highlights, along with "Little Joy", "Home", "Put My Baby To Bed" and the delightfully funny "Chinese Food On Christmas Eve".

Eleni Mandell at McCabe's

PARTIAL SET LIST

Girls

Little Joy

Wishbone

Home

It's Raining

Weding Ring

Magic Summertime

Put My Baby To Bed

Anyone Like You

Snake Song

Chinese Food On Christmas Eve

Afternoon

Moonglow, Lamp Low

I've Got A Tender Heart

Salt Truck

Artificial Fire

Yellow Lights

Maybe Yes

Eleni Mandell at McCabe's

Mixing songs from her printed list with audience requests, Eleni brought us in a humorous way into her world, and by the time the show was done, we were all well acquainted with her children, grandmothers and ex-boyfriends.

Throughout the show, Eleni was accompanied by bassist Ryan Feves, a talented and likeable musician who contributed a lot to the success of the show.

Ryan Feves at McCabe's

With Miley Cirus, Lady Gaga and the like dominating the music news, it looks like it's mission impossible for someone as talented as Eleni to reach a wider audience, but that is something she definitely deserves.

Opening the proceedings was Vikesh Kapoor, a young singer-songwriter of considerable talent. To be successful in his field, one must compose good tunes, write intelligent lyrics, sing well, be at least a decent guitar player and have a great personality. Vikesh did very well in all of these categories. His set was relatively short, seven songs in all, and they were all good. To these ears, "Down By The River", "Bottom Of The Ladder" and "The Ballad Of Willy Robbins" were the best of the lot. At times, Vikesh reminded me of a young Bob Dylan, and that is quite a compliment.

Vikesh Kapoor at McCabe's

Vikesh Kapoor at the end of his set

Vikesh Kapoor and Eleni Mandell "duetting" at the merch table

Concert poster

Concert poster

The evening of the show - rain pouring down on McCabe's