Death. Taxes. Cal Ripken Jr.

One of the first bands I promoted on my own when trying to break into the Washington DC music scene was the State College, PA-based band The Dirges.  Good band, but I still wonder why a mournful piece of music would be thought of as a clever band name.  What I did not realize at the time is that death will always be a part of music.  My friend Pete recently saw an art film at the Carnegie Museum of Art that was about Vietnamese funeral music and rituals called "The Living Need Light, The Dead Need Music."  In 2016 alone, the music industry has lost the influential talents of Prince, Merle Haggard, Malik “Phife Dawg” Taylor, Maurice White (of Earth, Wind & Fire) and David Bowie.  And with each passing, the tributes have been endless.

My friend JJ thought of an interesting new metric to measure in music.  Would bandmates cry at each other’s funerals?  And does that have any connection to the chemistry on stage during a live show?  His experience was recently seeing Aesop Rock & Rob Sonic and the answer was “yes”.   Rob literally finished Aesop Rock’s sentences when they were rapping together.  Aesop referred to Rob as his "brother" and talked about them both being genuine fans of each other's work.

Wondering about my own musical experiences, I immediately thought of the Beastie Boys.  Although I was not there, I can almost guarantee that Mike D and Ad-Rock did not have dry eyes at MCA’s funeral.   Sadly, the same might not be said for Don Felder at Glen Frey’s funeral.  I am sure there was extreme sorrow upon hearing the news, but knowing that the two were estranged, makes me think that another Eagles reunion show would not have been their best concert.

The significance of death and music can also be seen and heard at a "jazz funeral" or "funeral with music" which originated in New Orleans, LA, but also has links to other parts of the world.  The organizers of the funeral hire a brass band as part of the service and the band typically leads the mourners from the church to the cemetery.  Throughout the march, the band plays somber hymns, but after the hearse leaves the procession, the music becomes more upbeat, often raucous.  There is even a name to describe those who follow the band, just to enjoy the music on such a somber day: The Second Line.  Second line parades range in size, level of organization and traditions, but in all cases they can have the spontaneous energy of a block party, just moving one block at a time.

Reading Arthur C. Brooks' New York Times article, "To Be Happier, Start Thinking More About Your Death", I learned that it is believed that “Buddhist monks often contemplate death”.  But puzzlingly this “meditation on death is intended as a key to better living”.  It might make a person ask, “Life is precious, am I making the most of my time?”  Ideally bandmates are thinking along those lines when creating music either in the studio or live.  But I am not stating that you need to go check out as many of your favorite musicians as possible.  I am thinking more about how as a music fan, it might be best to enjoy each and every concert if you thought it might be your last.

Thanks for reading.

Seen & Heard vol. 5

SATURDAY, JULY 9 – Ferdinand the Bull at Deutschtown Music Festival’s Park Stage (Pittsburgh, PA)

I know that I only saw 0.005% of the bands performing at this year’s 4th annual Deutschtown Music Festival, but my family and I made the one set that we saw count.  Opening up this year’s festival was Pittsburgh’s own Americana/bluegrass band Ferdinand the Bull (FTB).  Excited by the release of their new album “Days We Forgot”, the energy of the 4-piece (mandolin, percussion, acoustic guitar & banjo) carried over to their live set even for an early Saturday morning.  In fact, guitarist Nick Snyder broke a string on the second song.

Sitting on the Allegheny Commons East, we listened, ate our sandwiches and then talked about the music.  My boys really liked the beats being made by the Mini-Cajon, I was a fan of the mandolin playing and overall FTB kept everyone tapping their foot or in my younger son’s case snapping his fingers.  Deserving of a larger crowd, I was happy to learn that FTB scored an opening slot for Josh Ritter at Hartwood Acres later in the month. 

But as the band’s set wound down, my sons’ attention were drawn to the Venture Outdoors rock wall and while they were climbing,  I was asked to be an extra in the upcoming Netflix series being filmed in Pittsburgh, “Mindhunter” (produced by actress Charlize Theron & Kevin Spacey and directed by David Fincher).  It was tempting to stay for the next band (which we knew nothing about), but easing my boys into the all-day music festival scene was more important to me this afternoon than “making” them listen to an electro-soul duo. 

Thank you to festival founders Cody Walters and Ben Soltesz.   We hope to spend even more time in Deutschtown in 2017!

TUESDAY, JULY 12 – Guns N' Roses at Heinz Field (Pittsburgh, PA)

In the fall of 1988, after I had purchased my cassette copy of “Appetite for Destruction” from The Music Staff, I honestly never thought I would see Guns N’ Roses (GNR) perform live.  Or at least a version of the band that included Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan.  Not that I did not have an interest in going to see concerts, but more that the shows that I had been attending up until that point were heavily influenced by my brother and older cousins.  And my brother and older cousins will be quick to point out that I owned my allegiance to GNR since they had zero interest.

But while the Heinz Field crowd arrived (fashionably) late, I walked out to the sounds of “Welcome to the Jungle” and for this moment in time, GNR placed all of the drama aside to play a rock n’ roll show for the fans that had been waiting.  And for the first time, I heard the influences in the band that I had first listened to at age 13.  Maybe it was their cover of the 1973 hit by Paul McCartney and Wings, “Live and Let Die”, the Pink Floyd-esque version of “Estranged” or the Led Zeppelin guitar sounds of  “Rocket Queen”, I was finally hearing where I think GNR is coming from.

And in 2016 (28 years later), although Rose, paced his voice throughout the set – passing on some notes and nailing a number of others, what really jumped out at me were the true power chords from Slash as well as the rhythms being held down by McKagan (who sported Prince’s “love symbol” on his bass) and drummer Frank Ferrer.  Ferrer was more than solid and although he now appears to be best known as the drummer for GNR, with whom he has played, toured, and recorded since 2006, I also learned he has worked with several high profile musicians including Tool, Neil Young and Perry Farrell.

I am glad I got to see this incarnation of the band at this point in time.  Because, not only did I ever think I would seem live, but in all of my musical travels, I never thought I would say that I worked at a GNR show either.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 13 – Ryan Adams and The Shining at Stage AE (Pittsburgh, PA)

It was a busy night for concerts in Pittsburgh.  And I was very happy knowing that my evening would evolve from working in the box office for a teen-pop show to a concert featuring one of the leading American singer-songwriters.  

Using Pittsburgh’s under-utilized, underground transit system from downtown to the North Shore I felt a sense of relief mingling with the fans of Ryan Adams as opposed to the Bieber Fever that had taken over CONSOL Energy Center.  I cannot specifically put my finger on it, but it was most likely the age demographic and the fact that a majority of the fans in Stage AE were experienced concert-goers.  So finally amongst friends who had converged on Stage AE from around the U.S. to see Ryan Adams and The Shining, the subject of United States geography was (one of the things) in the air.  It was wild, standing in a group in which Athens, GA; Chanhassen, MN and Washington DC were represented and that was just the people I attended the show with.

And to keep the geography theme going - highlights of the night for me included songs, “New York New York”; “Dear Chicago” and “Oh My Sweet Carolina”.  Backed by the Shining, Adams’ band also brought their A-game and I was particularly impressed with organ player/pianist Daniel Clarke.  But it was clearly Adams’ show.  He worked the crowd like an old pro, engaging in banter with fans who were shouting out requests and in return being unapologetically self-assertive and head-strong in his responses.  Leaning back into the amps, posing with his guitar at the far end of the stage and just all around being a rock-star and when it comes down it, it was his name on the marquee.  Traveling with retro pinball and soda machines and stuffed animals as stage décor, but then backing it up as a triple-threat: good singing, solid songs and impressive guitar playing. 

Meanwhile 28 miles west of Stage AE, another rock-star: John Mayer was fronting Dead & Co. at First Niagara Pavilion – a show that I would have also like to have seen.  However, after seeing Ryan Adams perform “Magnolia Mountain”, it would be interesting down the road to see him play with surviving members of the Grateful Dead.

TUESDAY, JULY 26 – Nathaniel Rateliff and The Night Sweats at Stage AE (Pittsburgh, PA)

Nathaniel Rateliff is clearly an artist on the rise.  He has a career sitting somewhere between staff members at Stage AE not being familiar with his soulful music and having his own Kia Soul Hamster television commercial. 

Playing a vast majority of his set from his current self-titled album, Rateliff affectionately boasted that the crowd tonight would get to hear him and The Night Sweats “play the hits”.  Highlighted by songs, “I Never Get Old”, “Look It Here”, “Thank You” as well as the surprisingly unreleased song “Out on the Weekend”, the band kept the tempo of the show as well as all of those in attendance moving.  And the crowd was not the only people feeling the sounds filling Stage AE.  Keyboardist Mark Shusterman lost his hat during an enthusiastic solo and one of the horn players knocked over a microphone stand in the middle of his Chicago horn section-esque dance steps circa 1973.  Rateliff appeared equally as happy playing his guitar as he was dancing and keeping rhythm with a tambourine. 

Playing music with his close friends, the band looked happy and energetic.  He mentioned that he and bassist Joseph Pope III have been making music for 20 years, and I could get a sense that the band’s heavy touring schedule is paying off.  In fact the band has another 20 dates on the books through the end of September 2016.  

However as I listened to the music in a packed, indoor club on a humid night in Pittsburgh, it was his voice and the songs that were the star of the sold out show.  Time for the rest of us to discover Nathaniel Rateliff and the Wheel as well as his three solo records released between 2011-2013.

  

Seven Thirty Seven comin' out of the sky. / Oh! Won't you take me down to Memphis on a midnight ride.

It was once relayed to me that "rock 'n' roll is about getting in your cracked-up van and driving out to the middle of nowhere to play or see a show".  There is a lot of truth to that statement and it was very cool having that sentiment written out in an eloquent, fun style in Jesse Andrews’ book “The Haters”.  As someone who used to travel in a van from concert to concert, some of the trials and tribulations experienced by the main characters made me laugh out loud.

There is a tremendous amount of bonding going on while traveling with a band.  Now having the life experience of being married for over 10 years, I think back to those times and at some points it almost seems like the band members and I were a couple. Negotiations and compromises occurred regularly, on controversial topics like navigating directions to gigs (pre-GPS) and determining when and where to stop for the night. I remember one night where we got in our van after a 3 hour gig in San Luis Obispo, CA and traveled another 3 hours to Bakersfield, CA – mostly along a harrowing CA-Route 46 for at least half the trip.  The two-lane stretch from Paso Robles to Cholame was once known as "Blood Alley" for the large number of car crashes.  Upon learning this information, the bass player almost quit the band.

In another instance, one of the houses we used to stay in many times in Washington DC had a basement made for a band.   Old, stained furniture and nothing else that was not replaceable filled the room.  The concrete floor slept 6 people as comfortable as it could and the residents of the house were always up (literally and figuratively) for late night shenanigans.  In fact, the term “Tuesday Night Drunk” (no matter which night of the week it was) spun out of a visit to the now defunct Metro Café.  The reasons for both the journey to Bakersfield and the occasional off nights in Washington DC was not other performance opportunities, but free places to stay.

I recently read an article by Brian O’Neill called ‘Couch Surfin’ USA’ which went on to talk about a Pittsburgh-based band, Ferdinand the Bull, and their experiences of touring.  Throughout a recent tour thru middle America, they used the internet to find their accommodations for the evening.  The difference in having a comfortable, free place to stay along with a safe place to store gear was immeasurable until it came time to look at the band’s bank account and then the savings were even more easily measured.  It was a huge nest egg and even allowed some of the bands I worked with to have money left to make payments on the van and enable more touring.

With summer tours in full-swing, I hope you can all get out and see at least one show this summer!  Thanks for reading.

Seen & Heard vol. 4

FRIDAY, JUNE 3 – Leon Bridges at Stage AE (Pittsburgh, PA)

Time Life launched an advertising campaign in the 1980's to coincide with the release of their "Mysteries of the Unknown" series.  One commercial began with a voice-over narration: "How can you explain it? A woman in Wisconsin is doing the dishes, while suddenly she has a feeling that her daughter has been just been in an accident. She gets a desperate phone call and finds out her feeling has just become true."   Now in 2016, I find out that my cousin Jason is attending the Charles Bradley show at the 9:30 Club in Washington DC and the next night I am watching Leon Bridges at Stage AE in Pittsburgh.  Charles Bradley, a 67 year old funk/soul/R&B singer, who according to Paste Magazine "echoes the evocative delivery of Otis Redding".  Meanwhile Leon Bridges is a 26 year old gospel and soul singer and songwriter who has been tagged as the "next Sam Cooke". 

Compare him to whoever you would like, the one thing that is undeniable is that Bridges' has soul.  According to my friend Jon H, Bridges also channels all of those who have walked before him in the New Orleans' Jazz Fest Gospel Tent.  From the fifth song "Brown Skin Girl" all the way thru the 10th song "Hold On", Bridges and his band kept the groove going to a sold out crowd in Pittsburgh.  And although the show fell somewhere between satisfying soundtrack to a 1960s retrospective and the polished showmanship of James Brown, the entire crowd remain engaged throughout his set.

Bridges smooth voice is a gift and he has a potentially long career in front of him.  Looking forward to hearing what's next for Mr. Bridges, something along the lines of one of his latest singles "River" or his collaboration with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis on the track "Kevin". 

MONDAY, JUNE 20 – Barenaked Ladies at Stage AE (Pittsburgh, PA)

Redefining my personal definition of corporate rock, I attended the Barenaked Ladies show with colleagues in the music industry.  In town for a conference, I thought an entertaining night out would be to check out the Juno-award winning band.  And although BNL is no longer breaking any new ground and it was extremely hard to tell if the band or the crowd missed original member/singer Steven Page, no one can debate that they continue to be extremely entertaining.   Known for their humorous banter, the band had the approximately 2,000 loyal Pittsburgh/hockey fans in attendance eating out of their hands with Phil Kessel references and a number of their hits.

And although most people came for songs like "One Week", a distinct highlight of the show for me was when they called out Howard Jones to join them onstage for "No One is to Blame".  I also enjoyed the upright bass playing of Jim Creeggan and the BNL Classic, "Brian Wilson" which I learned later on has been covered by the real Brian Wilson. 

25 years later, the Barenaked Ladies are still a fun band and not leaving any questions unanswered.  However, I left wondering if I am somewhat psychotic for including the song "The Old Apartment" on a mix tape that I made for my wife before we were married.   "Broke into the old apartment /This is where we used to live / Broken glass, broke and hungry / Broken hearts and broken bones / This is where we used to live."  

Rhyme or Reason.

I keep telling myself that it is not just Youtube sensations becoming the next generation of musicians.  However, these days, there does not appear to be any consistency as to why a song breaks or becomes destined for a VH1 special on one-hit wonders.

Jeffrey Gaines had released three (3) studio albums between 1992-1998 and not until fans heard him crush Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes” on 1998’s album ‘Galore’ did he start getting national attention.  Even though the song originally appeared as a B-Side to the 1993 single, “Headmasters of Mine” in 1998 (5 years later!), it reached #22 on the U.S. Adult Top 40 chart.  It did not matter to most fans that he had strong original songs like “Hero in Me” and “I Know a Man”.  And that he had a review from the Chicago Tribune that stated, “Gaines’ deceptively simple, disarmingly direct rumination on life finds an audience of those desiring more from music than a fleeting flavor-of-the-month buzz.”  Fans came to his shows wanting to hear “In Your Eyes” and I saw it first-hand at Avalon on Landsdowne Street in Boston, MA in 2000.

On the flip side, Ben Rector released five (5) studio albums between 2007-2015 and not until select radio stations this year started playing the title track from his most recent album ‘Brand New’ did the music industry start to take notice.  But reading that his new album went to No. 3 on Billboard Top Current Digital Album Sales chart when it was released was not what caught my attention.  What initially drew me to Rector was not his original music but his memorable September 2009 cover of Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin”.  And eventually that was followed up with the unique February 2012 cover of Whitney Houston’s “I Want to Dance with Somebody”.  And even though he is touring to support his latest album, in a nod to Elton John, Rector and his band have earned the nickname “Bennie & The Jets” by opening every show with a cover of that song. 

There is part of me that is just happy that both of these extremely likable musicians “made it”.  Jeffrey Gaines continues to tour up and down the East Coast and Rector is happily making the rounds of TV talk shows.   I believe it is their original songs that will allow them to continue to make music, but I am sure they will also smile the next time someone yells “Freebird” at one of their shows.

Thanks for reading.

Seen & Heard vol. 3

WEDNESDAY, MAY 4 – Citizen Cope at Center Stage Theater (Atlanta, GA)

I know that the ladies love cool James, but they also have an affinity for Clarence Greenwood.  Maybe not his guitar playing, but his unmistakable, bluesy voice and delivery had the predominantly female crowd paying attention to every lyric.  Enough that the women sitting across the aisle “shushed” me for talking during a song early in the set.  However that all changed when a man sitting about 5 rows back from the stage got the audience participating with hand claps on the 2004 song and crowd favorite, "Bullet and a Target".   But hand clapping was about all we would get for beats at this show.  Even though the show was billed as solo acoustic, based on the fun rhythms of a lot of the songs in his catalog, I was surprised that he did not use more looping or a drum machine.  Instead he treated the 400+ in attendance to his honest, well thought out tunes and focusing on the lyrics.

As a visitor in Georgia and seeing my first show, it was at no surprise that Mr. Greenwood worked a veteran move by making local references.  He discussed how he had recorded songs off his 2002 debut album (“Citizen Cope”) 30 miles outside of Atlanta in Alpharetta.  He also talked about his previous life of being a “ticket scalper” and how a night in an Atlanta jail led to his song “Salvation”.   Other highlights of the show included “Son’s Gonna Rise” and “Healing Hands”. 

And for the record the man in the 5^th row never sat down again for the rest of the show.  Thank you Rival Entertainment in Atlanta for the tickets.

THURSDAY, MAY 12 – Avett Brothers at Stage AE (Pittsburgh, PA)

When I first moved to Pittsburgh, my wife worked at Schenley High School where we had fun watching DeJuan Blair lead Schenley to the 2007 state basketball championship.  It was also very cool to see him playing in a NBA game for the San Antonio Spurs in 2009.  Similarly, it was an amazing experience to once see the Avett Brothers play at Club Café in 2004 and then in 2016 to a sold out show outside at Stage AE.

I know the band has not been a 3-piece since cellist Joe Kwon joined the band in 2007, but the band has really expanded.  Now appearing with a drummer, piano/organist and fiddle player (making the Brothers a party of 6), the band’s sound has magnified for a classic like “Talk of Indolence” and the new foot-stomping, hand-clapping “Ain’t No Man”.  That does not mean the band has forgotten their roots, since they are still not your grandfather’s bluegrass music.  The band also impressed me with 2012’s “Down with the Shine” and another fresh jam called “True Sadness”.  Considering that the new album is not scheduled to be released until June 2016, it was fun seeing the crowd throughout the venue singing along to every song.

So after a solid night of music, I am excited to see what the album brings for the Avett Brothers in 2016.  They joked throughout the evening that they would retire and play Pittsburgh every weekend, but I believe a day off in one of their adopted “favorite” cities will have to suffice.

Hard to believe that this was the first concert I attended with my wife since we saw Smokey Robinson together in September 2014, but maybe being treated like royalty by the staff at venue and getting a solid show from a band that is now been playing live since 2000, will get us both out more as we approach the summer concert season.

SATURDAY, MAY 21 – The Milk Carton Kids at Carnegie Lecture Hall (Pittsburgh, PA)

Like a Mitchell & Ness throwback, warm-up jacket in hip-hop, The Milk Carton Kids stepped onto the stage last night as if they were ready to perform on the WWVA-1170 AM Wheeling, WV  “Jamboree” radio program.  Comparing themselves to Simon & Garfunkel before anyone else in the crowd could, the band with their stripped-down equipment of two acoustic guitars, one microphone and a mysterious bag sitting on a stool launched into a 75 minute set with what I thought was well-rehearsed stage banter, but filling in “Pittsburgh” in all of the right spots.

I was initially introduced to the band by way of their regularly performed, closing cover song of the Pink Floyd classic, “Wish You Were Here”, and was extremely interested to see them live with Jon H. when he approached me back in December 2015 to see the Grammy Award winning duo.

In fact, is not too often when a band plays an ideal venue.  And with approximately 500 loyal-listening fans in attendance the very Everly Brothers-esque duo entertained at a lecture hall turned theater style setting into a fantastic place to hear live music.  Songs that stood out were “Honey Honey” and “Memphis” which both appear on their 2013 record, ‘The Ash & Clay’.  And speaking of the city of Memphis, their overall performance reminded me of what is now known as the "Million Dollar Quartet" - the impromptu jam session involving Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash from December 1956, at the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, TN.

Touring in support of 2015's “Monterey”,  I will be interested to check out the next chess move by TMCK as they navigate the current landscape of neo-folk music.

Thank you for reading!

8 Hour Work Day.

I had a moment recently where my 20 year old self would have laughed at my 40 year old self.  It occurred when I realized just how excited I was to have seats for a show that I attended in March.  I also have to admit that at that same moment, I was admiring the contour of the wall and how it deflected some of the volume of the band onstage.   In defense of my 40 year old self, I like to think that going to concerts keeps me feeling young.  I am not looking to recapture my youth through long boisterous nights on the town but I am striving to find a “work / life balance”.   Even though I have been behind the scenes of the music industry for close to 20 years, the act of seeing live music can still be a great, care-free release.  And as I try to navigate the waters of my life at 40, I have been finding myself wondering if I share any personality traits with Peter Pan, the legendary character created by Scottish novelist J. M. Barrie.

Clearly I am not the only associating The Lost Boys (and not the 1987 Thriller/Teen film of the same name) with the world of music.   Peter Pan, the character, is a mischievous boy who can fly and never grows up.  I worked/toured with bands for over 2 years and it was exhilarating not being in an office.  Not having a regular 9-to-5 job was not lost on me.  The freedom of making my own hours and meeting new people out at shows 5-7 nights per week never got old but there was also the reality of not knowing when I would receive my next paycheck.  Not surprisingly a popular music joke is:  

Child: “Mom, when I grow up, I’d like to be a musician.” 

Mother: “You can’t do both.”

Most recently I heard a Peter Pan connection in Ruth B’s 2015 song, “Lost Boy”.  The lyrics “Neverland is home to lost boys like me / And lost boys like me are free”.  It also jogged my memory for Edwin McCain’s 2004 song, “Farewell to Tinkerbell” in which the protagonist in the song is desperately trying to convince himself that he has grown up.  Although I am still searching for my ideal “work / life balance”, I would like to think that I am close.  On Thursday, May 12, I will be a fan at the Avett Brothers concert at Stage AE where I will be joining the “kids” on the lawn and then on Friday, May 13 I will be earning a steady income working onsite for the Dierks Bentley show at First Niagara Pavilion.   Now if I can only remind myself why a current United States Senator once said, “Don’t confuse having a career with having a life.”

Thanks for reading.