Soundscan subscribers received the Billboard Top 200 chart today and I have to say 2009 is off to a great start. The folks over at P4K were quick to congratulate Animal Collective (Merriweather Post Pavilion)
This data hits billboard.com in a couple of days. The four albums mentioned above were all released on January 20. One week earlier, another HT favorite hit the Billboard charts as well: The Derek Trucks Band’s Already Free
The man behind one of the most recognizable piano intros of all-time passed away this morning at the age of 56. Billy Powell of Lynyrd Skynyrd died at his home in Orange Park, Florida around 2AM. Powell’s death leaves guitarist Gary Rossington as the only living member of the band to survive the 1977 plane crash that killed three of his band mates.
Skynyrd’s Friday night show in Kinder, Louisiana has been cancelled but no further decisions about the band’s future have been made. Let’s remember Billy with one of last versions of Freebird before the plane crash…
From the success of last week’s debut of God Street Wednesday, it’s clear we’re not the only ones who want to see a God Street Wine reunion. We’ve heard from a number of Winos with tales from the road, posters, flyers, photos as well as videos and audio from the band’s heyday. Look for all of that and much more over the next few months each Wednesday on HT.
[Photo of GSW and Al Schnier from Wetlands on 1/3/98 by Joe Madonna]
Up first this week, we’ve got a quartet of high-quality videos from a GSW show at the Wetlands Preserve on February 16, 1999 filmed and uploaded by our friend Joe Madonna. At this point in the band’s career Tomo and Bevo had left. The band held auditions and replaced the longtime members with Pete Levin on keys and Aubrey Dayle on drums. As you can see in this clip of Wendy, Pete and Aubrey held shit down…
It’s also been a big week for the Live Music Archive’s God Street Wine collection. Seven (!?!?!) magnificent soundboard recordings from Michael Weiss of the band’s mid-’90s glory days have been lovingly transferred and uploaded to Archive.org. So far I’ve listened to two of the shows and the quality of both the playing and the recording are top-fucking-shelf.
I’m particularly partial to what appears to be an acoustic show at Peasant’s Cafe in Greenville, NC on November 17, 1994. This crystal clear tape starts off with Tomo laying down station IDs for Deerfield Academy’s radio station before the boys pick up their acoustics and start the show with a cover of All Blues. Next, they launch into a bluegrass-tinged Wendy that’s completely different from the 1999 electric version above.
READ ON to watch the rest of Joe Madonna’s videos from 1999 and to stream seven of Michael Weiss’ tapes from 1994 and 1995…
Next week, former BtN artist Ben Kweller will release his fourth full-length album Changing Horses, but those of you expecting another album chocked full of indie-pop are going to be in for a bit of a surprise. For his latest release, the Texas native ditched the crunchy guitar licks and pop hooks and traded them in for gentle pedal steel washes and lush backing harmonies, for an album of straight-ahead country tunes.
Ben will hit the road with former Blips act The Watson Twins for a 16 date tour that kicks off on February 16 in Omaha, NE, but before that he stopped by the Late Show on Monday night to perform the first single off his forthcoming record – Fight. Check it out…
Previously On HT:
When you hear the word “acoustic” associated with a concert, it conjures up visions of acoustic guitars and bar stools on stage. The drummer becomes a percussionist; everyone sits on the stools and plays their music without all the decibels and hot dogging. It’s more about the music than the show.
MTV made sure we were all familiar with the concept with their “Unplugged” series. Everyone from Sting to Nirvana to 10,000 Maniacs has played that venue. When your favorite band adds and acoustic set to their show, the tunes are approached differently by the musicians. Sometimes the results are wonderful, ala Springsteen’s Born To Run on the Chimes Of Freedom EP. Other times, not so much, like Motley Crue trying to pull off Girls, Girls, Girls with Tommy Lee on congas. Just can’t get behind that one. Truth in advertising laws aside, inserting the word Semi- between the first two words appearing on the ticket would be closer to what we were treated to at the Aladdin Theater on Friday night.
Los Lobos put a slightly different spin on the acoustic label tonight. They started on time, all five members fanning out at the front of the stage with, true to their word, acoustic instruments. Like a mariachi on steroids, they strummed and harmonized their way through a first set that consisted of mostly Spanish vocals and joyous interplay. When Louie Perez stepped to the mike to sing Saint Behind The Glass four songs in, they were already sweating. From the front row, they looked like they were having the time of their lives. Even Cesar Rosas, the epitome of cool behind his ever present dark shades, was grinning ear to ear.
READ ON for more of A.J.’s review of Los Lobos @ The Aladdin…
The boys at Shitbagz put together the Diamond Dave Edition of Asteroidz. Now THAT’s what we call a crotch rocket. You’ve gotta love a game where you get to shoot Eddie Van Halen. Can you beat my score of 100,000 points?
Sirius XM Radio are launching Sirius XMU Sessions, a series of in-studio performances from ground-breaking artists. Sirius XMU Sessions will debut on Wednesday, January 28th on Sirius XMU (Sirius channel 26 and XM channel 43) with a performance by indie rockers Blitzen Trapper. This new show will offer up listeners stripped-down performances and in-depth interviews with a different groundbreaking Sirius XMU artist every week.
Upcoming sessions will include performances and interviews by Andrew Bird, Neko Case, Jenny Lewis, Matt & Kim, A.C. Newman and Ra Ra Riot. Sirius XMU Sessions will air every Wednesday at 9pm ET on Sirius XMU Sirius channel 26 and XM channel 43.
Let’s get through hump day together with some fresh linkage…
Finally, the best Phish tribute band in the game – Strange Design – kicks off their “Highway to Hampton” tour tonight at the WorkPlay Theatre in Birmingham, AL. The quartet returns to the Northeast towards the middle of February for shows in New Haven on the 19th and Boston on the 20th.
The Boss and The E Street Band head out for a lengthy spring tour starting in San Jose, CA on April 1. READ ON for a full list of tour dates…
While the surviving members of The Dead were down in D.C. for President Obama’s inauguration they took the time to sign a gorgeous Les Paul for our friends at HeadCount and Charity Folks. This black beauty has been put up for auction with all proceeds to benefit HeadCount, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that registered over 100,000 voters last year.
Marking the unique occasion, the guitar was also signed by DC-Deadheads like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, President Barack Obama’s transition team Co-Chair (and former White House Chief of Staff) John Podesta, and FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adlestein. Their signatures sit along side those of Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Mickey Hart, and Allman Bros./Gov’t Mule front man Warren Haynes, who has been a proud member of The Dead since the group toured America in 2004 (and has been playing a Gibson Les Paul on stage for many years longer). Be sure to place your bid now!
Keller Williams won last week’s Cover Wars, where we looked at covers of Don’t You (Forget About Me). Ha Ha The Moose was a close second.
Moving on to this week, we look at a song The Beatles recorded during the Let It Be sessions, but didn’t make the album. Don’t Let Me Down was featured as the b-side of the single Get Back. I keep coming back to The Beatles because so many great artists have covered their tunes. Instead of copying and pasting a lot of fun facts and quotes about the song, I recommend just checking out the entry over at The Beatles Bible. For me, it’s all about the measure of 5/4 to start every verse.
As always, be sure to register/login to IMEEM before starting the playlist below to ensure you listen to full-length tracks.
Go ahead and click this link to launch the playlist in a new window.
READ ON after the jump for more information, the voting, and for entries that are only embedded with video and are not available on the playlist…
The Phish YouTube channel has been blowing up over the past 24 hours with the upload of a number of clips from the upcoming March 3rd release of The Clifford Ball DVD set. Let’s take a look at a few of ‘em:
Flatbed Truck Jam
Fluffhead
They’ve also uploaded clips of Punch You In The Eye, Bathtub Gin and Sample In A Jar thus far.
What do you think about the quality? Would you buy it?
Supported by openers Bob, Future and Scotty Don’t – Badfish’s alter ego- the premiere Sublime cover band took the stage to a relatively crowded 9:30 club in Washington D.C. last Thursday night.
As cover bands go, life can be tough. These tribute bands will forever face the stigma of perfection, which is inherently impossible to overcome. That said, the four computer science majors from Rhode Island can draw a crowd for good reason – they are the best at what they do.
Opening with Smoke Two Joints it was immediately clear how Badfish nearly packed D.C.’s premiere music club. Lead singer, Pat Downes, has an impressively comparable voice to Sublime’s lead singer and figurehead, Bradley Nowell. The uncanny similarity is the backbone of Badfish and is arguably the closest point of perfection within the band’s effort to recreate the Sublime experience. READ ON for the rest of Kevin Smallwood’s Badfish review…
With March 6 rapidly approaching, the news of some more post-Phish shows happening around Hampton, VA has been released. The fine folks at Glitterglu Productions will be hosting two nights of live-tronica heavy after-shows at the Dr. Mary T. Christian Auditorium, located about three miles from the Hampton Coliseum. Night one features a headlining set from EOTO, which features former SCI members Michael Travis and Jason Hann, while night two will see former Blips act Boombox headline.
Doors will open for both nights at nine with music expected to stretch till 5 AM. Tickets will run you 20 bucks and are onsale now.
If like me you’re not heading down to Hampton, than maybe you’ll want to hit one of these recently announced tours…
Finally, in our continuing effort to keep up to date on the summer festival season the lastest festie to reveal their initial line up is the Bella Madre Festival. Taking place over Memorial Day weekend at Harmony Park in Clarks Grove, MN the festie will feature the likes of Tea Leaf Green, Del tha Funky Homosapien, Bassnectar, Moonalice and more. Tickets are currently on sale for the low price for $75 which includes access to the festival grounds, camp grounds and music for all three days of this fantastic festival.
Unlike most Grammy Awards ceremonies, there are actually a few great bands performing at this year’s event on February 8. Paul McCartney and Radiohead join Jay-Z, T.I. and Kanye West as the entertainment at the Staples Center. McCartney will be backed by Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters on drums.
Here’s a quick look at what’s happening elsewhere this afternoon…
Finally, Rolling Stone has an interesting piece on The State’s upcoming reunion at SketchFest in San Francisco. Apparently, Blues Traveler backed out of an appearance on the troupe’s ill-fated CBS variety show when Saturday Night Live came calling. Check out the article for all the details.
