Fasten your seatbelts, kiddies…

How will this all go down? We’ll FINALLY find out shortly…

Is the Mothership preparing to host the most important gigs in the 25-year history of Phish? According to the Merry Swankster, the quartet is on the verge of announcing a three-night comeback run at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia. They actually claim that the announcement will come today, so you might want to book hotel rooms for March 6-8 on the Coliseum Drive Strip. We’ll see if today’s announcement actually pans out, but Hampton - a venue that’s hosted some of the greatest shows in Phish history - seems like the ideal place to kickoff the post-Breakup era. Stay tuned!

I’m going to go ahead and declare a tie from our edition two weeks ago with The Bridge and Mr. Blotto refusing to quit as the votes go higher and higher - so we’ll call them both winners from when we looked at covers of Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys. Last week’s however has a clear winner, no big surprise here as Jerry Garcia & David Grisman received the majority of votes when we examined covers of Sitting In Limbo.

This week, we look at the title track off of a Buddy Miles album from 1970: Them Changes. While not as well known as the version on Band Of Gypsies, the studio cut features a funky groove with a horn section whereas the live Hendrix cut is more of your straight power-trio rocker. What’s great about this week’s Cover Wars is that we’ve got some bands with horns that play the lines from the studio recording and some guitar bands that are a little closer to the version most people know. Lots of good guitar work this week.

As always, please register/login to IMEEM to listen to full-length clips in the playlist below.

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READ ON to cast a vote for your favorite Them Changes cover…

I was all set for a great night of music on Wednesday. Three bands that I have never heard of or seen. Well, not true, really. I had heard of Liam Finn, but never experienced his music. I had done quick Myspace and YouTube searches and came up with a thumbnail synopsis of how he does what he does. With his use of loops and drums and guitar, all in all a pretty unique sound. It made me look forward to his portion of the show.

But first, there were two other bands to open the festivities. I purposely didn’t check either of them out ahead of time. Surprise me, I thought. Give me your best shot, let’s see how you rock and roll.

The venue for tonight was the Doug Fir Lounge. Originally a diner attached to a motel, the Doug Fir underwent a major overhaul a few years ago and became one of the premier smaller halls in Portland. The diner still functions as it was originally designed, and the motel still rents rooms with a unique catch. Obviously knowing their clientèle, the managers turned Room 117 into a retail establishment where guests may purchase any of a myriad of sex toys, videos and the like.

Below the parking lot, on the street level is a tattoo parlor. Upstairs, next to the diner is the cocktail lounge and below that, the concert hall Looking like the inside of a log cabin (Made from, of all things, Douglas fir) the room has a nice feel and great acoustics. The best seats in the house are on the steps, just below the sound booth. Perfect sound and view above the bouncing heads on the floor, plus an easy shot around the corner back to the bar. Nice digs all around and SO Portland.

READ ON for A.J.’s thoughts on the three acts in question…

This past Sunday night in Montreal, Vermont’s Grace Potter treated the stunned crowd at Petit Campus to a first-time played cover of My Morning Jacket’s Golden. While her band, The Nocturnals, took a pee break, Grace told the crowd that the last time she was in Montreal she had the pleasure of seeing My Morning Jacket perform. Potter went on to discuss how much she enjoyed the show and wanted to try out one of MMJ’s songs for them.

Truth be told, we were just looking for an excuse to post this picture again. But seriously, Potter’s soulful and gritty, yet disarmingly pretty and melodic delivery works really well on this fantastic cover. We also got a laugh at her Michael McDonald impression which follows Golden. But don’t take our word for it. Thanks to DaveO, you can download a MP3 of Grace Potter’s Golden and the banter before and after the track taken from taper Jahdawg’s recording over at Bt.etree. Be sure to check it out.

• CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD GRACE’S VERSION OF GOLDEN
• Grace Potter and the Nocturnals: 09/28/2008 Montreal, QE FLAC Torrent
• Previously on HT: Hail to the Red, White and Blue

I appreciate live music for many, many reasons, not the least of which is the uniqueness of the performance. Not that the artist has not performed the material a million times in front of audiences more or less identical to each other. But on any given night, something can occur that hasn’t ever been seen before. The band could pull out a cherished song they usually don’t play live. There may be a cover tune or holiday treat that may not be appropriate elsewhere or at another time. Admit it, the first time you heard Springsteen and The E Streeters giggle their way through Santa Claus is Coming To Town, you wished you had been there that December night in Syracuse.

The audience at Edgefield Manor on Saturday night was treated to just such an event. The surprise this night was the opening act and its interaction with the headliner. John Callahan and his trio, aptly named Callahan began the show shortly after six on a simply perfect early autumn night. John Callahan is well known around Portland and the world as the irreverent underground cartoonist, whose weekly single panel strip often deals with the less than perfect side of life. A quadriplegic since a 1972 accident, the author of such black humored titles as He Won’t Get Far On Foot and Will The Real John Callahan Please Stand Up? is also a singer songwriter with one release to his credit, 2006’s The Liberator.

Callahan’s songs tend toward the darks side, much like his cartoons. Suicide and tears and memories of his Portland girl filled lyrics behind well crafted, almost bluegrass melodies. Jim James came onstage and joined in for a few songs on acoustic guitar and background vocals (the aforementioned uniqueness factor) and the pair harmonized like they were brothers. Callahan commented that one song in particular felt like having feeling in his legs. Live music magic, right there, my friends.

READ ON for A.J.’s thoughts on My Morning Jacket’s set…

Over the past few months we’ve had some annoying hiccups with the server that hosts Hidden Track leading to slow load times and connection issues. We’re happy to report that any issues you’ve had accessing the page should be a thing of the past ::knock on wood::, as we’ve moved the site onto a dedicated server. Thanks for continuing to visit HT in record numbers.

Let’s see what else is happening around the ‘nets…

• Bruce Springsteen to perform at the 2009 Super Bowl in Tampa
• Mr. Miner reviews Trey Anastasio’s Time Turns Elastic debut
• Brothers Past returns for a New Year’s Eve gig in West Chester
• The Webcaster Settlement Act of 2008 passes the House of Representatives, allowing internet radio to live another day
• New Dylan album to stream on NPR starting Tuesday at 12:01AM
• Dave Matthews helped produce the new Chuck Palahniuk film
• TV On The Radio rocked out Dancing Choose on Letterman

Finally, just a note that You Enjoy Myblog has a brand-new home. Head to YEMblog.com for a daily dose of Phish-related news, audio, videos and auctions. Thanks to Todd Levy of Jamtopia for the kickass design.

The Led Zeppelin reunion is off again and this time it doesn’t look like it will ever be on again - at least with all three living members. Former Honeydrippers lead singer Robert Plant posted a missive on his website stating clearly that he won’t be part of a Led Zeppelin reunion tour in 2009.

After those dates, Robert has no intention whatsoever of touring with anyone for at least the next two years. Contrary to a spate of recent reports, Robert Plant will not be touring or recording with Led Zeppelin. Anyone buying tickets online to any such event will be buying bogus tickets.

“It‘s both frustrating and ridiculous for this story to continue to
rear its head when all the musicians that surround the story are keen to get on with their individual projects and move forward,” Robert Plant said.

“I wish Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham nothing but success with any future projects,” he added.

It’s clear that Jimmy, JPJ and Little Bonham are dying to tour together, but I really hope that doesn’t happen. Who can possibly fill Plant’s shoes?

• Previously on HT: Yet Another Led Zeppelin Reunion Post

A true hidden gem in the LA singer/songwriter scene, Gaby Moreno is beginning to make her presence felt with her unique, soulful, and sultry sound. Since bravely venturing out from her homeland of Guatemala at an incredibly young age, she’s promptly made an impact by being the first Latin artist to win the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, and releasing her debut full length album, Still the Unknown.

Gaby scrapped together the following clip exclusively for the Hidden Track:

Gaby sounds off below on her impressive Guatemalan roots, unique musical style, and what we can expect from her next…

Jack Spilberg: I found it interesting that you learned to speak English by listening to soul and blues musicians like BB King, Robert Johnson and Nina Simone. Do you still listen to these kinds of musicians?

Gaby Moreno: Oh absolutely, I’m stuck in those old soul jazz and blues records. Every time I listen to them I find something new that inspires me. My favorite Nina Simone record is her very first one, titled “Little Girl Blue”. It’s hard to believe how young she was when she recorded it. What a voice!

READ ON for more of Jack’s exclusive interview with Gaby Moreno…

In an effort to promote their latest release The Stand-Ins - the follow up to the acclaimed The Stage Name and their second album in as many years - Austin indie-rockers (and former BtN act) Okkervil River asked a number of their musician friends to contribute cover versions of each song that appears on the album, to be showcased via their YouTube channel. Will Sheff & Company have assembled quite an impressive roster of artists including Bon Iver, A.C. Newman and David Vandervelde to help out.

With the project coming to a conclusion, the band has released a music video of their very own for the first single off the album Lost Coastlines. Check out the innovative clip…

The band is currently on the road for a world tour that brings them to New York for a two-night stand at Webster Hall next Monday and Tuesday.

• Previously On HT: Better Than Noodling: Okkervil River