Texas Music

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A quick note as I wrap up my holiday trip to Texas.  I got to see some good music while here.  On the Saturday before Christmas my Dad and I caught Rick Trevino and Asleep at the Wheel at the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar while my Mom and Cynthia shopped.  I had heard of, but hadn’t heard Rick before and really enjoyed his set.  I think my favorite song was his cover of Wasted Days, Wasted Nights.

I have been an Asleep at the Wheel fan for a long time.  This show was a quartet rather than the full swing band.  What I hadn’t realized before was just how incredibly talented a guitar player Ray Benson is - I really enjoyed this set.  Way Down Texas Way is probably my favorite of theirs.  If you’re a fan of Bob Wills and Western Swing, check them out at the Broken Spoke sometime.

On Friday, my sister, brother-in-law, B.P. (*) and I headed down to San Antonio to catch the Old 97’s at Sam’s Burger Joint.  These guys have been my favorite band for close to a decade.  I found the venue to be a little strange, but overall it was great to see the 97s at home (Rhett’s a 7th generation Texan!)  Despite some initial sound issues, the show was great and I came out with a better appreciation of the latest album, Blame it on Gravity.  If you haven’t seen these guys live, you really need to check them out.  Rhett is a superlative songwriter and has written one of the perfect songs (Question) and I’m always drawn to Murry’s songs (Up the Devil’s Pay) in concert.  A few other choice songs:

No Baby, I
Barrier Reef
Doreen
Smoker
Murder (or a Heart Attack)
Time Bomb

Ok, that’s more than a few and there are many, many more good ones.  Enjoy.

(*) B.P. = Baby Place.  My sister is very pregnant and already teaching BP about good music.

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Willie Nelson at the Mountain Winery

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Tonight was the night.  It was of course, incredible.  I don’t want to make this an all Willie all the time blog, but a few notes:

• It’s all about the phrasing.  I’m not the first person to say it, but the phrasing is the magical ingredient in Willie’s music.  The way he turns a phrase and the way he plays a line on the guitar.  It just makes you feel good.
• Beyond that, the simple straight to the heart lyrics speak to just about everyone.  I try to pin down the demographic at concerts, but there was no demographic tonight - Willie’s appeal is universal.
• His stuff is timeless.  I’ve seen Merle a few times and I saw Waylon before he died and they were great, but Willie’s music never comes across as dated.  It always has been relevant, even when he’s playing American standards.

Two more things of interest…

• Look at the ticket above, then look at the one from my previous post.  The service fee on tonight’s show is more expensive then the entire ticket in 1984.  Times have changed, but come on.
• As I contemplate selling my car, it’s nights like tonight that give me pause.  Bay Area weather rarely affords the opportunity to drive with the top down and watch the stars.  The drive was almost as enjoyable as the show.  It reminded me of this VW/Nick Drake commercial.

Yes, I just referenced a car commercial.  Deal with it.

Finally, some music.  At the show tonight Willie played a great, bluesy cover of Milk Cow Blues. I love this song, but what is it that keeps people playing it since Kokomo Arnold recorded it in the 30’s?  Robert Johnson did it.  Bob Wills turned it into a Western Swing standard.  And of course nobody does it better than the King.  Enjoy.

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Patty Griffin at the Mountain Winery

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Patty Griffin has it. I don’t know what it is, but you just know it when you hear it. Case in point, several years ago I went to see Patty at a songwriter’s pull with Shawn Colvin, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Dar Williams at the Warfield. All lovely singer songwriters in their own right; but it must have been embarrassing for those women to share the stage with Patty. Something about her electrifying voice speaks right to the heart and makes all other sound pale in comparison. Much like James Taylor, I think Patty could sing anything and she would have the audience swooning. Over the years I’ve swooned at the Variety Playhouse, the Warfield x2, the Fillmore x2, the Great American Music Hall, a tiny Tex Mex restaurant in South Austin and Slim’s on the hottest SF day on record with surprise guest Natalie Maines….

So last night I went to see her at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga. And while this wasn’t the absolute best Patty Griffin performance I’ve seen, it was in full effect. Of note, she opened with the cover Hang on St. Christopher which is off one of my favorite Tom Waits albums. Happily she played a few older songs from Flaming Red – an album that is jarring compared to her folkier work but brilliant and under appreciated. She did play my current favorite Up to the Mountain, but sadly without the lead guitar of Doug Lancio this time.

My favorite albums, not surprisingly, are the ones where she really lets he voice shine.  She said in concert last year that she’d been advised to sing quietly on previous albums.  Thankfully she ignored that and really belted out on her latest masterpiece, Children Running Through.  It shows. If you don’t have this album, go buy it now. Sadly, it looks like Rhapsody doesn’t have it available, so I can’t link to samples here.

Her debut album Living With Ghosts will always hold a special place in my heart. It reminds me of contented Sunday mornings and cardamom flavored coffee. That has nothing to do with the album – all acoustic guitar and vocals filled with loud, bitter tunes – but more because I’ve got my own things going on.  Anyway, here’s the album on Rhapsody:

Moses
Let Him Fly
Every Little Bit
Time Will Do The Talking (Mariah moment and all)
Mad Mission
Poor Man’s House
Forgiveness
You Never Get What You Want
Sweet Lorraine
Not Alone

And here are a few gems from Flaming Red:

One Big Love
Tony
Change

Also check out Chief, Tomorrow Night and Mil Besos from 1,000 Kisses.

Finally, I’ve made my sister record some Patty Griffin tunes over the years.  I Write the Book (clip here) is off some bootleg I found and probably my all time favorite Patty song (really, really bitter):

I Write the Book
Time Will Do the Talking
One Big Love

Take a listen. If you figure out what it is, please let me know.

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Willie

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Indulge me on this rambling post.  Everybody likes to play that “what was your first concert?” game.  I think mine was pretty cool:

Yes, I’m a pack rat and hold on to things like ticket stubs forever.  I think we still have the red-headed stranger bandanna somewhere, but sadly the 3/4 length sleeve baseball shirt that said Willie in the shape of the state of Texas is long gone.  (Do you have to ask if I got picked on in junior high?)

Anyway, I’m going to see Willie Nelson at the Mountain Winery in a couple of weeks, so I’ve been listening to him non-stop.  According to the media player folks at Yahoo, I should be able to share here and you can listen to 25 full songs before it starts playing snippets.  So, an eclectic list of Willie Nelson recordings for your listening pleasure:

Ou Es Tu, Mon Amour? (Where Are You, My Love?)
I Never Cared For You
Three Days
Stardust
Georgia On My Mind
All Of Me
Time Of The Preacher
Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain
Red Headed Stranger
Heartaches Of A Fool
Good Hearted Woman
Angel Flying Too Close To The Ground
Look What Thoughts Will Do
I’d Have To Be Crazy
Crazy

Added bonus #1
Gary Allan has written a hilarious song about Willie Nelson:

What Would Willie Do (lyrics)

He loves all the people no matter their races
Hell he even had a hit country song with Julio Iglesias
And that ain’t easy to do…

This reminds me of the quote on my sister’s email signature:

In Texas, we all share the common religious belief that if we live a good life, when we die, we go to Willie Nelson’s house.

- Kinky Friedman

Added bonus #2
One of the more interesting concerts I’ve been too was Carla Bozulich’s tour in support of her 2003 concept album, Red Headed Stranger.  With Willie’s blessing she re-made Red Headed Stranger - a concept album of its own - track for track.  The results are unique and outstanding:

Time Of The Preacher
Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain
Red Headed Stranger

BTW - Much of the guitar work on Carla’s album comes from Nels Cline, who’s now playing for Wilco.  Willie plays on a couple of songs as well…

Enjoy.

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Those Legendary Shack*Shakers

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Tonight at The Independent, Those Legendary Shack Shakers held up my #1 theory about live music - if the band has an upright bass in it, they won’t suck.  Think SCOTS or Reverend Horton Heat with a scorching harmonica and 10x energy; the kind of band you’d expect to see in the Star Community Bar back in the Bubbapalooza days.  JD Wilkes is billed as the "…the last great rock and roll frontman."  I believe it.

This video gives an idea of the energy I’m talking about.

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