Barack Obama’s been on the campaign trail preaching Unity as much as Change. His stump speech rhetoric reeks of togetherness, of building a coalition of races to award this country a future of hope. It’s a tough sell to your everyday cynic, but his actions are already speaking louder than words.
The Daily Kos today reported the near-confirmed rumor that Obama will host a massive rally in the epicenter of American liberalism the day before Super Tuesday next week, and the house band will mark the long-overdue reunion (quasi-reconciliation?) of Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir and bassist Phil Lesh:
That’s right. Barack Obama is going to hold a huge rally in San Francisco with the surving members of the Grateful Dead (sans Billy Kreutzmann). It’s a get out the vote rally, and it’s set to occur Monday night. The tickets will sell-out immediately for sure.
Obama has already played with Macy Gray and Wilco. Now the Grateful Dead. He certainly does have the rock and roll business on his side. Does that mean he’s hip?
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi played the part of Bill Graham a little more than a year ago to celebrate her ascension to the third-highest government gig in the land, and now it’s Obama’s turn to hire members of the Dead to play an event. But this one brings together Mickey Hart with Bobby and Phil, and that’s reason to rejoice. Let’s hope he drops the phrase “phatty healthcare” in the speech.
As our friend Laxplayer says, “If he can get Phish back together, he’s got my vote.”
With Sunday’s Super Bowl rapidly approaching, we thought we’d share a piece we ran about our favorite halftime shows just in case you missed it back in December. Stay tuned after the post for our predictions for the big game.
Nothing encapsulates the questionable marriage of sports and entertainment quite like the Super Bowl. The halftime show of the NFL’s signature event has been transformed over the past 42 years from an afterthought to a main focus of the Big Game. What was once a time for a piss break and a follow-up beer has turned into a big-time production thanks to the major television networks.
Originally the shows were filled with brief performances by a number of different artists celebrating a unifying theme. More recently the NFL decided to hand over the keys to the halftime show to just one legendary artist. What a difference a nipple makes, eh? This year Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have been tabbed to perform at Super Bowl XLII on Sunday.
The Gainesville-bred band should look at the past for an idea of what works and what doesn’t work at the big game. Let’s use this week’s B List to take a look at our 10 favorite Super Bowl halftime shows. Read on for the videos…
Rupert and Stan from the Ghosts of Wayne Fontes blog do everything for the keeeedz. So let’s turn our attention to their regular Thursday nonsense…
While kids like you and me were busy tasting dog food and puking at church, a rare breed of kids prefer composing sonatas and jamming with blues legends. Mozart allegedly learned to play the harpsichord at age three, Ricky Scaggs performed with Flatt & Scruggs at the tender age of seven, and Herbie Hancock played piano with the Chicago Symphony at age 11. Were talking about the Doogie Howsers of music. These are the rugrats who quite miraculously develop virtuoso mastery of an instrument at a freakishly early age. So today, we’ve scoured the interwebs to take a look at some of today’s rising geniuses.
Since we believe musical talent is hereditary, we’ll also take the opportunity to speculate which musical masterminds may have tapped some groupie ass and unknowingly produced these small wonders. Read on for the five best…
The 8th Freaks Ball — El Ocho Loco — is coming. There’s no sense waiting around for Zeppelin to get back together, so get involved with the real deal in Brooklyn next week to see what all this Russo/Metzger/Benevento fluffing is all about.
Apollo Sunshine at Freaks Ball VII
The details:
Freaks Ball VIII
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Southpaw
Brooklyn, USA
Featuring:
Bustle In Your Hedgerow
Mocean Worker
American Babies
plus a whole lotta freaked-out fun!
Doors at 8, music at 8:30 until you run out of gas. Tickets available now.
As an added bonus, Hidden Track is giving away 2 free tickets to the commenter who can best describe in 10 words or less what being Freaky means to you (Jevon Kearse and Najeh Davenport not eligible for this promotion). Contest ends Sunday at midnight. Check out some pics from last year.
If there was one band we could resurrect from the jamband and rock graveyards, the proprietors of this here blog would choose God Street Wine. But RANA would be a close second. If you’re unfamiliar with the obnoxiously awesome stylings of RANA, Uncle Neddy shares a number of legendary shows as the “of the week Download of the Week” (say that ten times fast!). Neddy also casts his vote in the Best Weekapaug Ever discussion that Rupert and Stan started last week.
Here’s a veritable bonanza of aural treats from a variety of singers and slingers:
Usually when artists play exploratory versions of Dylan tunes, Bob isn’t actually there to help them. That’s what makes the Wynton Marsalis Quartet’s takes on two Dylan classics incredibly cool: Bobby D himself adds the warbled lyrics and fractured harmonica playing we’ve come to know and love. Check it out.
Last weekend I finally caught up on organizing all of the amazing shows I’ve downloaded since I started this column 16 months ago. One thing that blew me away was how many incredible sounding (and looking) Steely Dan bootlegs that I’ve grabbed from the torrent and MP3 bootleg sites. I thought instead of being a selfish chazer (Yiddish anyone?), I’d take this opportunity to compile all of the kickass Dan recordings for those who may have missed out in the past.
We’ve got links to 10 of the best Steely Dan bootlegs you could possibly find. Hopefully you enjoy them as much as I am. Let’s check ‘em out:
Steely Dan 03/20/1974 FM (FLAC, MP3):
After listening to one of Steely Dan’s rare live gigs from the ’70s, I’m just confused as to why these guys didn’t tour behind any of their legendary albums. The Dan absolutely tore it up in the live setting with a band that included Michael McDonald, Denny Dias and Jeff “Skunk” Baxter. To see what I’m talking about, download this crispy-as-fuck radio show Steely Dan recorded on March 20th, 1974.
I’ve had a copy of this show for years, but the hiss on the analog tape made it unlistenable. But last week a pristine copy of the set made its way to the torrent sites. My old copy has now become my new coaster. The show begins with a high-energy romp through Bodhisattva that features Baxter and Walter Becker trading mind-blowing licks. Do It Again is a little more groovin’ than the album version thanks to McDonald’s work on the Rhodes. Other nuggets on this recording include the nasty solos in Rikki Don’t Lose That Number and a soulful version of Any Major Dude. We can only hope that more crispy recordings from the Dan’s epic 1974 tour surface soon. Read on for much more GTA…
ESPN’s tapping one of our favorite new(ish) bands for Sunday’s big game: “With anticipation high for Sunday’s big game, Rodrigo y Gabriela are honored to be featured on ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown on February 3rd. The fast-fingered, acoustic heavy metal duo from Mexico via Dublin, have produced exclusive video segments for the show, which will air Sunday (11 am-2 pm ET).” ¡Viva!
Dave Vann and Margaret Pitcher danced among the crowd of 8,000 at a non-New Orleans Mardi Gras celebration — Dave shoots, Margaret writes…
In what could become a resurrected tradition, Phil Lesh & Friends threw an epic Mardi Gras party in San Francisco on Saturday, the group’s first since February 2005, when the friends included Chris Robinson and members of Railroad Earth.
P&F is rightfully regarded as an ever-shifting and evolving unit, which makes the experience of their live shows both an exciting and risky prospect. On this night the band was definitely on, delivering an amazing performance that unexpectedly brought us into the wee hours of the morning.
Read on for more of Dave Vann’s amazing photos from the Mardi Gras event, more of Margaret’s great review and a great recording for stream or download…
Manhattan hooks many of the best New York City gigs, but Brooklyn has scored one of the most interesting concert series of the young year. The Brooklyn Academy of Music celebrates the music of Paul Simon by presenting Love In The Hard Times, an extraordinary three-part series with performances from Simon, David Byrne, Grizzly Bear, Little Anthony and the Imperials and several others.
Songs From The Capeman starts things off on April 1-6 with its Latin-flavored songs and ’50s doo-wop feel. On April 9-13 Simon, Byrne and a number of other guests present Under African Skies, which explores the material from Graceland and The Rhythm of the Saints. Finally, Simon revisits the quiet railway stations, urban rhythms, and immigrant dreams of his greatest American Tunes on April 21-27.
Now here’s a batch of other linkage to help you beat those mid-week blues:
Finally, read on for the latest brilliant episode from the Yacht Rock crew. Sit back and watch the story of Kenny Loggins writing Footloose starring Jason Lee…
When the Allman Brothers Band announced that they were moving their traditional March residency to a venue-to-be-named-later some time in May, we figured they would be playing at the Nokia Theater or United Palace Theater.
It turns out the legendary Southern rockers have come to terms with the Dolans and will indeed return to the stage that’s hosted 175 Allmans shows since 1989: The band has lined up 15 shows at the Beacon from May 5 through May 24. We just wish the tickets were a little more reasonable instead of being priced at a mind-blowing $149.99, $99.99 and $59.99. Ouch! [via Live Daily]
Photo by Joe Bouchard
R.E.M. hits the road in late May for what promises to be an extended world tour behind their new album Accelerate. The 2007 inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame hope to bring in younger fans by adding hip openers Modest Mouse and The National to the bill. R.E.M. plans to warm up for the tour by playing two festivals in March, including a headlining gig at Langerado on March 8th. At the moment the band has only shared 13 dates, but look for many more to be announced over the next few weeks.
We’ve also got plenty of announcements from other bands to tell you about:
- Widespread Panic heads out for a month long tour of the East to support their new album (begins: 04/01)
- Mexico’s genre-bending Kinky crosses the border for a four-week tour of the U.S. and Canada (begins: 02/23)
- Jackson Browne unplugs for a solo acoustic trek (begins: 03/07)
- Guitarist Kaki King embarks on a 12-date tour (begins: 03/21)
- The New Deal wakes up from a hiatus by slowly but surely adding tour dates (begins: 03/06)
- Sammy Hagar joins Kenny Chesney’s Poets and Pirates stadium tour as a supporting act (begins: 05/10)
- Japanese noise-rockers Boredoms play “in the round” on their upcoming extended tour of America (begins: 3/15)
- Wacky Nellie McKay hits a variety of random towns and venues over the next three months (begins: 01/31)
Hidden Track’s adorable boyfriend/girlfriend team of Jeremy Gordon and Carla Danca hit up RAQ this past weekend…he shoots photos, she talks.
Coming in from the bitter cold last Friday, RAQ was ready to turn heads on the first of a two-night run at Mexicalli Blues Café in Teaneck, NJ. Starting the night off with a nod to New Jersey was Lembo, quickly followed up with another fan favorite, Brother From Another Mother. The band didn’t waste a moment heating up the night with an upbeat jam that set the mood for the 90-minute first set.
RAQ showed off its many faces, moving from almost metal-esque sound to smooth ballad pieces and back around to bubbly bouncy songs that left the house moving in their wake. The lively first set brought out a huge variety of songs that spanned their entire catalog. Each of the band members was able to show off his range, but the band stayed tight by working in a cohesive rhythm. Even when the energy in the room was seemingly at its max, the quartet kept it going by finishing off the set with an Otis Spode > Wax that left the crowd ecstatic.
Read on for more great photos, audio from the show and a full report…
You may be well familiar with the bands featured in this section, but Some Dude from Hits from the Blog wants to ensure there’s No Jambandfan Left Behind…
Being a music blogger you’re generally a few steps ahead of the curve when it comes to discovering new bands. While your friends are talking about how great The National is we’re on to whatever unsigned band Stereogum or Daytrotter are pimping that week. Case in point the band that has been the darlings of music blogs for past eight to ten months: Vampire Weekend.
Odds are you haven’t heard of them, or if you have you may have dismissed them because of their silly faux-Goth sounding name, much the way I did when I first heard of a band called Widespread Panic back in the mid ’90s — raise your hand if you thought they were a metal band too.
The boys of VW had been on a meteoric rise, at least in New York since people got their hands on their self-produced Blue CD-R (not be confused with Weezer’s Blue Album). The Village Voice and the New York Times both profiled them last year. They sold out the Music Hall of Williamsburg in the fall, and tonight and tomorrow they’ll hit the Bowery Ballroom for two sold-out shows — all this based on a three song EP and single; their full-length album hits stores today. So read on to see what their “Upper West Side Soweto” sound is all about…
News broke this weekend that Beyoncé will play Etta James in the upcoming film, Cadillac Records, an exploration of Chicago in the 1950s. The obvious jokes about their respective weights and looks aside, I couldn’t really care less about the casting decision. I just hope it pays her well so she doesn’t have to hock cell phones using the worst commercial song of my lifetime.
But I thought this story would provide a lovely excuse for us to post a version of Etta’s 1967 hit, Tell Mama. There’s no moving picture on this video, but the audio is so awesome that it should suffice. Gotta fuckin’ love this tune.
The opening track of this week’s edition is another version of one of my favorite tunes, Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (acoustic and electric versions from Mr. Haynes have been featured here too). This one from John Bell and his friends — Jeff Sipe and Leftover Salmon’s Drew Emmitt — came as the encore to a solo acoustic set, although the Colonel put in an appearance as well. A few months ago the old shuffle player followed that great cover with The Band’s Smoke Signal, and it just worked so well I had to share it in that order.
For the second half, we’re treated to the lovely Grace Potter and Friends in the Jam Room of this year’s Jam Cruise — they perform a pretty hoppin’ Mystery Train. And, finally, the mix ends with Chris Duarte covering Band of Gypsy’s Who Knows, one of the funkiest rockers I know. Enjoy!
