Back in December Cloud 9 Adventures brought together Yonder Mountain String Band, Railroad Earth, The Infamous Stringdusters and Leftover Salmon for the first annual Strings & Sol destination music festival, which was held at Dreams Tulum Resort and Spa in Tulum, Mexico. Cloud 9 has just announced the second installment of Strings & Sol with a few of the same bands and a few different acts.

The four-day Strings & Solo 2013 brings Yonder Mountain String Band, Railroad Earth, Greensky Bluegrass, Leftover Salmon and Keller Williams and the Travelin’ McCourys to the Now Sapphire Resort in Puerto Morelos, Mexico from December 11 – 15. Yonder will play a total of three performances with RRE and LoS signed up for one closing show and one additional performance. Keller Williams with The Travelin’ McCourys and Greensky Bluegrass are set to perform twice a piece.

All-inclusive packages go on sale to the general public beginning April 17 at noon ET at www.stringsandsol.com. Those who attended the inaugural event will be able to take part in a pre-sale on April 16.

Railroad Earth @ Best Buy Theatre – March 9

Words: Chadbyrne Dickens
Photos: Kylla Delisio

One of the prominent leaders in the current jamgrass revolution showcased their immense talent last week by returning to New York City for the first time in a year at the sold-out Best Buy Theatre. Formed in 2001, New Jersey ‘s own Railroad Earth consists of Todd Sheaffer (Lead vocals), Tim Carbone (Violin, electric guitar), John Skehan (Mandolin, Irish bouzouki), Andy Goessling (Acoustic & electric guitars, banjo, dobro, mandolin, flute, pennywhistle, saxophones), Carey Harmon (Drums) and Andrew Altman (Bass). The band’s name pays homage to a short story by Jack Kerouac.

[All Photos by Kylla Delisio]

With their patented sound including consistent rocking rhythms and gyrating grooves, Railroad Earth seems to improve every year. By mixing up a consistent rotation of bluegrass, Celtic, jazz, jam and rock, one is consistently challenged to anticipate what melodic structure or sound will come next. This particular incarnation of RRE showcased deeper and more fulfilling jams than in the past. The members played well off each other and appropriately filled in the spaces with exploratory instrumental magic. Black Elk > Spring-Heeled Jack was an appropriate opening complete with an intricate call and response jam. After the warm up, a Lake A Buddha > 1/2 Jiggy > Where Songs Begin segment fueled the crowd with its abundant energy.

READ ON

Jamgrass faves Railroad Earth will pair up with New Orleans funk band Galactic and Michigan bluegrass act Greensky Bluegrass for a triple bill at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre on July 12th. While Railroad Earth and Galactic have performed at the scenic venue in the past, July 12th will mark Greensky Bluegrass’s Red Rocks debut.

Galactic will play Boulder’s Fox Theater on July 11th, while Railroad Earth will perform at the Boulder Theater on the 13th. Tickets for Red Rocks go on sale this Saturday, Feb. 23rd at 10AM MST.

After taking part in the “worlds colliding” spectacular at the just-reopened Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York on Sept. 7th, Warren Haynes will return to the venue next Thursday and Friday (Oct. 11th and 12th) with some very special guests in tow. For the Thursday performance, in which Warren will treat fans to a solo acoustic show, Haynes will be joined by music legend David Crosby as well as Railroad Earth’s Tim Carbone, John Skehan, Andrew Altman and Andy Goessling.

[Warren Jams Almost Cut My Hair w/ Crosby, Nash and Lesh - 7/27/11]

Crosby’s Almost Cut My Hair has long been covered by Gov’t Mule, so expect a fine version of that one. David and Warren last shared the stage together at the Allman Brothers Band’s Hep C Benefit at NYC’s Beacon Theatre on July 27th, 2011. For next Thursday’s solo performance, there will be seating available for those with floor tickets on a first-come/first-served basis. On Friday, October 12th, Warren will perform with his Warren Haynes Band outfit with Dirty Dozen Brass Band handling opening duties. Tickets for both shows are available through The Capitol Theatre’s website.

On Friday night Umphrey’s McGee played their biggest headlining gig yet at the historic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. Rockgrass act Railroad Earth kicked off the festivities before two sets of UM. We’ll have a full report on the show as well as Umphrey’s performance at the Boulder Theater on Saturday soon, but we wanted to share two videos from the night “On The Rocks.”

During RRE’s opening set, Umphrey’s keyboardist Joel Cummins emerged on Elko…

Railroad Earth – Elko

For Umphrey’s first encore, they welcomed all of Railroad Earth for a cover of Kashmir…

READ ON

HT faves Railroad Earth will hold their annual New Year’s Eve Run at the Crystal Ballroom in Portland, Oregon this year. The run begins on December 29th and runs until NYE.

A pre-sale is currently underway through the band’s ticketing site, while the general on-sale is set for Tuesday, September 14th. Look for more details and opening acts to be revealed soon.

[via JamBase]

Cloud 9 Adventures have just announced the latest addition to their roster of music destination events – Strings & Sol. S&S will bring Yonder Mountain String Band, the Infamous Stringdusters, Railroad Earth and Leftover Salmon to Tulum, Mexico between December 12 and 16 for three full shows a piece spread out amongst the festival’s four days.

The Dreams Tulum resort will host the inaugural Strings & Sol and packages are available with lodging at the hotel and without. Dreams Tulum is located 75 miles south of Cancun on the Mayan Riviera. Rooms and four-day passes go on sale May 23rd at noon EDT through the event’s website.

The fine folks at The Midnight Cafe have just reposted a fantastic compilation that’s been circulating for years featuring Railroad Earth performances of songs that Jerry Garcia sang. We’re talking songs from the Grateful Dead catalog such as The Wheel and Terrapin Station as well as Jerry’s many solo projects such as the JGB (Sitting Here in Limbo) and Old and In The Way (The Hobo Song). Both FLAC and MP3 files are available.

Here’s six more bootlegs worth downloading…

• John Coltrane: Live ‘Trane Underground MP3 and FLACs [Midnight Cafe]
• Elton John: July 25, 1982 FM Saratoga Springs, NY [Guitar101]
• Prince Rama: March 17, 2012 SXSW SBD/Matrix [NYCTaper]
• The Band: August 25, 1976 AUD Los Angeles, CA [BB Chronicles]
• Bruce Springsteen: March 26, 2012 DAUD FLACs Boston, MA [T.U.B.E.]
• Frank Zappa: November 17, 1974 SBD FLACs Philadelphia, PA [Guitar101]

What a weekend for Phil Lesh as the Grateful Dead / Furthur bassist has performed at his own Terrapin Crossroads each and every night since Thursday as part of the San Rafael, Calif. venue’s causal opening and also sat in with Railroad Earth on a segment of Dead tunes at The Fillmore in San Francisco on Saturday night. For last night’s sets at Terrapin Crossroads, Lesh’s Furthur / Grateful Dead band mate Bob Weir lent a hand, along with members of Railroad Earth.

The special version of Phil Lesh and Friends that took the “stage” at Terrapin Crossroads yesterday featured Weir on guitar, Lesh on bass, Grahame Lesh on guitar, Jaz Sawyer on drums, Danny Eisenberg on keys, Ross James on guitar, pedal steel and vocals as well as Railroad Earth members Tim Carbone on violin, John Skeehan on mandolin and Andy Goessling on banjo, dobro, guitar and sax.

Watch the group’s takes on The Wheel and Cumberland from last night…

Phil Lesh and Friends – The Wheel

Phil Lesh and Friends – Cumberland Blues

[via nowiknowuryder]

And here’s the full setlist thanks Rich of Ratdog.org’s forum…

Set 1 (9:05pm – 10:05pm)

Alabama Getaway – Grahame
Loose Lucy – Bobby
Pride of Cucamonga – Phil
Chinatown Shuffle – Ross
Ashes and Fire – Grahame
Peggy-O – Phil
Will The Circle Be Unbroken – Ross
Not Fade Away – all (Phil & Bobby share a mic)

Set 2 (10:35pm – 12:15am)

Cumberland Blues – Phil, Bobby, & Grahame
Spring-Heeled Jack – (instrumental)
The Wheel – Phil, Bobby, & Grahame
Long Road – Grahame
Cold Rain & Snow – Phil
Dear Mr. Fantasy > – Grahame
Viola Lee Blues – all
In The Midnight Hour – Bobby

Enc: Donor Rap & Phil thanks crowd
Johnny B. Goode – Bobby

Yesterday’s set was the final one as part of the venue’s “casual opening.” Terrapin Crossroads opens its Grate Room this Saturday night, March 17.

HT faves Umphrey’s McGee and Railroad Earth will team up to play the gorgeous Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado on September 14. The show was announced from stage by keyboardist Joel Cummins during Umphrey’s sold-out performance at Denver’s Fillmore Auditorium this past Friday night. Cummins also mentioned that Umphrey’s will play two sets at Red Rocks.

[via NickMo]

Umphrey’s history with Red Rocks goes back to 2005, when they played the venue twice as part of The Big Summer Classic. The sextet returned the next summer for a co-bill with moe. on June 3, 2006 and again on August 31, 2008 for a lengthy set in support of Gov’t Mule. For the past two summers Umphrey’s has headlined Red Rocks during the Fourth of July Weekend for concerts billed as Red Rocks and Blue. On July 3, 2010 The Wailers and Galactic opened for UM, while The New Mastersounds and Easy Star All-Stars were on as support for the Chicago-based band’s only two-set performance at Red Rocks to date. Railroad Earth made their Red Rocks debut on September 5, 2009 as openers for the Allman Brothers Band and returned on August 20, 2011 with Infamous Stringdusters and Yonder Mountain String Band. Ticketing information has not been revealed as of press time.

Todd Sheaffer’s short three-show run with HT faves Greensky Bluegrass came to an end last night at Sullivan Hall in NYC, where the Railroad Earth front man joined the Michigan-based band at the end of their first set for three songs – Tom Waits’ Cold Water, The Hobo Song by Old & In The Way and Railroad Earth’s Long Way To Go.

[Photo via Greensky Bluegrass Facebook Page]

As with the first two nights of the mini-tour, last night’s show started off with a somewhat rare solo acoustic set from Sheaffer. Todd played the role of storyteller, giving the crowd background on nearly every tune. Of particular note was the story behind the From Good Homes classic Way To Go Pam, which Sheaffer explained was about a friend named Pam from his New York City days who disappeared without a trace until he received a postcard from New Guinea that was sent by her.

Greensky Bluegrass played two sensational sets for their biggest NYC crowd yet and showed why they continue to build their audience with each tour. Not only were their originals fantastic, but GB adds such an inventive twist to covers. Yesterday they tackled Pig In A Pen, Traffic’s Light Up and Leave Me Alone and China > Rider, among others. The group recently brought a light designer on the road and he’s already paying huge dividends, giving their sets more of a “rock show” feel. The five-piece ensemble continues their lengthy tour, sans Sheaffer, tonight at the Middle East in Boston.

[Originally Published: January 26, 2010]

Harvest Moon is the title track from a 1992 Neil Young album. Released a full twenty years after Young’s album Harvest, a number of supporting musicians appear on both albums. Many things can influence my choice of songs for Cover Wars each week and one of them is other music blogs.

Snarky Indie Blog Pitchfork had a post last Thursday where they pointed out that both Kevin Barnes and Ben Gibbard had both contributed covers of Harvest Moon for charity releases. P4K theorized…

Neil Young: Having a moment! One possible explanation for the two simultaneous covers: The recent release of Young’s archival live album Dreamin’ Man, which collects live versions of every song from Young’s Harvest Moon album.

Well if they checked YouTube, they would have realized that both artists performed the song 3+ years ago. Pitchfork, I give you a 3.6 for doing your Internet research.

The Contestants:

Ben Gibbard (Death Cab For Cutie): As was mentioned in the intro, Gibbard recently contributed a cover of Harvest Moon to GIVE Seattle 2009. Proceeds from this compilation go to Food Banks and Art Corps in Seattle. Gibbard performed this tune frequently on his 2007 solo tour.

READ ON for the rest of this week’s contestants…

Words: Alexander Wolff
Images: Jason Woodside

Denver is one hell of a place to be a live music fan on New Years Eve. With multiple acts that have big draws setting up shop for more than one night, one has choices. Quite a luxury indeed! So, with Widespread Panic and STS9 both having headlined multiple-night runs in town, you are surely wondering what else went down around Denver on the last two nights of 2010.

[All photos by Jason Woodside]

East coast experimental Americana outfit Railroad Earth was booked for three nights at the Ogden Theater leading into the start of 2011. The group wound up playing four after announcing a January 1st performance during the show on the 30th. That night, the first set started off with a bit of a lull, the band having selected slower numbers that were lacking in any sort of extended improvisation, albeit tightly executed. Both the first exploration of the night, as well as the highlight of the show came in the form of a swelling, spacious jam out of Head that they pushed with a four-on-the-floor rhythm to a nice peak before bringing it home.

The second set did not disappoint, as the band came out hard with a guest vocalist for Mighty River and Peace on Earth, and a rocking double-fiddle jam in Reuben’s Train. Out of 1759 came an extended jam setting up the segue into Seven Story Mountain, and they kept the energy going through the rest of the set into the encore. A solid showing.

The Motet, one of Colorado’s best kept secrets, played to a sold-out crowd at Cervante’s Masterpiece Ballroom on New Year’s Eve; now that sounds like a party. Before The Motet would bring the funk parade to the dance floor, there was an interesting set of music to get through first. Boston roots-reggae act John Brown’s Body played a wonderfully impressive set of music. With their thick dub lines, syncopated horns, spacious improv and tight vocals they got the dance floor kicking and skanking. READ ON for more…

December 31st is the biggest night for live music of the year. An argument might be made for Halloween, but I’m not buying it. Your non-live-music-loving-friends don’t say things like, “Halloween is the most anti-climactic day of the year” while you sit there and just snicker. We’ve been a little Phish heavy this week so let’s take a look at how 24 other bands rang in 2011.

Side Note: This was my first time using embedded images from setlist.fm and I must say it looks super slick. That site has really got it going on, I hope the quality of data improves as more people use it, because with better information – statistics like “What songs did LCD Soundsystem play in 2010” will be really useful to have for a wide variety of bands.

Better Than Ezra:

The Black Keys:

READ ON for lots more New Year’s Eve Setlists

The year was 1999 and it had been a good five years since the last major release of a Tom Waits album before the critically acclaimed Mule Variations hit the store shelves. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of allmusic says this of the album,

Waits is still writing terrific songs and matching them with wildly evocative productions; furthermore, it’s his lightest record in years — it’s actually fun to listen to, even with a murder ballad here and a psycho blues there. In that sense, it’s a unique item in his post-Swordfish catalog, and that may make up for it not being the masterpiece it seemed like it could have been.

The Contestants:

This rendition from Ekoostik Hookah was recorded at Magic Bag in Ferndale, MI on 12-14-2001.

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READ ON for the scoop on the rest of this week’s contestants…