Weekly Update – 08/08/2008

Mary J. Blige at Radio City Music Hall on Thurs. Rocktober 2. Pre-sale tickets on now for Citi card members until this Friday Aug. 15 at 10:00 p.m.  Fan club and VIP pre-sale begins Wed. Aug. 13 at 10:00 a.m. until Friday at 10:00 p.m. General public on sale this Saturday Aug. 16 at noon.  $69.50 – $165.50.  

Weezer at Madison Square Garden on Wed. Sept. 24 and the Borgota in Atlantic City on Fri. Sept. 26 and the Susquehanna Center in Camden NJ on Sat. Sept. 27. Angels and Airwaves along with Tokyo Police Club will be the openers. Pre-sale tickets for American Express cardholders go on sale this Monday Aug. 11 at 10:00 a.m. until 10:00 p.m. Wed. Aug. 13. I-Tunes pre-sale on Thurs. Aug. 14 from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. General public on sale next Friday Aug. 15 at 10:00 a.m. $54.50

Jackson Browne at the United Palace Theater on Sat. Sept. 20. Tickets on sale this coming Monday Aug. 11 at 10:00 a.m.

Biohazard at Fillmore New York on Sun. Rocktober 5. Tickets on sale Sat. Aug. 16 at 10:00 a.m.

Alanis Morissette at Music Box at the Borgota in Atlantic City on Sat. Sept. 27. Tickets on sale tomorrow at 10:00 a.m.

Mars Volta at the Starland Ballroom on Thurs. Sept. 18. Tickets on sale this morning at 10:00 a.m. $34.50.

Beck with MGMT at United Palace Theater on Friday Rocktober 10. Tickets on sale now. $49.

Rockband Live featuring Panic at the Disco, Dashboard Confessional and Plain White T’s at Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport CT on Fri. Rocktober 28 and also at the Prudential Center or the “Rock” in Newark, NJ. Tickets on sale at 10:00 a.m. $29.95 – $39.95

Kings of Leon at Webster Hall (125 East 11^th street in NYC) on Tues. Sept. 23. Tickets on sale next Friday Aug. 15 at noon. $35. Their new album “Only by the Night” will be released on the same day.

Other items:

Metallica’s new disc, “Death Magnetic” will be released on Friday Sept. 12. Typically all new albums are released on a Tuesday but this is the second time that Metallica has gone against the norm- the other being “St. Anger.” Anger took a long time for me to like but I finally came around.

Tesla is one of rock’s enduring bands, and their history will be saluted on the digitally remastered “Gold” collection. The two-disc set features such longtime favorites as “Modern Day Cowboy,” “Luttle Suzi,” “Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out),” “Love Song,” “Signs,” “Song & Emotion,” and “What You Give.” Also included are such previously unreleased or non-album b-sides as “Love In Vain,” “I Ain’t Superstitious,” “Rock The Nation,” “Children’s Heritage,” and “Cotton Fields.” An August 26th release is expected.

AC/DC will embark on an 18-month world tour in October, the hard rock band’s first since 2000/2001, their agent said this week. A single is expected to hit radio this month. AC/DC released its last album, “Stiff Upper Lip,” in 2000, and launched a year long tour of 17 countries.

The second single to be released off the incredible “The Sound of Madness” by Shinedown is “Second Chance.” I haven’t stopped listening to this disc since it came out in late June. There will be multiple “single” releases from this outstanding third effort from the boys from Jacksonville, Fla. The video for “Devour” can be seen on Fuse and MTV2.

Alicia Keys and Jack White have recorded the theme song for the new James Bond movie. The ’No One’ singer and The White Stripes frontman have joined forces on ’Another Way to Die’, which will appear on the soundtrack of ’Quantum of Solace’.

Seether has released hits and rarities plus interview clips with the band exclusively through I-Tunes. The show was recorded this past May 19. They also perform a cover of the Beatles “Across the Universe.”

The Black Crowes have a complaint against Gretchen Wilson and her new single “Work Hard, Play Harder.” They say it bears an uncanny resemblance to their first single “Jealous Again.” I will take it a step further and say that it is a complete rip-off. If George Harrison can be found guilty of plagiarism for supposedly copying the Chiffon’s hit “He’s So Fine” for one of his most popular hits- “My Sweet Lord,” then Gretchen needs to IMMEDIATELY AND CONTINOUSLY hand over any profits she makes from this song to the Black Crowes. Check out her version at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASq-UZnErB0and then check out the Crowes at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mir_awnzhI

and tell me it’s not a rip-off?

Thanks to technology, a number of Country stars will be able to sing Christmas songs with Elvis Presley. The new album “Elvis Presley Christmas Duets” will be out on Rocktober 14. Artists include Carrie Underwood, the aforementioned Gretchen Wilson, Martina McBride, LeAnn Rimes, Amy Grant and Anne Murray.

This week’s classic album review is my personal favorite Beatles album: The Beatles, otherwise known as the “White Album.” This was their ninth studio album and was their first after the death of its manager, Brian Epstein. Now it is very hard to pick the “best” Beatles album because there are so many. Revolver and Rubber Soul quickly come to mind, but if I’m stuck on a desert and had to pick only one Beatles composition, the White Album does it for me. What I love about this double disc is the obscure songs such as “Wild Honey Pie”, “The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill,” “Piggies,” “Don’t Pass Me By,” (my favorite Starkey song) and my personal favorite “Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey.” Believe it or not, the “Monkey” song was the tune that had my youngest son jump on the Beatles bandwagon and now he can’t get enough of them. This album ranked number 10 in the top 500 albums of all time that Rollingstone magazine did back in 2003. It is also the Beatles best selling album of all time and tenth best selling album ever in the United States. Even though this was the Beatles as a group, the whole album is made up of individual compositions and there is not one Lennon/McCartney composition. The last combined song from the powerful duo was “I’ve Got a Feeling” which appears on Let It Be. (another great album). We all know that Lennon’s tunes have an edge to them and Paul not so much. George was just gearing up for his massive solo explosion on “All Things Must Pass” and this album is where he begins to come out of shadow of John and Paul. Even Ringo had his own song-“Don’t Pass Me By” composed entirely by himself. However, Ringo at one point quit the band and the recording session in Aug. 1968 (the album was recorded between May and October of 1968).He felt his role in the band was minimized compared to that of the other members and he was also tired of waiting around during the sessions. He was coaxed into returning a few weeks later but during his absence Paul played drums and his skin skills ended up on the recording of “Back in the U.S.S.R” and “Dear Prudence.”

OK so we start with side 1- oh and by the way if you don’t own this album or are one of those who don’t like the Beatles- please don’t make me laugh- there is no bigger musical influence in the history of sound- yes even back to the days of Nikola. I’m back- yes side 1- album kicks off with a Beach Boy homage with “Back in the U.S.S.R.” a song by Paul. “Dear Prudence” a song from John written about Mia Farrow’s sister- Prudence- who had both accompanied the Beatles on their transcendental mediation trip taught by the Maharishi Yoga on their spring of 1968 trip to India.Prudence apparently stayed in her room during most of the trip meditating, so John was asking her to “come out and play.” “Glass Onion” is a sarcastic hit at the fans of the Beatles, whom John felt read too much into their lyrics. “Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da” is such a fun song and the hook is mesmerizing. This song was my mother’s favorite Beatle song- she loved the part of “Ha Ha Ha” before Paul sang “happy ever after..” “Wild Honey Pie” is 53 seconds of greatness and leads into the amusing “Bungalow Bill” … “all the children sing..” This is the first Beatle song with female singers as Yoko, Pattie Harrison and Maureen Starkey all took part in the background vocals. The first song from the quiet Beatle, George, is “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and we all know that Eric Clapton played lead guitar for this track. George would reciprocate by contributing to the song “Badge” for Cream on their last album “Goodbye.” George expresses concern over being “bought and sold,” a theme in later songs about Harrison himself, such as “Handle with Care”, recorded with the Traveling Wilbury’s. Side 1 ends with the eerie “Happiness is a Warm Gun”- a song supposedly written about drug usage but we all know what happened on that awful night in December of 1980.

Side 2 is my personal favorite of the album and starts off with the excellent “Martha My Dear”- I can’t say enough about this song- it’s pure. And then what can I say about “I’m So Tired?”- this could be one of the best songs that Lennon ever wrote. I love the part“You’d say I’m putting you on…” You have to crank the volume way up on this one. “Blackbird” is another pure beautiful song. Then how cool is George’s take on society with “Piggies?” I can’t get enough of this song and always have to hear it twice. Love the harmonizing vocals that begin with “Everywhere there’s lots of piggies living piggy lives….” Now I know “Rocky Racoon” gets many wrinkled faces when they hear it and the response is how can you like this song? I can’t get enough of it. If I could sing, this would be my ultimate karaoke performance. Then it’s on to the aforementioned “Don’t Pass Me By” by Ringo. “I listen for your footsteps coming up the drive…” Love the violins, the Beatles doing Country. The last three songs on side two I must have listened to a million times in my lifetime. “Why don’t we do it in the road” (no explanation here) “I Will” – love song by Paul and the beautiful “Julia” by John about his mother. Whew talk about a classic album side (WNEW-FM based in New York, “back in the day,” use to have those all the time).

Side 3 could also be a classic album side and has everyone’s favorite song on the day you were born – “Birthday”- come on this song kicks you into gear and was used in boot camp as well. “Yer Blues” is not really an uplifting song (song about dying) but it’s a song you can’t skip over. As a matter of fact my walls are shaking right now and my wife is telling me to turn it down. Then it quickly gets quiet with Paul’s “Mother Nature’s Son.” The walls are shaking again as my favorite song of the entire album comes on- “Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey.” I love the bass work by Paul and the wailing background vocals- “woo”- this is John at his best. “Sexy Sadie” is a song written by John and expresses his anger over supposedly being personally betrayed by Maharishi whom had made sexual advances toward Mia Farrow. “Helter Skelter” could arguably be the first song of “metal” and this one song totally rips those “nay-sayers” out there who call the Beatles a pop band. This song is friggin’ phenomenal and is my second favorite song on the album. Talk about having the volume up. “I got blisters on my fingers!!!” Side 3 ends with the soft “Long, Long Long” by Harrison, another beautiful song.

Side 4 begins with “Revolution 1”- did you know that this version was the original recording? John wanted it released as a single but the others objected because they thought it was too slow. So Revolution 1 was re-recorded (faster) and was the B-side to “Hey Jude.” Hey Jude was recorded during the White album sessions but was released as a stand alone single (with Revolution again being the flip side to the .45). “Honey Pie” this version is different from Wild Honey Pie and if you are following along- Wild Honey Pie is the 5^th song from the beginning of the album and Honey Pie is the 5^th song from the end. This version reminds me of something that Tony Orlando would do at his shows. Harrison’s “Savory Truffle” is something that sounds like something John or Paul would write and sounds like a “Beatle” song- if you know what I mean. “Cry Baby Cry” is classic John. Now “Revolution 9” has been debated for many years as something that is classic or a mess. Personally I say it’s a mess and it is one song that I skip over. Sorry my fellow “Beatle-ites.” I can’t do it. This classic album ends with “Good Night” a mesmerizing song that takes you far away and a perfect ending song.

Now I know that there are many people who are tired about hearing about the Beatles (hear me out Beatle fans) and I do admit that they are in many, many conversations amongst many different people. But what does that tell you? Nearly a half a century later, we are all still talking about the Beatles as if they just recorded something. This generation has taken a turn and now gets most of its music from I-Tunes. (myself included). Guess who is not on I-Tunes? The Beatles. If I-Tunes can somehow manage to get them aboard- what band do you think will have the most songs sold on I-Tunes? ‘Nuff said.

Back on this day in 1969, the cover photo for the Beatles “Abbey Road” was taken.

Back on this day in 1992, Axl Rose set off a riot in Canada by walking off the stage because he had a sore throat. Problem was that James Hetfield from Metallica, the opening act that night, was severely burned from pyrotechnics and Metallica had to cut their set short (pretty obvious why). So Axl and Guns had a chance to be kings for one night and they blew it. The Canadian fans went berserk when he walked off stage.

Concert Review- Tom Petty & Heartbreakers with Steve Winwood at MSG- 06/17/08

Concert review- Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers along with opening act Steve Winwood at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday June 17, 2008

My brother and I purchased these tickets more than a few months ago and I had June 17 circled on my calendar with an exclamation point. Couldn’t wait to go. My thinking going in was, how could you top this show? You have two legendary icons sharing the greatest stage in the entire world. (I know I keep saying that the Garden is the best stage to see a show but now I have proof- jumping ahead a bit, when Petty took the stage, the crowd kept letting them know how appreciative they were for the performance that he & the Heartbreakers were putting on, Mr. Petty looked up into the crowd and said “This may be the best room for rock and roll on the planet.”) Everyone knows how I feel about Mr. Winwood, I can’t say enough about how great this man is. But you know what? He just didn’t have it as the opener. And when Petty and the Heartbreakers took the stage the entire mood of the show shifted into cruise control, they brought down the house.

Now for those of you who have been following along my reviews, they are usually positive. Now I’m not going to sit here and tell you that you should not go to see Steve Winwood whenever you have the opportunity. No, it was just that he didn’t have it that night. Heck, if you get three hits out of every ten at-bats, you’re considered royalty in baseball; you get my point? Far be it for me to say how it should have gone but if I were Mr. Winwood’s manager, I would have suggested playing as many of his hits as possible with the short time period that he was given. I totally understand he was out there to promote his new album “Nine Lives.” But in my opinion to get people to listen to your new songs, they have to be familiar with your classic tunes; especially in a big arena. The “die-hards” will go to the smaller venues and appreciate your new stuff. Here’s your opportunity to add more people to your smaller venues and again in my opinion, he did not do that. Believe it or not there were many people there who were unfamiliar with his work. Now he did an excellent version of “Dear Mr. Fantasy” and “Had to Cry Today.” However even in those songs, it appeared that he was going through the motions. He seemed so laid back that I had the feeling that he needed Mr. Clapton out there to pick up his game. (If you remember back to my review of their show in February, I stated that Clapton was so great that night because he knew he couldn’t phone it in with Steve on the stage with him). Then when he did “Higher Love”- he changed the sound so much that I felt like I was in the Caribbean, (and this is not a bad thing but we were at the Garden). And it just dragged on too long. So all in all, not one of Mr. Winwood’s better nights, but hey we all get a mulligan, right?

Now when Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers took the stage, you could feel the energy level rise and very quickly if I may say. The stage was loaded with amplifiers and cables- so much that there looked to be very little room for the band. For most of the night, it looked like if Petty took one more step, he would have fell off the stage. A classic look, kind of reminded me of the cover of the Who’s “Who are You” album. But high above them was technology at it’s best. For those of you who have kids, it looked like a transformer was hovering over them. The “face” of this transformer had a semi circle with three or four screens that highlighted the different band members. Then there were three “cube like” screens, hanging from the ceiling. (reminded me of the cubes that are in the children’s game – “Don’t Break the Ice”). So you had the old- the stage- and the new- the aerial screen show. Now Petty did not have a new album to promote but that did not mean he did not mix up the set list with some obscure songs because he did. However his library is so extensive that it is almost impossible to not know at least 80% of what he will perform. Talk about a sing along night? Has to be right up there with the Springsteen shows. Now if you have never seen Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers live, you really need to review your priorities.

The show started off with “You Wreck Me” from his solo Wildflowers album-an upbeat rocking song. It then slips right into one of my personal favorites- “Mary Jane’s Last Dance.” Love the riff in the song. “.. I don’t know but I’ve been told you never slow down, you never grow old. Tired of screwing up…” The whole audience is singing word for word. The crowd is jubilant and is screaming “Petty, Petty, Petty” in between songs. He was blown away by the response and most appreciative of the feedback. The opening chords from “I Won’t Back Down” is heard and you could feel the roar of the crowd and everyone is ready to belt out “Hey baby there ain’t no easy way out.. I won’t back down.”

“Even the Losers” took me back to 1979 when “Damn the Torpedos” was released. I love going back in time, ahh the memories. Then it was on to arguably his most popular song- “Free Falling.” If you happened to be walking outside the Garden when this song came on, you had to hear the audience singing it. I actually pulled out my cell phone (I know-everything that I’m against) and called my best friend John and let him listen to his favorite Petty song. The shows next two songs were lesser known but still rocked the house. “Cabin Down Below” and “Sweet William” were excellent and from Sweet William onwards this is where Mike Campbell took over the show. This unsung axeman lies in the shadows of many other more popular guitarists but let me tell you- this man can shred. Staying on the subject of the band members- the drummer Steve Ferrone- kept the train a rollin’ with his excellent skills on the skins. And Benmont Tench on organ, piano and synthesizer was also awesome. The band went into Tom’s favorite Traveling Wilbury song- “End of the Line.” How can anyone not like the Traveling Wilbury’s? It’s impossible.

Afterwards, Mr. Petty called out Mr. Winwood to join the band and they blasted their way to two of Winwood’s classic tunes- “Can’t Find My Way Home” and “Gimme Some Lovin”. Ahh retribution- I looked over to my brother and said “Now that’s the Winwood I know.” To watch Campbell and Winwood share guitar solos back and forth was awesome. Then when Steve took to the piano/organ on “Gimme Some Lovin’” the entire Garden was really rocking. It was an awesome moment and feeling. At this moment the entire band had “caught the wave” and rode that wave for the rest of the show. It was a pure hit fest as the crowd sang along to such favorites as “Learning to Fly” “Don’t Come Around Here No More” and “Refugee.” My favorite song of the night was “You Don’t Know How it Feels”- makes me want to play harmonica and the drums- how cool is the groove in this song? The band came back out for the frenzied crowd and did three encores: “Running Down a Dream” “Mystic Eyes”- which I believe was a cover from Stack Waddy back in 1971 and then “American Girl.”

So Petty and his mates blew the cover off the ball. This was a great show and I’m begging you to see him before he decides to retire. Hopefully this doesn’t happen because you can tell that this is what he and his band mates love to do. They love music. It’s in them. It’s in me. Is it in you? Go out and enjoy!!!

Weekly Update – 06/13/08

My Morning Jacket at Madison Square Garden on Wed. Dec. 31. Tickets on sale Fri. June 27 at 10:00 a.m. $49.50

Van Morrison at the Borgota Event Center in Atlantic City on Sat. July 12. Tickets on sale tomorrow at 10:00 a.m.

Kayne West at Madison Square Garden on Tues. Aug. 5. Tickets on sale today at noon. $49.50 – $154.50.

The Stooges at Terminal 5 on Fri. Aug. 8. Tickets on sale today at noon. $45.

Billy Idol at the Hammerstein Ballroom on Tues. Aug. 26. Tickets on sale today at 10:00 a.m. $42.50.

Beach Boys at the Mohegan Sun on Fri. Aug. 22. Tickets on sale tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. $25

Paramore at the Rumsey Playfield in Central Park on Thurs. Aug. 28. Tickets on sale next Friday June 20 at 10:00 a.m. $35.

Other items:

I have a big problem now. Just read that AC/DC has an exclusive with Walmart to distribute their next album. Help me. Now, I know they never put out a greatest hits CD and they like to think that is not “selling out.” But what can they be thinking now? I know it’s all about the “Benjamins” but c’mon now?

Who has it better than Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters? This band is so scorching hot and everything he does seems to turn to gold. What I love about him is that he is a fan of all music. He has no problem with sharing the stage with anyone and guess what happened last week while they performed in London at Wembley Stadium? Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones joined the Foo’s on stage and performed “Rock and Roll” and “Ramble On.” Why couldn’t I be there?

Paul Stanley has denied the rumors that the band is launching an American Idol type of show to replace him and Gene. (even after their manager-Doc McGhee- confirmed those rumors). Stanley stated that any members will be “added” on and would not replace any members of Kiss.

Disturbed’s album “Indestructible” is number 1 on the billboard charts after one week (did I tell you?) and Weezer’s Red CD is number 4.

My Morning Jacket released their 5^th studio album- “Evil Urges” -this past Tuesday and its drawing rave reviews. As I listen to the 30 second samples on I-Tunes, I have to tell you it sounds real good. I will most likely take the plunge. Rollingstone gave it 4 stars!!

Motley Crue will be the guests on Larry King Live next Thursday June 19 at 9:00 p.m. The “Saints of Los Angeles” has been pushed back for release one week later than originally planned and will be out on June 24^th. A second song which is titled with a bad word which I will not use, is on their myspace page and sounds pretty good. But again you know how I feel about the cross language used in songs, no place for it.

Really like the single “Magic” from Robin Thicke which was released this past Tuesday.

Tickets for the final Police show at Madison Square Garden on Wed. Aug. 7 will be be doled out as thank-you gifts for donation pledges made to New York public television stations Channel 13/WNET and WLIW21, making the show the largest single fundraising event in the history of public television, according to a press release. The tickets will be given away beginning tomorrow to people who pledge at various levels ($750, $500, $350, $150) to either of the two stations.

This weeks I-POD shuffle landed on “Georgia on My Mind” from the legendary Mr. Ray Charles and yes I went back and listened to a whole bunch of Ray. I’m at a loss of words to characterize this man’s contribution to the music world. But one word stands out for me and that is how important he was to the music world. Can you imagine the world without the music of Ray Charles? There would be a huge void. Think of the countless people or groups he has influenced? He is another person that you cannot label as one type of music. He did country, blues, gospel, rhythm & blues, soul, rock & roll and it just continues. Think about this man for a second. You know there is a song that he has done that is one of your personal favorites. It is really hard to pick because the man has done so many great songs. So go out and purchase a greatest hits package- as there are endless to choose from.

“Georgia on My Mind” is right up there at the top of my list and it’s hard for me to say that this is not my favorite. But I have some other lesser-known songs (as far as popularity) but equally as great. Take “I Had A Dream” for example; I can listen to this song all day. It’s a bluesy finger snapping song that will have you trying to emulate Mr. Charles great vocals.“No One” is right at the top for me as well. “..No One ever shared all those dreams that I dreamed would come true…” And I have to say the women who sang background vocals on many of his songs are phenomenal, they add the spice. The arrangement in this song is so spectacular; that is the way he wanted it and produced it. “Nobody but you- yeah.”

“Busted” – whew- it’s endless the accolades you can throw at this man. I remember growing up and hearing this song way back when and of course I couldn’t admit this was great- c’mon I had The Cars and Foreigner as the bands that were cool back then. But you know what? I knew then and especially now know how special his songs are. His songs are timeless and should be shared with every generation.“I Can’t Stop Loving You”- Wow this is another song that I can listen to for days on end. Again the arrangement on this song is spectacular. It’s amazing how these recordings sound so pure and also like they were recorded yesterday. “Am I Blue” – You want to talk about a phenomenal song? Take a listen to the string instruments, his voice and quickly you are off somewhere in a trance. How about “Careless Love?” Or “Hallelujah I Love Her So?” I love the saxophone solo in the middle. “Ain’t that Love?” I could go on and on about his songs.

Now I will say that I also love his more popular songs such as “What’d I Say Parts I & II,” “Hit The Road Jack,” “I’ve Got a Woman,” and “America The Beautiful.” And how about the timeless classic “Night Time is the Right Time” –actually written by Nappy Brown- but made famous by Mr. Charles in late 1958. I’m at a loss for words for the way he performed this song. And do you remember back in 1985, when the members of the “Cosby” show lip-synched to this song? Theo starts it off on the steps; Rudy does the female’s part and then Mr. Cosby takes over with his facial expressions to the song. I can watch this over and over. You can to, go to: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2belk_cosby-show-sing-night-time-is-the-r_fun

This song and the way they portrayed it on the Cosby show puts an endless smile on my face and I have it cranked so loud in the house (no one is home) that the walls are shaking.

Bottom line is that if you don’t have Ray Charles in your music library, you need to rush out right now and get something. Keep his music alive!! Pass it down to your kids, grand kids, great grand kids- get the picture? The man was a genius. (On a side note, I saw him at an airport more than a few years ago as he sat right across from Howard and I. True story. I wanted to flip out the way two other women did when they realized it was him, but didn’t want to invade his space).

Back on this day in 1975, John Lennon made his last TV appearance and sang “Imagine.” He retires soon afterwards to become a household dad and raise his son, Sean.

Back on this day in 1986 Benny Goodman passed away at the age of 77.

Concert Review – Plant & Krauss at WAMU Theater – 06/10/08

Concert review: Alison Krauss & Robert Plant at the WAMU Theater within Madison Square Garden on Tuesday June 10, 2008.

Upon entering the WAMU theater my wife and I had no idea that soon we would feel that we were somewhere in the Appalachian Mountains, like in the movie “Cold Mountain.” Now this may sound strange but then I realized- this made perfect sense because the producer of the soundtrack to that movie was Mr. T. Bone Burnett. And there was T. Bone, up on the stage-playing guitar, enjoying the fruits of his labor- he was responsible for bringing Plant & Krauss together and produced their album “Raising Sand.”

The stage set up was very basic with everything being mostly black and the backdrop had long gold curtains. The band members were wearing old classic three-piece suits. The guitarist Buddy Miller wore a hat that made him look like Paulie from the “Rocky” series. There was a fiddle player and Krauss played the violin on many songs. The only thing missing was a campfire.

The show started with the bass lines to “Rich Woman” and the band continued a soft jam for a few minutes and then both Alison and Robert came from the back of the stage, down the sides of the stage; then faced each other and walked towards as if they were going to have a gun battle. Once they were in front of their respective microphones, they turned toward the audience and started to sing as the audience pelted them with a loud ovation. There he was, the living legend Mr. Robert Plant, still looking like a front man for a rock band. He still has the long hair with the goatee and is still in good shape. Next to him is the striking beauty- Alison Krauss. She in her own right has secured her place in folk and country music history. Together they looked like brother & sister as their full head of hair hovered over their microphones ringing out pleasing harmonies.

The second song did have some kick as Plant paid homage to Ray Charles and did an upbeat version of “Leave My Woman Alone.” Then for the third song, if you listened carefully you would recognize the lyrics and say to yourself “I know this song” but…Then it hits you it’s the Zeppelin classic “Black Dog” but its done with a folk and gospel feel to it. The audience filled in the “Aah Aah’s” every chance they could almost trying to egg the band on to play it like the original.After the song ends, there is a rousing ovation and Plant introduces his “buddy” Alison and she takes the audience through a mesmerizing set of three songs. “Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us,” “Through the Morning, Through the Night” and “Goodbye and So Long to You.” My wife said her voice reminded her of a cross between Patsy Cline and Dolly Parton. At this point I really felt like I was back in time again, round a campfire, singing American classics and that is what the show was about. If you are expecting Led Zeppelin, you will be severely disappointed and if you don’t want your image of Plant shattered as the such- stay home.

Plant came back out and took the lead on vocals for the next three songs. “Fortune Teller” from Raising Sand and then did a song from his solo career- “In the Mood.” Again it was not like the original but it worked for me. Then one of my “dream” songs from Led Zeppelin was performed- “Black Country Woman.” As I mentioned a few weeks back in my review of the classic album -Physical Graffiti- this song, along with “Boogie with Stu” are my two all time favorite Zep songs. I had to pinch myself because I never thought I would ever hear this performed live, I seriously doubt that if a Zeppelin reunion does come to fruition, that this song will be on the set list. I loved the version of the song as Alison helped out on vocals. I stood up and applauded after the song ended.

After this song is where I think the band lost some of the audience as it really slowed down from this point onward. T. Bone did a few songs and then Krauss came back out and did some beautiful songs such as “Trampled Rose” and “Green Pastures.” The lights went low and there was nothing but Alison’s voice as she sang a cappella -“Down to the River to Pray.” From the audience you could see Robert running from the back of the stage to join Miller and Duncan off to the right of Alison. The three men were singing background vocals into a microphone that was hanging down from the ceiling, very old school style. At that moment, I felt like I was in church that was portrayed in the TV series “Little House on the Prairie.” This was one of the highlights of the show that probably had most talking after its end.

Plant took over on vocals and as he sang his second song after returning, “Nothing”- I look over at my wife and she is out cold. Sleeping. I said, “What happened?”- She said that it was too soft and boring. She wasn’t even that enthralled with “The Battle of Evermore” as Krauss made Sandy Denny proud with her female vocal input to this Zeppelin classic. “Please Read the Letter” did seem to drag on and at this point my wife was done. I heard the opening chords to “Gone, Gone, Gone” and told her that this song was fast so she could wake up. She looks at Plant and says he look like a robot, trying to contain himself to this type of music. She is convinced he just wants to break out and let loose with the classic howls of Zeppelin. Go figure, I thought this show would be good for her and she is actually asking for loud guitars and screeching vocals.

The show ends with three encores- “You Don’t Knock,” “One Woman Man” and “Your Long Journey.” My opinion is that this was a very solid show and that is because I knew what to expect. I went in with the mindset that this was a very different Robert Plant. My wife did not know what to expect and after a while the show became boring for her. I will say that their harmonizing vocals are perfect together and T. Bone knew what he was doing when he introduced the both of them.

Concert Review – The Eagles at MSG- 05/30/08

The Eagles at Madison Square Garden on Friday May 30, 2008

Based on the cover of the May 29, 2008 issue of “Rollingstone Magazine,” I was expecting to see the four men remaining in the Eagles on stage: Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Timothy B. Schmit and Joe Walsh. However the huge stage at the Garden was filled with many more musicians than I expected. The remaining Eagles were dressed in suits with white shirts and ties, the side musicians wore suits but with black shirts. The side musicians also had “assigned” spots off of the main stage. The show was very good with great moments and not so great moments. The music and singing were identical to the original recordings and that was very impressive. This was the perfect show to take my wife because it was a “well behaved” show, except for one person who did not stop talking from the moment she arrived at the show. As our friends who came with us stated, if you want to chat: stay home and play their records!!

For those of you who do not know, the Eagles have had a tumultuous career as a country-rock band. Frey and Henley are the lone two originals in the band. And for those of you who do know the story- these two originals remaining should come as no surprise. Now when bands like the Eagles play at an arena such as Madison Square Garden, they should know that the majority of the fans attending want to hear the classics. And if there is one thing you can say about the Eagles, they are smart. They played their new songs, from the “Long Road Out of Eden” at the beginning of each set (there was no opener and they played for nearly 3 hours). For me, those were the “not so great” moments. After an intermission, they came out with acoustic guitars and played five songs and I have to admit I was getting antsy.

But let me go back to the beginning, they started off with four songs from the new album and one that I liked the best was “Guilty of the Crime.” And that was the fourth song so I was getting warmed up and then there it was the opening chords to one of their best songs- “Hotel California”- Henley’s voice is spot on as he is drumming along to the song. Then it’s on to one of my personal favorites- “Peaceful Easy Feeling” and they perform the song perfectly. It was like I was back in my room as a teenager listening to the vinyl recording. Timothy B. Schmit takes the lead on the next song which I believe was his first hit with the group, “I Can’t Tell you Why.” Usually at concerts, bands shy away from the slower, softer songs but I guess that is one of the reasons why I liked the show- because these are the songs I wanted to hear. (there is a mellow side to me you know). The first set also contained the classics- “Witchy Woman” and “Lying Eyes.” Then the audience had a taste of what was to come a lot more in the second half- solo stuff from Henley and songs with Walsh on lead vocals and guitar. Henley did “Boys of Summer”- which I thought was good but Tina said it was too fast. Joe did “In the City”- off of The Long Run album. The first set ended with a rocking version of “The Long Run.”

As previously mentioned the second set started off a little slow. They did “Take it to Limit” differently from the original- probably because the lead singer of that song was Randy Meisner- who quit back in 1977. For me, the fun began again with “One of These Nights” and then I was blown away by the fact that Joe Walsh did some of his own material. “Life’s Been Good to Me” is one of my all-time favorite songs and I couldn’t believe Henley and Frey allowed Joe to do his own material. (you see they are getting soft). Anyhow there was a part of me that wanted them to rip off their ties and jam and get loud. Joe was the one to do this for me, he is the “class clown” of this band and he did what he does best- He had fun. Let me also say that the man can still shred. Henley followed up with “Dirty Laundry” and there was a cool video behind them that was showing crazy headlines, newspapers, magazines (they showed the aforementioned Rollingstone issue) and younger photos of the boys. Then it was onto “Funk 49” from the James Gang days with a full horn section to compliment the famous guitar riff in that song. “Heartache Tonight” was a great sing along song. “Life in the Fast Lane”- my uncle John’s favorite song- had me air guitaring and singing along. After that song, we had to leave because I was told the garage that I parked in was closing at 11:30 so our friends gave us the play by play after we were in our car. The show ended with “Rocky Mountain Way,” “All She Wants to Do Is Dance,” “Take It Easy” and my ultimate Eagles song “Desperado.” All in all a very good show and now I can tell my grand kids that I saw the Eagles!