Latest Live Shows You've Been To...

BobM · « **Reply #660 on:** 19 Jul 2010, 02:14 pm »

Great Santana show last night at Jones Beach (I'm at work this morning and feeling tired). Steve Winwood opened and played very Traffic-oriented blues based music. Not everyone's cup of tea, but I found it a bit nostalgic.

Santana played for about 2 hours and kept the energy up the whole time. It was a bit draining overall, since there was little in terms of dynamic swings. It was a pretty awesome show to watch though. Dennis Chambers on drums - almost seemed a waste to use him there since he is one of 3 percussionists, and the drummers need to work together. He had little opportunity to "break out". He had 2 rappers come out in the beginning of the show - they only played one rap-oriented piece thank God. Winwood was brought out to play a Muddy Waters tune - surprise, since generally the 2 don't play together in the show.

A very good show overall and I finally got to see Santana live. He had a montage on screen behind the band at one point showing early concert photo's amid all of his album covers. I think I can identify about 80% of them on sight. He's had a lot of output over the years.

He had one big speach about loving everyone and letting the light shine forth, since we are all the love and the light. This cme right after a chant by the band of "A Love Supreme" (Carlos was also wearing a John Coltrane shirt for the show). A very spiritual man, apparently.

zybar · « **Reply #661 on:** 19 Jul 2010, 02:17 pm »

Going to see Natalie Merchant in a small theater tonight in Boston. Seats are very good (16th row just off the center line).

Will post tomorrow on how the show was.

George

Ruby Mae · « **Reply #662 on:** 19 Jul 2010, 02:29 pm »

Quote from: BobM on 19 Jul 2010, 02:14 pm

Great Santana show last night at Jones Beach (I'm at work this morning and feeling tired). Steve Winwood opened and played very Traffic-oriented blues based music. Not everyone's cup of tea, but I found it a bit nostalgic.

Santana played for about 2 hours and kept the energy up the whole time. It was a bit draining overall, since there was little in terms of dynamic swings. It was a pretty awesome show to watch though. Dennis Chambers on drums - almost seemed a waste to use him there since he is one of 3 percussionists, and the drummers need to work together. He had little opportunity to "break out". He had 2 rappers come out in the beginning of the show - they only played one rap-oriented piece thank God. Winwood was brought out to play a Muddy Waters tune - surprise, since generally the 2 don't play together in the show.

A very good show overall and I finally got to see Santana live. He had a montage on screen behind the band at one point showing early concert photo's amid all of his album covers. I think I can identify about 80% of them on sight. He's had a lot of output over the years.

He had one big speach about loving everyone and letting the light shine forth, since we are all the love and the light. This cme right after a chant by the band of "A Love Supreme" (Carlos was also wearing a John Coltrane shirt for the show). A very spiritual man, apparently.

awesome concert and the bass player was smoking!

chadh · « **Reply #663 on:** 19 Jul 2010, 03:24 pm »

Quote from: BobM on 19 Jul 2010, 02:14 pm

Great Santana show last night at Jones Beach (I'm at work this morning and feeling tired). Steve Winwood opened and played very Traffic-oriented blues based music. Not everyone's cup of tea, but I found it a bit nostalgic.

Santana played for about 2 hours and kept the energy up the whole time. It was a bit draining overall, since there was little in terms of dynamic swings. It was a pretty awesome show to watch though. Dennis Chambers on drums - almost seemed a waste to use him there since he is one of 3 percussionists, and the drummers need to work together. He had little opportunity to "break out". He had 2 rappers come out in the beginning of the show - they only played one rap-oriented piece thank God. Winwood was brought out to play a Muddy Waters tune - surprise, since generally the 2 don't play together in the show.

A very good show overall and I finally got to see Santana live. He had a montage on screen behind the band at one point showing early concert photo's amid all of his album covers. I think I can identify about 80% of them on sight. He's had a lot of output over the years.

He had one big speach about loving everyone and letting the light shine forth, since we are all the love and the light. This cme right after a chant by the band of "A Love Supreme" (Carlos was also wearing a John Coltrane shirt for the show). A very spiritual man, apparently.

Really interesting.

Santana and Winwood started their tour in MN on July 4th, and I saw them in Detroit on July 10th. I saw the set list for the opening show in MN, and it was almost identical to the list for the Detroit show. But it sounds a lot different from the show you caught.

I don't think Santana played for nearly two hours in our show. There was certainly no Love Supreme. He did introduce hew new fiancee, though - she looked about 23, and replaced Dennis Chambers on drums for about three songs (including She's Not There). We got no collaboration between Winwood and Santana (I'm pretty jealous now).

Carlos also played Sunshine of Your Love. This will apparently be the first single off his new album, to be released in September. The single was recorded with Rob Thomas doing the vocals.

I enjoyed the show, but enjoyed the Winwood portion more. Santana's portion was certainly high energy. But I found his slideshow completely self-indulgent. And the vocalists he brought with him - wtf!?!? A friend commented "They were plucked straight off a Crest commercial. Santana chooses vocalists who will attract less attention than his hat." Dennis Chambers was awesome, though. In Detroit, he got to strut his stuff on a looooonnnngggg solo, I think it was at the end of Jingo (the first song in the show). Santana was obviously great on guitar. But I think he's playing exactly the same solos on these songs he always has.

It was an interesting comparison between Santana (who played on July 10th) and Clapton (who played the same venue on July 3rd). The shows were almost complete opposites. Santana's show was super high energy, with guitar playing that was good but not inspired. Clapton's show wasn't such a high energy affair, but Clapton himself was just amazing. His solos were creative, interesting and just blew me away. Unfortunately, the rest of the Clapton show was essentially just filler in between the guitar solos.

In both cases, though, the "support" acts were excellent.

Roger Daltrey supported Clapton and just did a great job, mostly playing songs from The Who's catalog. It was actually a great selection of tunes. (I Can See For Miles, The Real Me, Young Man Blues, Going Mobile, Real Good Looking Boy, Who Are You?, Babba O'Riley, as well as one tune from his solo career and a cover of a Taj Mahal song). His range isn't what it used to be, but they covered this pretty well. Roger himself was dynamic, and the band was tight and energetic. Pete Townsend's brother, Simon, was playing guitar and did some vocals.

Steve Winwood was also wonderful. He probably chose the perfect set list (from my point of view). At over 60, his voice hasn't lost anything - truly amazing. And his organ work and guitar playing was superb. Like Daltrey's, Winwood's band were wonderful, and they just made great music.

The only disappointment in either of the support performances was that they were both clearly "turned down", volume-wise. But, I'm sure that's just part of the support-band contract.

Chad

zybar · « **Reply #664 on:** 20 Jul 2010, 04:07 pm »

Saw Natalie Merchant last night in a small theater (Wilbur Theater) in Boston. The venue was a last minute switch, so my original seats got hosed due to a different layout. We wound up getting third row in the mezzanine, dead center. This was a very nice location to listen and view from, but it made it almost impossible to get any decent pics with my little point and shoot camera.

To sum up the experience...Natalie still has it!! While she is approaching 50, her voice is still strong, emotional, and seductive. She hasn't lost her stage presence and she was really engaging with the audience.

The first set last around 90 minutes and was entirely composed of songs from her new album called Leave Your Sleep. This two disc set has Natalie using poems, anonymous nursery rhymes, and lullabies of 19th and 20th century British and American writers as source material and she sets them to original music. While originally intended for her daughter (and other kids), the music was beautifully composed and her voice truly brought the written material to life. If you have kids and/or are a fan of Natalie, I can't see how you wouldn't enjoy this - I definitely recommend it.

The musicians who accompanied Natalie played the clarinet, banjo, violin, cello, stand-up bass, accordion, tuba, percussion (a couple of snares and tom-tom's), as well as a couple of acoustic guitars. They formed an arc around Natalie and each instrument was easy to hear and pick out. They blended seamlessly, surrounding Natalie with a cocoon of musical excellence which she either punched through with her powerful vocals, or complimented their talents with a softer approach.

During her lengthy encore (almost 60 minutes), Natalie played many of the songs from Tigerliliy such as Carnival, Wonder, Cowboy Romance, and The Letter to name a few. She also sang Eat for Two from her days with the 10,000 Maniacs and finished up with a lengthy version of Kind and Generous from Ophelia. Hearing these songs performed with her "band" really made the songs sound new and provided different textures and nuances when compared to the studio versions or even previous shows where she has had a more traditional rock band accompany her.

Overall, I really enjoyed the show and had a very nice experience.

George

Construct · « **Reply #665 on:** 20 Jul 2010, 04:12 pm »

I went to see Vince Neil's son's Motley Crue cover band. They were spot on. The show costs all of $10 and it was well worth it. They were only missing the babes.

HAL · « **Reply #666 on:** 20 Jul 2010, 04:20 pm »

Got to see The Ravyns reunion show last saturday. A friend of my wife from high school is the lead guitarist. This was the Hammerjacks Reunion tour at the Recher Theater in Towson MD. No seats in the venue made it a bit difficult. Went up to the stage and the direct sound was pretty good. The house PA was not very good farther back.

These guy's sounded very good on their own original music.

The next day got to the her friend again in Never Never his latest group. They did a great job outside on the deck of the Nabbs Creek Marina. Sound was much better than the Recher due to no room acoustics problem.

First time hearing them both live and would go back for another show when they are around. Also found online The Ravyns two original CD's to give them a listen.

Scott F. · « **Reply #667 on:** 24 Jul 2010, 12:14 pm »

Went to go see Michael McDonald last night. The show was pretty good. He played a bunch of old Doobie Brothers tunes and a nice mix of his later Motown and solo stuff. Something that you don't see too often, Michael's drummer was a gal...and pretty darned good to boot.

Since he's from St Louis, he played with a few fellow St Louisians. Steve Scorfina opened. He was one of the original guitarists of REO Speedwagon and lead guitarist in Pavlov's Dog. Steve and Michael played together back in thier teens in a couple of bands.

Michael also invited Denise Thimes to do a duet. Denise is a local Jazz vocalist that has a great voice.

Nice show, not too loud (which drives me to use ear plugs).

I mentioned to my wife, this place was old fart-ville and she promptly answered...What are we doing here?. We laughed. Just to reinforce the fact we are getting old, Michael did a couple of AARP jokes. Oh well

vinyl_lady · « **Reply #668 on:** 25 Jul 2010, 06:14 am »

Neil Young solo at the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, Calgary Alberta on July 24. Part acoustic, part keyboards, part electric

A nice way to finish a week golfing in the BC Rockies and Banff with a side trip to Lake Louise.

wje · « **Reply #669 on:** 25 Jul 2010, 03:19 pm »

I saw the Marshall Tucker Band last evening at the State theater in Falls Church, Va. Granted, the band is not comprised of all the original members, but it was still a good show. Though, they didn't play "Heard it in a Love Song" - left me a little dissapointed. Still a good show, though. Feeling the kick drums rattle my pants legs (even though I was very far back) reminded me of what live and loud music was all about.

Also, I see Keb' Mo' will be appearing during mid-August at the Birchmere in Alexandria. Definitely need to hit that show, too.

Berto · « **Reply #670 on:** 25 Jul 2010, 04:11 pm »

Saw RUSH last nite at Jones Beach theatre. Although sitting top tier we were centered and in the first row with no obstructions. Not a bad seat in the house considering size of the venue. Plus from our perspective we could see the open bay beyond the stage and to the right the atlantic ocean reflecting the golden shimmer from the (full) moonglow up above.

First set was a mix of some old and new w/Freewill being a highlight and Alex on mandolin was too kool. Funny thing is my gf asked me why it was muffled compared to my stereo..lol... For me the caliber of playing & the amount of music which these 3 gentleman produce is/was incredible and outweighed the less then perfect sound.

Second set started the Moving Pictures album. There playing as always was exceptional, to see (via giants screens) the speed at which Geddy Lee's fingers move on his bass was impressive. Show really took off IMO on Limelight with Camera Eye being the highlight of the album. Saw several people leave opon completion of Moving Picture, since they played a new song from there upcoming albmum (surprisingly pretty heavy stuff). Sadly they missed out on one increcible drum solo by the man, (the legend). His revolving drum set displayed quite an array of his talents. His creative solo went from rock to all hell breaking loose into big band, which I though was creative. This was followed by a beautiful Lifeson acoustic intro to Closer to the Heart. Shortly thereafter they ripped out one of my all time favorite rock tunes >2112. Awesome show and to all you fellow a/c'ers goin in the near future > you are in for a TREAT

lonewolfny42 · « **Reply #671 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 04:22 am »

Quote

Show really took off IMO on Limelight with Camera Eye being the highlight of the album.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBDFpm3kHTE

Lyndon · « **Reply #672 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 04:43 am »

Scott mentioned Michael McDonald, and this tour kicks off in August:
Michael McDonald, Boz Scaggs and Donald Fagen unite for nationwide Fall tour

I would love to catch this, but won't be in any of the cities during the tour.
http://www.soultracks.com/story-mcdonald-scaggs-tour
I am betting that Boz still has the vocal chops and would keep these boys in line.

lonewolfny42 · « **Reply #673 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 04:53 am »

Quote

I am betting that Boz still has the vocal chops and would keep these boys in line.

Boz Scaggs--Lido Shuffle--Live @ Syracuse Jazz Fest 6/25/10

jimdgoulding · « **Reply #674 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 05:05 am »

Quote from: lonewolfny42 on 26 Jul 2010, 04:53 am

Boz Scaggs--Lido Shuffle--Live @ Syracuse Jazz Fest 6/25/10

My god, this is embarassing. He was married to the most beautiful woman once. Shoulda bought a farm and made babies. Oh, well, just my opinion. But, you shoulda seen her.

lonewolfny42 · « **Reply #675 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 05:09 am »

Quote from: jimdgoulding on 26 Jul 2010, 05:05 am

My god, this is embarassing. He was married to the most beautiful woman once. Shoulda bought a farm and made babies. Oh, well, just my opinion. But, you shoulda seen her.

http://www.scaggsvineyard.com/

Lyndon · « **Reply #676 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 05:15 am »

Jim,
You think THAT is scary? I just left the Black Hills, and the billboards had these two names in huge letters: Ozzy Ozbourne/Bob Dylan at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.
Other performers:

Quote

Osbourne’s signing completes a long list of entertainers set to take the stage during the 9-day rally. Motley Crue, Scorpions, Disturbed, Kid Rock, The Doobie Brothers, ZZ Top, Orianthi, Tesla, Buckcherry, Stone Sour, and even Pee-wee Herman will be featured.

Pee-wee Herman? At Sturgis? Perhaps the Four Horsemen are afoot?

lonewolfny42 · « **Reply #677 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 05:24 am »

Quote

Pee-wee Herman? At Sturgis? Perhaps the Four Horsemen are afoot?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVKsd8z6scw

Ruby Mae · « **Reply #678 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 05:44 am »

Quote from: vinyl_lady on 25 Jul 2010, 06:14 am

Neil Young solo at the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, Calgary Alberta on July 24. Part acoustic, part keyboards, part electric A nice way to finish a week golfing in the BC Rockies and Banff with a side trip to Lake Louise.

i am green jelly !!!!

jimdgoulding · « **Reply #679 on:** 26 Jul 2010, 05:50 am »

Quote from: lonewolfny42 on 26 Jul 2010, 05:09 am

http://www.scaggsvineyard.com/

What a deal.