"Sussed-tacular 3" bash @ BLB - Mpls - Jan. 23

Hot off the press from Susstones Central Command:

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We’re celebrating the three-year anniversary of Sussed! at the Bryant-Lake Bowl with Sussed-tacular 3 on Tuesday, January 23rd.

The BLB Theater will be the scene for a fast-moving two hours of music featuring (in no particular order):

The Melismatics
The Mood Swings
Astronaut Wife
Ed Ackerson
Marc Perlman and Janey Winterbauer
Sideways

DJ sets throughout the evening from Marc “Guv’nor” Mueller and his Sussed! crew.

Additional surprise musical guests may be conjured if / when appropriate

In the tradition of previous Sussed-taculars and Susstones Soirées, Susstones artists and fellow travelers will perform short sets of tunes and collaborate / mutate in new combinations. Average set length will be about 15-20 minutes, perfect for the already supercharged sounds of The Melismatics and The Mood Swings. The show features a very rare solo showing from Ed Ackerson of Polara, who will be previewing a few of his new non-band songs. Marc Perlman and Janey Winterbauer will bring their new luminous, atmospheric tunes to the stage. Other rare birds on sonic display include instrumental outfit Sideways and the recently reinvigorated Astronaut Wife.

In appreciation of all the support the community has given Sussed! at BLB, this event is ABSOLUTELY FREE and open to anyone 18 or older. The show runs from 10 to midnight sharp, so come on out and help celebrate Sussed! with some fine live pop music.

Sussed-tacular 3

Susstones

Great Joseph Arthur article in the LA Times

On his own, in a new spirit of community Longtime do-it-yourself singer-songwriter Joseph Arthur ditches one solo gig as he launches another: an indie record label.

By Richard Cromelin
LA Times Staff Writer
December 24, 2006


JOSEPH ARTHUR'S band is setting up at the Troubadour for the night's show, but their leader isn't in the room. Try out back, one of the musicians says.

In the alley behind the club, Arthur stands in the sunlight working intently on a bright red jacket spread out on the hood of a pickup truck, applying abstract shapes to the fabric with an artist's crayon.

"Purple makes it make sense, man," says Arthur, eyeing his work.

The man standing next to him looks over and nods. Angelbert Metoyer, an on-the-rise figure on the national art scene and a friend of Arthur's, is sharing the truck's hood and working on his own piece, a drawing packed with Miro-like organic shapes and fanciful figures.

Welcome to Joseph Arthur's traveling art and music circus, a sort of bohemian road show where this visual work is incorporated into the freshly minted music played by Arthur and his band.

There's a fertile, freewheeling feel about this enterprise. The Troubadour show will include songs that the band wrote the night before, and the following day they'll go into a studio in Arcadia and record them and others for an album that will come out in April, an unconventionally short six months after Arthur's latest release, "Nuclear Daydream."

A collection of plangent ballads and emotion-drenched rock songs that crossbreeds Neil Young with the Velvet Underground, "Daydream" is one of the best-reviewed albums of the year, and it figures to resurface prominently as the year-end best-of lists appear.

Such acclaim isn't new for the Akron, Ohio, native, who's been a consummate cult hero for most of this decade. But with "Nuclear Daydream" and in its aftermath, Arthur has shaken up his whole creative world, becoming a high-profile case study of an artist responding to the challenges and opportunities afforded by the decline of the old-line music industry.

After years with large independent labels and major-affiliated companies, Arthur started his own label, Lonely Astronaut Records, to release "Nuclear Daydream." That move could be the reason that he has suffered a drop in sales with his most accessible album, from his customary cult-hero range of 30,000 to 50,000 to a meager 12,000 since its release in September.

But Arthur feels more than compensated by the new freedom it affords him.

"We're playing our new songs as we write them, and then we bootleg ourselves and sell copies of the show that night," says the singer, sitting in the Troubadour's empty bar, now wearing his freshly decorated red jacket. "So most of our new songs have already been released now.

"I would just rather be open than afraid of what that means," he says. "I like a sense of openness to everything. I think people are finding out that counterintuitive thinking along those lines is actually more the way to go. Like people letting their records be streamed for free. It's counterintuitive to logic that that would help record sales, but I guess it does."

It remains to be seen whether it will boost Arthur's, but at the moment he's most excited about being liberated from the pressure to make a commercial breakthrough.

"That's why I'm not afraid anymore," says Arthur. "The source of frustration for that breakthrough was the fear that I wouldn't be able to do this anymore. That was sort of the mode of thinking back then: You get a record deal, and in order to maintain a record deal you have to do such and such; if you don't do that you're gonna get dropped and then what, you have to go find a minimum-wage job again? "

So that breeds all kind of crazy fear," he says. "Now, I just trust that I'll basically always get to sing for my supper on some level."

Help from friends

THE sounds of Arthur's band warming up in the showroom occasionally blast into the adjacent bar as he talks, a reminder of a musical change that's proving as revolutionary for him as his new business model. This is the first time in his career that he's toured and written with other musicians, and the experience has him all charged up.

"It's interesting that after doing this for so many years really on my own, kind of extremely alone, there's this collection of people around me that's like — I've got incredible people around me right now," he says, "and I just feel like I'm having the time of my life

"I don't know what's happened in my mind or what. I've broken through in my soul…. I trust whatever's happening as what's supposed to happen with this whole band that's formed around me. I feel like everything's just beginning."

When Arthur says "extremely alone," he's talking about the solo performance method that he used for years, in which he electronically layered, distorted and enhanced his voice and guitar to create rich, atmospheric arrangements onstage. That technique became identified with Arthur and contributed to his high standing among aficionados of art-rock-inclined singer-songwriters.

But it was his evocative, wide-ranging songwriting and richly textured music that originally gave him a career foothold and earned the admiration of such elders as Peter Gabriel (who signed him to his Real World label and released his first records in the late '90s) and R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe, who recorded Arthur's aching ballad "In the Sun," in several versions with different singers, for Stipe's Hurricane Katrina benefit EP.

"Joe is one of those rare writer-performers where you get the sense, whatever your belief, that something greater is being channeled through his music and voice," says Stipe. "Like Patti Smith, Grant Lee Phillips, Thom Yorke, Joe trances, and the voice, the meaning, becomes bigger than him, bigger than a few pop chords or words strung together. It touches something very deep and universal."

Or as David Letterman put it after the singer's transporting performance of the falsetto anthem "Slide Away" on his "Late Show" program recently: "I want to go with those people. I would like to be with those people. I think they're probably doing things that I'm not."

Arthur, 35, can have that intoxicating, Pied Piper effect, with his old-school rock-dandy charisma and, this day anyway, a loopy enthusiasm that borders on euphoria. His music might be shadowy and atmospheric, but he's all puppy-dog eagerness as he snacks on some trail mix and regards this new combustion in his life and career.

In a group made up of guitarist Jennifer Turner (who used to back Natalie Merchant and had her own band, Furslide), bassist Sibyl Buck, keyboardist Kraig Jarret Johnson (from the Jayhawks and Golden Smog) and drummer Greg Wieczorek, rock's definitive solitary man has found a community and a collaborative laboratory, as well as partners in an exhilarating if exhausting road adventure marked by impromptu turns. They pulled his friend Metoyer onto the tour bus when they passed through the artist's hometown of Houston, so abruptly that he didn't even have a chance to pack a change of clothes. They booked the Troubadour show at the last minute when they came back to Los Angeles to appear on Craig Ferguson's late-night CBS show.

Material from the Arcadia recording sessions will be released as "Abwoon Part One (Let's Just Be)," scheduled to come out April 17, with a second CD coming out later in the year.

"I like that, two records a year. I think that's creatively very active," the Brooklyn resident says. "You're not releasing every single thing you come up with. I think you can have a nice quality there, and I think it's a pace that people can keep up with, those that want to, and those that don't can check in every other record or every three records."

Wherever this new road leads, Arthur is ready for the ride. There's his side career as a visual artist (he self-published a book of his work and had a gallery show in London) and a new passion to help war-orphaned children in Uganda, where he traveled this year.

And although he jokes that he'll "write the hits that never become hits," his low commercial yield has actually struck the ideal balance.

"It's been an amount that's made me feel like it wasn't enough, which kept me hungry, which is really vital for an artist, to be hungry and to stay where everything's a necessity," he says. "And I've been in that place since I started releasing records professionally….

"I feel incredibly fortunate that I've had a career that's been so long and so submerged. It's been a perfect ground for me to evolve as an artist in a way I could never have conceived of when I made my first record."


richard.cromelin@latimes.com

Review: Tim O'Reagan - 400 Bar - 12/2/06

Somebody asked me over the wire this morning, "how was the show?"

Well, in a word, fan-f***ing-tastic! (is that one word or three?)

I'm just heading out the door, so I'm in "quick review" mode. This was
easily one of the best shows I've seen all year. And I see a lot of
shows. :-) The Cliff notes version: packed house and over 2 hours of
great music, with a "vibe" that was simply wonderful – there was
enough love and happiness in the air to warm the heart of even the
biggest holiday scrooge on a cold-ass night.

No setlist now, but we got most of the album, a Boquist song or two,
some smashing covers, a few new ones (?), a coupla Jayhawks moments
and some "surprises," too. The biggest shocker was an honest-to-god
Leatherwoods mini-set. (Historical sidebar: The Leatherwoods were
Tim's band from roughly 87-92, during the period when he moved from
Kansas to Minny. They put out a couple of singles and one fantastic
long-player, "Topeka Oratorio," on Peter Jesperson's long gone Medium
Cool imprint. This album is a bona fide "Lost Classic" and deserves to
be heard far and wide; it really is an amazing collection of top shelf
modern pop. The "band" was essentially Tim and his partner Todd
Newman, although they received assistance from the mysterious "Pablo
Louseorama," who supposedly was in some band called The Replacements
or something. Everyone who hasn't heard TO should immediately go to
Ebay or Gemm and track down a copy. End of history lesson). Tim's
former partner Todd had to cancel at the last minute, but he was
certainly there in spirit. The "cover" of The Leatherwoods' "Tinsel
Town" (also shockingly resurrected 1 or 2 times back on the Jayhawks
2002 "acoustic trio" tour) offered up last night was so good it was
almost heart attack-inducing. And that was only the beginning of the
ride in the way-back machine. After 3 more old classics, us old farts
back by the merch table were grinning like friggin' idiots.

Thankfully, there were no "guest star" distractions on what was very
much Tim's night, a much deserved moment in the spotlight for him,
even though he was about 6 months overdue for a proper record release
bash. Pete Sands from The Honeydogs contributed some very nice
keyboard & accordion work, including the full keyboard intro (missing
since '97? I'll have to hit the archives to answer that) on a chilling
reading of "Bottomless Cup" in the encore. Gary and Kraig were both
out of town, but Perly finally showed up near the end to rock out on a
coupla songs, a superb cover of John Cale's "Big White Cloud" and
perhaps the finest version of "Lost My Driving Wheel" ever played
anywhere by anyone. And for the locals, it was undoubtedly shocking to
see local legend Curtiss A – aka the "Dean of Scream" – pop up out of
the audience at the end to blast through a ragged but right version of
the 60s garage classic, "I Can Only Give You Anything," channeling Van
Morrison's Them, The Troggs and the MC5 in the process.

The boys, and Tim in particular, have really blossomed as a live act
over the last 9 months. Whereas Tim was once tentative and reserved –
if not downright scared shitless at times – he's now far more
confident and relaxed: playing like a champ, cracking jokes and just
generally having a grand old time. This newfound élan was never more
in evidence than on the final encore (yes, the crowd was rightfully
going nuts at the end of the night), a hilariously authentic version
of KC and the Sunshine Band's "Keep it Coming Love." Tim and Jim
huddled at the start and then shouted instructions to drummer Pete
Anderson and bassist Frankie "The Face" Lee. Pete – the consummate pro
who admitted later that he had no idea what was coming – launched into
a funky 4/4 stomp and we were off to the dance floor, the heretofore
unknown disco side of Mr. Tim O'Reagan now on full display for the
entire world to see. What coulda been a train wreck, turned out to be
not only an eminently enjoyable moment – yes, that was my wife near
the sound board doing the Hustle – but also served as a visceral
display of just how good this band is. Jim was especially smokin', his
ripping guitar riffs creating pure rock magic out of the scrap heaps
of music history.

Another special moment, not to mention a sign of pure courage on Tim's
part: taking a stab at a live version of "Ivy." You might think that
this haunting, eerie song – easily one of the most striking
performances on the new album – wouldn't translate well to the stage,
and you'd probably be right. But Tim pulled it off in spades, tackling
the difficult vocal parts with aplomb and displaying yet again what a
magnificent, underrated singer he is.

This was one of those shows that simply made you feel glad to be
alive. What an extraordinary early Christmas present from Tim and
crew. I could get all philosophical and say that attending shows like
this is an experience that is a bedrock component of every Music
Junkie/Head/Fan, and that to be in the presence of other like-minded
souls is pure joy and blah blah blah. But how 'bout: this was an
amazingly fine show on every level and a great sign of things to come.
End of story.

Marc Perlman Goes Underground

At the last minute last Friday i decided to go see Marc Perlman play an early evening "solo" gig at a coffee shop in South Minneapolis. This was literally going to be an underground show, since the venue was down in the basement of said coffee shop, a charming little neighborhood place called Java Jacks. It was the inaugural gig in a series of Friday night acoustic hootenannies at Java Jacks organized by The Mad Ripple, the musical alter-ego of noted local music scribe Jim Walsh, who just happens to live a few doors away. As for the "off the radar" vibe of the show, well, it's apparently all part of a plot by members of the Jayhawks to play to as few people as possible in their home town, if they play at all! :-) Thankfully, Tim O'Reagan's upcoming show at the 400 in December – an honest to god proper rock show – is an encouraging sign that maybe that streak is changing. Can a North American Gary Louris show be in the future somewhere?

Anywho, back to the basement of Java Jacks, a large former storage room that can best be described as a cross between a bomb shelter and a suburban rec room. Nuthin' fancy – a nice little stage and an assortment of cast-off furniture; very comfortable, very "homey." A wide array of (very good) coffee drinks and light food was available from upstairs. Since there's no liquor permit, the gig was "BYOF" – Bring Your Own Flask. It was like a frickin' Speakeasy down there – haven't seen that many pocket flasks full of libations since the last "dry" wedding reception I attended. There was also a full bottle of Perly's favorite Irish whisky on stage that the performers were using for courage and inspiration. I noticed that after a while the bottle had made its way into the audience for the requisite "Irish Coffees." Nothing like a little speedball action early on a Friday night…

The performers included Mr. Ripple, Phil Bayer (a fantastic solo musician, late of Hank and Ruth, a cool roots combo, and before that, The Modern Day Saints) and our hero, accompanied by the lovely, abundantly talented Janey Winterbauer. Janey sings with Astronaut Wife (Susstones' uber-cool electro-pop band) and also performed with Perly last year at the Polara "Guest Session Sundays" extravaganza at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul. I'm rather biased since she's a close friend of ours, but Janey is as good a singer as this town has – she's the real deal. She's also currently in the studio with Marc working on his long overdue solo debut but, shhhh, you didn't hear that from me.

The general set-up for the night was basically a "round robin" hootenanny. Each songwriter did a song and then passed the mic down the line. Oh wait, there was no mic. The whole shebang was done up old school – no amplification save for that provided by God, Gibson and the room's acoustics. With the natural sound, comfy couches, community booze and kids buzzing about (including some of the performers young 'uns), it really was like being at somebody's house…

In a little over 2 hours of playing, The Ripple, Bayer and Perlman/Winterbauer got to play a half dozen or so songs each. The evening flowed amazingly well and the time went by super fast. Everybody sounded great, the intimate setting providing a rare opportunity to "get under the hood" of a whole batch of wonderful songs. There was plenty of time for comments and long intros, as well as lots of chatty interaction with the audience as the java and juice took effect. When the performers weren't doing one of their songs, they stayed on stage, checking out the sounds of their stage mates, sometimes even tossing in a lick or two. Just like a real hootenanny.

Marc and Janey – how's that for an authentic-sounding folk name? -- made for an oh-so compelling duo: she sang, softly with her eyes closed, like an angel while he expertly worked the wood like the old pro he is, occasionally chiming in with some harmonies or an exquisite solo. Perlman's songs were – surprise -- mostly sad and melancholy, real heart-tugging stuff. After getting lost in the music while listening to another patented Perly heartbreaker, Bayer made a comment about the author's general demeanor. Marc mounted a vigorous defense about his personality not being the same as his songs. Judging from the resulting silence, the crowd didn't seem to be buying it. After a moment or two, the man who wrote "Trouble" finally said, "I'm actually a happy guy," which was met a few ticks later by a comment from the audience, "no you're not," which cracked everybody up. Anybody who's met Perly before has some idea at how classic a moment this was.

As good as the new Perlman songs were, there were two bona fide bone-chilling moments, courtesy of the Golden Smog catalog. "Cure For This," one of the highlights from Another Fine Day, was offered up early on and blew everybody away. Janey was recruited for vocal duties on this song when the Smog played at First Avenue this last summer and she sounded even better down in the bunker. Then, on the next round, came a Golden Smog cast-off, "Beautiful Day," which Marc and Janey debuted at the aforementioned Fitzgerald gig almost exactly a year ago, in a venue as far removed as humanly possible from the cozy concrete confines of Java Jacks. This song is so painfully good – and, yes, beautiful – that it hurts.

Before long the gig was winding down and I was making my way to my car, feeling strangely jacked-up and buzzed from an intoxicating mixture of caffeine, alcohol, good company and fantastic music. Then I looked at my watch and it was barely 9pm, and I still had two shows to attend. At that point I felt oddly down. Part of me wanted to turn around; the alluring confines of the basement i had just left were calling me like an old friend. Strangely, the thought of heading out into "Clubland" didn't seem quite as attractive as it normally does on a weekend night.

Joseph Arthur = God? (Review: 10/6/06 - Fine Line Cafe - Minneapolis, MN)

somebody wrote somewhere:

I saw Arthur open for 1000 impatient Wilco fans..
Joseph and his....tape machine.
What I'm saying is, I can't tell if you're being
ironic, or not.

I'm as serious as chronic renal failure.

First off, this isn't your parent's Joseph Arthur. Completely
different package now; perhaps one of the most startling artistic
revamps i've ever witnessed. It brought to mind the sea change that
took place with Joe Henry when he went from an alt-country journeyman
to a post-modern noir specialist, but even more dramatic. Arthur
should change his name to avoid further confusion.

There's no more Jeff Buckley-ish, neo-folktronica, one-man-show stuff
-- Arthur is now working with a proper rock band. And what a fucking
band they are. Two chicks and two dudes are now backing him up on this
new tour in support of the brand new "Nuclear Daydream" album:
Jennifer Bryant (really really great guitarist), Sibil Buck, Greg
"Wiz," and my homeboy, Kraig Jarret Johnson on keys, gtrs, and bg vox.
For a "new" band, their command of the material is already pretty
startling. They're all first-rate musicians, the vocal arrangements
(they all sing) are super-cool, and they all look like a million
bucks.

The new album (not cut with the new band, btw) doesn't really give
many hints that at a major sonic departure from Arthur's extensive
back catalog is waiting in concert. A good chunk of "Nuclear Daydream"
-- expertly produced and fussed over, almost slick -- is
introspective and dreamy, which makes the transformation from the
studio to the stage even more arresting; live, many of the new songs
are almost unrecognizable from their studio counterparts. The live
versions are, without exception, grungier, much rawer, more
adventurous. More importantly, the live show rocks in a variety of
ways that are largely absent on the album. Even the "non-rock" new
songs were much better live -- for instance, the polite arrangement of
the album-closing title song was transformed into a stripped down
reading featuring not much more than Arthur's croaking voice and a
spare guitar motif, the end result displaying levels of sadness that
the studio gloss almost managed to eliminate.

Last week in Mpls, the band blasted through the album in sequence with
a confidence that was totally compelling, only breaking stride a few
times to insert even newer songs (one of those, a killer rocker,
"Cocaine Fit," is one of the best drug songs Johnny Thunders never
wrote) and an impromptu cover of "TV Eye," likely inspired by Mr.
Johnson (who's covered it with his band, The Program and played it
live at First Ave. last year with Mike Watt). Arthur's voice in
particular was amazing -- what is often oh-so-pretty and measured in
the studio turns into a growling mess on stage one minute, a soaring
over-the-top falsetto the next.

Just a few random reference points that entered my mind during the
breathtakingly good two hour show at the Fine Line:

* Johnny Thunders, specifically Heartbreakers era
* Richard Hell
* Richard Ashcroft
* Leonard Cohen
* "classic era" acoustic Neil Young
* Iggy the crooner
* Iggy the punk
* Iggy the stage monkey
* Kraig Jarret Johnson
* Nixon-era Modern Lovers
* the piercing falsetto of Prince
* Only Ones / Peter Perrett (esp. the expert use of the chick singers)
* the epic sweep of early Springsteen & early Waterboys
* the zany theatrical gimmicks of the Flaming Lips (leaf blower +
toilet paper = silly fun)
* Tony Montana (Joseph and Kraig both had the scruffy vagabond/street
chic/open shirt w/medallion thing going on; the combined cool factor
was off the scale)

Enough rockcrit blabber. I was utterly mesmerized by this show and am
now musically smitten in a way that has been largely missing from my
life over the last, musically mediocre IMO, year.

As proof that there is a God (I almost forgot, Joseph often sings
about spiritual stuff -- one of the highlights of the night was a song
called "Don't Tell Your Eyes," which featured guest Gary Louris, and
was introduced thus: "and hey, it don't matter if you're Christian, or
Muslim, or Jewish, or whatever -- you can sing about Jesus. He was a
prophet and he was awesome. So fuck it"), Arthur is recording the
shows on this tour and offering them up through the miracle of that
"instant live show" technology thing. So i can can now relive this
wonderful show as many times as i want to. Oh yeah, a telling factoid:
about 50 of the 500 people at the Fine Line waited up to 45 minutes
after the show to get their live CDs -- i wasn't the only one who
drank the kool aid.

Go check this band out, even if you're not impressed with the new
album and/or the "old" Joseph Arthur. And warm up the Tivos and VCRs
for Letterman tonight.

Review: Golden Smog - 7/23/06 - First Ave. - Mpls, MN

Here’s my attempt at a setlist and a brief review for last night’s Golden Smog show in Mpls. The heat almost disintegrated the paper I had in my shirt pocket – yes, it was that hot in there – so there may be a few glitches.

All in all, it was a very enjoyable show. Lots of high points and a few rough spots, although it wouldn’t be a “real" Smog show without either of those, would it? A good chunk of the new album was played along with a boatload of key tracks from the last two Smog albums. Considering they’re one of the best cover bands on the planet, it was somewhat shocking to hear only 3 covers: “Starman” (recorded a few years ago for a movie that never came out; actually predates “Corvette” as the beginning of this current chapter of Smoggish activity), “Tarpit” (Gary said this was played at the very first Smog show “back at the 400 Bar” – don’t think it’s been uncorked since the early ‘90s, although Kraig and Gary did a beautiful acoustic version last month on The Current), and “Revolution Blues” (easily one of the best moments last night – they can play this every show AFAIK and I wouldn’t complain). In typical Smog fashion, they threw up a curve ball during the encore, a possible cover sang by Danny called “Scotch On Ice.” It’s a very odd little ditty about the “pleasures” of an, um, “inflatable” friend. “He’s a Dick” is positively Dylan-esque compared to this! One of the outtakes from the new Smog album was also played, complete with the horn section. Some of these outtakes plus some covers (including “Tarpit”) supposedly will be on the EP coming out this winter.

As some have pointed out, the mix was far from perfect and Gary seemed to be bothered by monitor problems all night. I was there for most of the soundcheck and everybody was real happy with how things were going. Not sure what happened between then and show time. There were some false starts and flubbed lyrics, but things actually went pretty smooth for a “first show.” A few more shows like this to iron out the kinks and I think they could be “road worthy” for a possible September mini-tour (KYFC).

Guest star of the night was definitely Janey Winterbauer (from Astronatut Wife, who are currently recording a new album for Susstones), who ably handled the Holly Marilyn and Muni Loco vocal parts on “5-22-02” and “Cure For This,” respectively. BTW, Janey sang lead on “Beautiful Day” (another Perlman song that didn’t make the cut for the new Smog record) last year at the Fitzgerald in St. Paul for the Polara “Guest Session Sundays” concert. Also providing invaluable help on piano, organ and synth was Fil Krohnengold, a super-talented guy who has played with a host of people including David Poe and Duncan Sheik. He’s sat in with The Program a few times and also played with the Smogsters when they did 2 benefit shows at the Bowery Ballroom in New York in August 2004. Speaking of the Program, every person on stage last night except Jody Stephens and Janey Winterbauer has either played or guested with The Program at one time or another the past few years.

In the end, ‘twas a fun, fun night as the boys triumphantly celebrated the release of their new album before a mostly adoring hometown crowd. Given Gary’s predilection for avoiding MN during the Olson/Louris tours, I guess we should be extra grateful that we were afforded such a special treat! :-)



Golden Smog
7/23/06
First Ave. – Minneapolis, MN

BAND
Gary Louris – Guitars, vocals, harmonica, keyboards
Kraig Johnson – Guitars, vocals, harmonica, bass, keyboards
Dan Murphy – Guitars, vocals, keyboards
Marc Perlman – Bass, guitar, percussion, vocals
Jody Stephens – Drums
Fil Krohnengold – keyboards, Guitar, vocals

GUESTS
Jim Boquist – Guitars, bass, vocals
Ed Ackerson – Guitars, vocals
Janey Winterbauer – vocals
The Horny Horns


SETLIST
Until You Came Along (JB=gtr, bg vox)
You Make It Easy (GL=keys)
V (GL=keys; FK=ac gtr)
To Call My Own (JB=ac gtr, bg vox; KJJ=bass; MP=ac gtr)
Beautiful Mind
Won’t Be Coming Home
Ill-Fated
5-22-02 (w/The Horny Horns; JW = bg vox
Starman [Bowie cover] (JB = bg vox)
Frying Pan Eyes (no DM; EA=gtr, bg vox)
Jennifer Save Me (no DM; EA=gtr)
Look at Me Now (w/The Horny Horns)
Hurricane
Think For Yourself
Never Felt Before (w/The Horny Horns)
Cure For This (JW=lead vox; MP=ac gtr; GL=omnichord)
Another Fine Day (DM=keys; EA=gtr)
He’s a Dick
If I Only Had a Car (KJJ=keys)
Corvette

encore
Gone (MP=perc; Blake H.=tambourine)
Tarpit [Dinosaur Jr. cover]
Revolution Blues [Neil Young cover] (2nd half: JB=bass; MP=gtr)
Scotch On Ice (??)
Looking Forward to Seeing You

Review: Tim O'Reagan - 3/9/06 - Acadia Cafe - Minneapolis, MN

Tim's set Thursday in Mpls was excellent. It was a really, really fun nite all-around.

He played as part of an ongoing Thursday nite series at The Acadia Cafe/Theater (Franklin & Nicollet) sponsored by DEMO, a non-profit org designed to, among other things, promote "emerging artists." DEMO rose out of the ashes of DAMF and features a brain trust led by First Ave. guru Steve McLellan. The Acadia, it turns out, works very well for this series. Most of the performances in this series are solo acoustic kinda things, a format perfectly accommodated by the intimate setting. There's a cute little theater (capacity = 100) right next to a cafe that offers food, coffee and lots of beer. They even have Shiner Bock -- since i'm heading to Austin in a few days, i felt it appropriate to drink a bunch of that to acclimate my system to Texas water. The vibe was kind of a cross between a coffee shop, bar and theater. You could catch some music in a quiet, sit-down setting and then head next door for some schmoozing and refreshments. BTW, I eventually discovered that combining caffeine and alcohol (aka a "poor man's speedball") can be a dangerous thing. The next morning, I mentally recast one of Kris Kristofferson's most famous songs as I reeled from a really bad case of the "Friday Morning Coming Down" blues.

Tim had played a few low-profile sets with Jim Boquist over the last few months but this was his first appearance with a full band. In many ways, this was his "proper" local debut as a solo artist. Tim's band featured Frankie Lee (an up-and-coming local singer/songwriter) on bass, drummer extraordinaire Peter Anderson (aka the hardest working musician in town) and the Rev. Boquist on various acoustic & electric 6 & 12 string guitars. Tim switched between 2 acoustics: a beautiful old black Martin and a shiny 12-string. Jim & Frankie frequently sang harmonies -- their sterling work really helped the tunes from Tim's new album come alive on stage. The lil' theater was packed to the rafters with a crowd chock full of friends, scenesters (including Postcard celebrities Rob & Karla) and an impressive host of local musicians including Gary Louris, Marc Perlman and Kraig Johnson.

A little background: Tim and Jim used to play occasionally around Mpls as a pseudo-"folk combo" back in the early '90s, in the period after the demise of The Leatherwoods (Tim's old band with Todd Newman) and before Tim hooked up with The Jayhawks and Jim joined Joe Henry's touring band. Their shows always seemed to pop up at the last minute; i remember seeing them a few times at First Ave. / Entry, as well as several appearances at the old Loring Bar. They were usually booked with some unwieldy name like "The O'Reagan/Boquist Band," or something like that. Actually, "Tim and Jim" has a nice ring to it. They played some originals and, predictably, a whole bunch of really cool covers, including "Walking in the Sun," a Jeff Barry tune that many people first heard on the huge Rufus album "Rags to Riches" in the early 70s. I was greatly surprised when the Jayhawks performed a couple of superb versions of "Walking in the Sun" a decade later in the middle of the 2002/3 "acoustic trio" tour. BTW, early during that same tour, a nice version of an old Leatherwoods song that Tim used to sing ("Tinsel Town") was uncorked, much to the amazement of the few people familiar with that song.

On Thursday, Tim & the boys played a compact 45 minute set that featured several songs from the new album (highlights included "These Things," "River Bends," "Highway Flowers" ), a few obscure covers (songs by Stealers Wheel and the Everly Bros.) and a particularly interesting song in the middle of the set that turned out to be a resurrected original from the aforementioned "Tim and Jim" days. The only nod to Tim's most recent former band was a mesmerizing reading of "Tampa to Tulsa" – a bit sadder and slower than the original but still breathtakingly beautiful. The band sounded awfully good for a "debut" performance – they were reasonably tight and, to nobody's surprise, Tim sang like an angel. Jim's gtr work was pretty much riveting throughout the whole set -- he was doing his best Steve Cropper / soul-man licks and had a number of great solos. Most people outside MN – i.e. those who only know Jim from his years playing bass for Son Volt – have no idea that Dave isn't the only Boquist who plays a mean axe.

Tim was palpably quite nervous early on; this recent transition to the other side of the drum kit has to be quite a jolt for him. In fact, the entire live component of Tim's new solo career will likely be something of a work in progress. There was absolutely no banter for some time until he finally blurted out between songs while tuning his guitar, "I dunno about this bandleader stuff..." After some awkward silence, Jim played along, "what don't ya know…?" Tim then looked up towards the audience and asked, "Gary, how did you do this? Were you shaking all the time?" After a few more seconds of silence, Tim muttered "he probably left." Jim quickly retorted, "No, I can still see his glasses out there," a reference to Gary's penchant for distinctive designer eyewear. The crowd had a good laugh as a big chunk of tension evaporated. It was a cute, charming little moment. After the show, I thought how lucky Tim is to have seasoned vets like Jim and Peter behind him – talk about heading into the breach with a good back-up team.

All in all, a memorable night on many levels, as well as a useful tune-up for the chaos next week in Texas. I know one thing I'll be doing for sure on Friday night…

The Sadies - live album extravaganza - night 2

(courtesy of Timmy B)


Here is the setlist for the SADIES W/ FRIENDS at LEE'S PALACE for Saturday February 4, 2006.

Note:

SAF- Same as Friday

THE SADIES W/
LEE'S PALACE
SAT FEB 4, 2006
DR 9PM

SET I:
Start time 10:05PM

1. Same as Friday (SAF)

2. SAF

3. SAF

4. SAF

5. SAF

6. SAF

7. SAF

8. SAF

9. SAF

10. SAF

11. SAF

12. SAF

13. SAF

14. LEAVE ME ALONE (performed on Friday as the 17th song)

15. RIDGE RUNNER RAG/RIDGE RUNNER RELL (performed on Friday as the 16th song)

16. LONELY GUY (performed on Friday as the 15th song) w/ Garth Hudson- keyboards (Garth did not play on the version of this song performed on Friday.)

17. SNOW SQUADRON (performed on Friday as the 14th song) w/ Garth Hudson- keyboards (Garth did not play on the version of this song performed on Friday.)

18. SAF

19. SAF

20. SAF

End time 11:03PM (Total time 58 minutes)

SET II:
Start time 11:33PM

21. SAF

22. SAF

23. SAF

24. SAF

25. SAF

26. SAF

27. SAF

28. SAF w/added mandolin player who was not introduced

29. SAF

30. SAF

31. SAF w/added musicians Bob Egan- pedal steel (Which was my suggestion to Gary Louris at the end of Friday night.), Neko Case- vocals, Kelly Hogan- vocals

32. SAF

33. SAF w/added musician a percussionist named Mike

34. SAF

35. SAF

36. SAF

37. SAF

38. SAF

39. SAF

40. IMPROMTU JAM (It seemed to have been led by Jim Cuddy to fill in the time while Dallas Good changed a broken guitar string) w/ all that were on stage during the Friday performance of "WEARIN' THAT LOVED ON LOOK" but no vocals.

41. WEARIN' THAT LOVED ON LOOK (performed on Friday as the 40th song)

42. IT DON'T COME UNDONE (performed on Friday as the 41st song) w/everyone. Plus this time Gary Louris made it on stage

End time 1:21AM (Total time 1 hour and 48 minutes)

ENCORE:

43. LITTLE HANDS (performed on Friday as the 42nd song) w/added musicians a second drummer named Gary (something? who was an obvious close friend to the Sadies. Gary ends up playing drums the rest of the way through the show.), Andre St. Clair- vocals

44. BREAK MY MIND (performed on Friday as 43rd song)

45. NORTHUMBERLAND WEST (performed on Friday as the 47th song)

46. ASTRONOMY DOMINE (Pink Floyd 'the Piper at the Gates of Dawn' 67-2) [by Syd Barrett] w/ Rick White- lead vocals

47. CASTIN' MY SPELL (performed on Friday as the 45th song)

48. CHASIN' WOMEN (performed on Friday as the 46th song)

49. HOLD ME TIGHT (performed on Friday as the 48th song)

50. MEMPHIS, EGYPT (performed on Friday as the 49th song) added musicians Gary Louris- electric guitar, Neko Case- vocals, Kelly Hogan- vocals

End time 2:14AM (Total time 2 hour and 41 minutes)

The Sadies - live album extravaganza - night 1

(courtesy of Timmy B)

Here are the setlists for both nights of the SADIES. This was done to the best of my ability but I did not know all the songs. So I guess I might have to wait until the live album comes out of these gigs in the summer.

I did know all the songs that Gary Louris performed though, so that was great.

At some point this week I will write a review of both nights that I will put up on jambands.ca and post it here when I'm done.

THE SADIES W/
LEE'S PALACE
FRI FEB 3, 2006
DRS 9PM

Note- the Sadies on all songs:
Dallas Good-electric guitar, stringbender guitar, 12 string electric guitar, lead & backing vocal.
Travis Good-electric guitar, acoustic guitar, acoustic guitar, fiddle, backing & lead vocal.
Mike Belitsky- drums
Sean Dean- upright bass

SET I:
Start time 10:12PM

1. CHEAT (Precious Moments 98-1)

2. WHY BE SO CURIOUS (PART 3) (Favourite Colours 04-1)

3. 1000 CITIES FALLING (PART 1)(Favourite Colours 04-2) w/ Bob Egan-pedal steel

4. RAT CREEK (Pure Diamond Gold 99-1)

5. SONG OF THE CHIEF MUSICIANS (Favourite Colours 04-3)

6. 16 MILE CREEK (Pure Diamond Gold 99-2)

7. YOU GOT YOURS AND I GOT MINE (new Sadies song) Travis Good-lead vocal

8. LAY DOWN YOUR ARMS (Stories Often Told 02-1)

9. HIGHER POWER (Pure Diamond Gold 99-3) [by Charlie & Ira Louvin'] w/Bruce Good (father)- autoharp/vocals, Margaret Good (mother)-vocals, Brian Good (uncle)-acoustic guitar/vocals, Larry Good (uncle)- banjo

10. EASTWINDS (Pure Diamond Gold 99-4) [Andrew & Doug Queen, Sadies] w/Bruce-autoharp/vocals, Margaret-lead vocals, Brian-acoustic guitar, Larry-banjo

11. UNCLE LARRY'S BREAKDOWN (The Good Brothers 'Live') [by Larry Good]w/Bruce-autoharp, Brian-acoustic guitar, Larry-banjo

12. LAST THING ON MY MIND [by Tom Paxton] w/Bruce-autoharp/vocals, Margaret-vocals, Brian-acoustic guitar/vocals, Larry-banjo

13. STAY A LITTLE LONGER (Willie and Family Live 78) [by Willis/Duncan]w/Bruce-autoharp/co-lead vocals with Dallas, Brian-acoustic guitar, Larry-banjo, Bob-pedal steel

14. SNOW SQUADRON (Precious Moments 98)

15. LONELY GUY (by Dexter ?) Travis-lead vocal

16. RIDGE RUNNER RAG/RIDGE RUNNER RELL (Tremendous Efforts 01-1/2) w/ Garth Hudson-keyboards

17. LEAVE ME ALONE (the Band 'A Musical History' 05 Canadian Squires) [by Robbie Robertson] w/ Garth- keyboards

18. ONE MILLION SONGS (Tremendous Efforts 01-3) w/Garth-keyboards, Kelly Hogan-co-lead vocals with Dallas

19. DYIN' IS EASY (Precious Moments 98-3) w/ Garth-keyboards, Kelly- vocals, Margaret-vocals

20. TIGER TIGER (Stories Often Told 02-1)[by Grace Braun] w/Garth- keyboards, Kelly- vocals, Margaret- vocals

End time: 11:09PM (Total time 53 minutes)

SET II:
Start time 11:36PM

21. BACK OFF ( I don't know if that is the right title?) w/ Jon Spencer- lead vocals, acoustic guitar, Matt Verta Ray - electric guitar

22. COME ON HONEY (I don't know if that is the right title?) w/ Spencer- lead vocals, acoustic guitar, Ray- electric guitar

23. DON'T YOU KNOW YOUR LOVE MADE ME (I don't know if that is the right title?) w/ Spencer- lead vocals, acoustic guitar, Ray- electric guitar

24. I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU NOW (I don't know if that is the right title?) w/Andre St. Clair- co-lead vocals, Max Danger- co-lead vocals, tambourine, Spencer-vocals, acoustic guitar, Ray- electric guitar

25. AMERICAN PAGENT (Jon Langford & the Sadies 'the Mayors of the Moon 03-1) [by Langford/Sadies] w/ Jon Langford- lead vocals, electric guitar

26. STRANGE BIRDS ('the Mayors of the Moon 03-2) [by Langford/Sadies] w/ Langford- lead vocals, electric guitar

27. NASHVILLE RADIO (Jon Langford 'All the Fame of Lofty Deed' 04) [by Langford] w/ Langford- lead vocals, electric guitar

28. EVANGELINE (the Band 'the Last Waltz' 78) [by Robertson] w/ Neko Case- co-lead vocals with Travis and acoustic guitar, Hogan- vocals, Hudson- accordian

29. HOME WHERE THE RIVER RUNS COLD (title?)[by Roger Miller] w/ Case- lead vocals, Hogan- vocals, Hudson- accordian/keyboards

30. THE MOST TENDER PLACE IN MY HEART IS FOR STRANGERS (first line, I don't know the title?) w/ Case-lead vocals, 4 string electric guitar, Hogan- vocals, Hudson- accordian/keyboards

31. TAILSPIN (the Jayhawks 'Rainy Day Music 03) [by Louris] w/ Gary Louris- lead vocals, electric guitar, Larry- banjo

32. A GOOD FLYING DAY (Favourite Colours 04-4) w/ Louris- lead vocals, electric guitar

33. LUCIFER SAM (Pink Floyd 'the Piper at the Gates of Dawn' 67-1) w/ Louris- lead vocals, electric guitar

34. A QUIET GETAWAY (the Unintended 03-1) w/ Rick White- lead vocals, electric guitar, Greg Keelor- electric guitar

35. ANOTHER DAY IS GONE (unreleased Unintended song. Title yet to be determined) w/ White- lead vocals, electric guitar Keelor- electric guitar

36. ALL PASS AWAY (unreleased Unintended Song. Title yet to be determined) w/ White- lead vocals, electric guitar, Keelor- electric guitar

37. YOU'RE EVERYWHERE (Blue Rodeo 'Casino' 91) [by Keelor/Cuddy] w/ Keelor- lead vocals, Jim Cuddy- electric guitar, vocals, Bazil Donovan- acoustic guitar, Egan- pedal steel, Bob Packwood- keyboards

38. STORIES OFTEN TOLD (Stories Often Told 02-2) or PALACE OF GOLD (Palace of Gold 02-1) [by Keelor/Cuddy] w/ Keelor- co-lead vocals with Dallas, Cuddy- electric guitar, vocals, Bazil- acoustic guitar, Egan- pedal steel, Packwood- keyboards

39. WITHIN A STONE (Stories Often Told 02-3) w/ Keelor- drums, Cuddy co-lead vocals with Margaret, Margaret- vocals, Bazil- acoustic, Egan- pedal steel, Packwood- keyboards

40. WEARIN' THAT LOVED ON LOOK (Tremendous Efforts 01-4) [by Dallas Frazier and A.L. Owens] w/Travis co-lead vocals with Keelor, Keelor-vocals, Cuddy- guitar, vocals, Margaret-vocals, Case- vocals, Hogan- vocals, Bazil- acoustic, Egan- pedal steel, Packwood- keyboards

41. IT DON"T COME UNDONE (Title?) w/ Dallas lead vocals, and everybody minus Gary Louris (Later Gary said he couldn't fit on stage), also Maud Hudson joins on vocals

1:21AM (1 hour and 48 minutes)

ENCORE:

42. LITTLE HANDS (Alexander "Skip" Spence 'Oar' 69) w/ Gary Louris- lead vocals and electric guitar

43. BREAK MY MIND (the Flying Burrito Bros 'Close Up the Honky-Tonks' 74) [by J.D. Loudermilk] w/ Gary Louris- co-lead vocals with Margaret, Margaret- vocals, Bruce- vocals

44. ONLY GOOD ONE ('Pure Diamond Gold 99-5)

45. CASTIN' MY SPELL (Johnny Otis 'Capital Years') [by Edwin & Alvin Johnson] w/ Keelor- drums

46. CHASIN' WOMEN (Title?) (by Roger Miller) w/ Case- lead vocals

47. NORTHUMBERLAND WEST (Favourite Colours 04- 4)

48. HOLD ME TIGHT (Title?) w/ Spencer- lead vocals, acoustic, Ray- electric guitar, St. Clair- vocals, Danger- vocals, tambourine

49. MEMPHIS, EGYPT (Mekons 'Rock n' Roll' 89) w/ Langford- lead vocals, electric guitar, Hudson- keyboards

End time 1:57 (Total time Set II 2 hours and 20 minutes)

Review: "Watt Jam" - 12/14/05 - First Ave. - Minneapolis, MN

Coming out of deep holiday madness-induced lurk to share something I originally posted over on the Watt List to clear up some mistakes/misconceptions about the Mike Watt set at the big First Ave. shindig a few weeks ago. There obviously was a lot of other stuff going on that night (Rifle Sport reunion in the Entry! Jayhawks rising from the dead! Craig Finn everywhere! 4 new Golden Smog songs! The return of prodigal son DJ Kevin Cole!) but it would take a documentary-length screed to share all the joy that took place. Suffice it to say that out of the countless nights (rough low-side guess: 25 x average of 60 = 1500!?!) I've spent at First Ave. over the last 25+ years, this was one of the most amazing.

Happy Festivus from MN.



==================================




OK y'all, here's the official scorecard for the Mike Watt extravaganza at the First Ave. 35th Anniversary party a few weeks ago. Somebody at soundcheck referred to it as "Wattjam," so that's what i'm going with.


WattJam
First Ave. 35th Anniversary Party / Benefit for DEMO
First Ave. - Minneapolis, MN - 12/14/05


intro by Steve McClellan (First Ave. guru)
Down On the Street
TV Eye
1969 +
I Wanna Be Your Dog + # ^ @
Freight Train $ @


Mike Watt - bass, lead & bg vox
Kraig Johnson - gtr, lead & bg vox
Ed Ackerson - gtr, bg vox
Peter Anderson - drums
Gary Louris - gtr
Mike Reiter - drums +
Craig Finn - lead vox # and gtr $
Marc Perlman - piano ^
Grant Hart - piano @


All songs are Stooges covers except "Freight Train," which was originally done by Sister Double Happiness on their self-titled 1987 SST album. Since fIREHOSE and Run Westy Run were also on SST - and toured together -- it's no big surprise that "Freight Train" eventually found its way into both bands setlists. "Freight Train" was also recorded for Kraig Johnson's 2003 solo EP (now unfortunately out-of-print in the states) and has been the "showstopper" at every live show Kraig has done with his band The Program for the last 3-1/2 years.

"Freight Train" is one of those amazing songs that sounds like an ancient cover you've heard a million times before. Indeed, it's been mistakenly attributed to everyone from The Stooges to the The Replacements. That it's one of the very first rock songs i'm aware of to deal with AIDS (clue: SDH were from San Fran) makes it even more fascinating (sample lyric: "i swear to god i didn't mess around / that modern plague put me in the ground"). For my money, Kraig's live reading of "Freight Train" is definitive; he's pretty much made the song his own since he first started singing it with RWR 15 years ago. All the more reason to search out his EP and/or live Program/RWR recordings.

The other names should be fairly well known outside of Mpls save for the drummers. Peter Anderson is the busiest musician in Mpls these days -- drumming with The Program, Iffy (featuring the Johnson bros), and Polara (led by Ed Ackerson) are his main gigs, but he's also recently played with Mark Mallman, The Honeydogs, The (Olympic) Hopefuls and about a zillion other bands. Mike Reiter, who helped provide the authentic tribal stomp on "1969" and "Dog," has played in a number of Mpls bands over the years. Reiter's Watt hook-up occurred when he played with the Mofos in the early 90s.

All in all, an amazing night. It's to Watt's credit that he didn't hesitate to come to MN when he heard about the gig (which was also a benefit for a musicians non-profit formed by Steve McClellan, a close friend of Watt). Watt reportedly said he would show up with his bass and do whatever was required. Kraig and a few of the boys initially had an idea for a Stooges tribute and that's exactly what transpired. Many of the locals here in Mpls are still reeling from what turned out to be one of the best short sets of pure rock ever to take place inside of the hallowed walls of First Ave.

At the end of his set, Watt roared "START YR OWN BAND!", the punk manifesto distilled down to its simplest form. A perfect end to a perfect performance from one of the coolest guys on the planet.