Slash House of Blues Cleveland 9/19/12

Slash, Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators stormed into the House of Blues in Cleveland, Ohio on Wednesday September 19th and blew the roof off the venue.  They provided 2 hours of guitar fueled, heavy rock and roll.  Axl is stuck in the past with a band he calls Guns and Roses.  Slash has moved forward and progressed into a talent worthy of filling larger venues. 

I feel Slash is one of the top 10 guitarists in the world alive today and he proved it in Cleveland.  When I heard him play his blues jam I knew that he belongs up at the top with Beck, Page, Warren Haynes, Joe Bonnamassa and the other great guitarists of our time.  The band slashed and burned through 2 hours and 21 songs of  Slash's greatest hits.  They played songs off of their new CD "Apocalyptic Love", songs from the bands Velvet Revolver and Snakepit, and Slash's solo work.  Oh yeah and they did some Guns and Roses tunes too.

Myles Kennedy did an outstanding job on vocals although the crowd at times almost drowned him out because they were singing so loud.  Some of the crowd favorites were "Night Train", "Civil War", "Sweet Child O Mine", "Slither", "Fall to Pieces" and "Paradise City".  Todd Kearns the bass player sang lead vocals on two songs "We're All Going To Die" and "Out to Get Me". 

Slash had his moments where he just let it all hang out on guitar like during the guitar solos in "Rocket Queen", "The Blues Jam", "Anastasia", "Sweet Child O Mine", "You're a Lie".  During "You're a Lie" Slash broke a string and just kept on playing, if you didn't see the string hanging you would not have known the difference.  The whole night was filled with great guitar solos but the ones mentioned were extremely good.

I would just like to say what a great song "Anastasia" is.  This should become a classic.

The band consisted of Slash on lead guitar, Myles Kennedy on vocals and some minor guitar work, Frank Sidaris on rhythm guitar, Todd Kearns on bass and Brent Fitz on drums.  A very capable band that Slash did not overshadow.  They played together as a band and not like a superstar with some backing flunkies.

Halo
Night Train
Ghost
Standing in the Sun
Back From Cali
Been There Lately
Civil War
Rocket Queen
No More Heroes
We're All Gonna Die
Out to Get Me
Bad Rain
Not For ME
Star Light
Blues Jam
Anastasia
Sweet Child O Mine
You're A Lie
Slither
Encore
Fall to Pieces
Paradise City

While leaving the stage before the encore Frank Sidaris held up a Bernie Kosar for President shirt.  During the encore confetti cannons on either side of the stage were set off.  The cannons must have been from a stadium concert, they shot so much confetti into the little HOB concert hall that you could not even see the stage. 

Over all a great show.  The music never stopped and it never really slowed down.  One great song after another.  Even the new music was good.  The energy was high and the talent on stage was wonderful.  I know friends of mine who poo poo Guns and Roses.  Axl was the joke, Slash is for real.

Speaking of jokes, Foxy Shazam is a joke I hope.  This warm up band was a cross between glam rock and punk.  They jumped and twirled and kicked and spit and groped themselves in some sort of parody of late 70's glam punk.  The music was bad, the singers philosophy on life was bad and the crowd seemed to stand and stare in disbelief.  A law student who was standing next to me said that he would rather be at the library studying than wasting his time watching Foxy Shazam.  He was glad I talked him to staying for Slash.

The Slash portion of the evening deserves 5 twirls.

Paul Thorn Beachland Ballroom 6/20/12

It was a warm night outside but everything was cool inside the Beachland Ballroom.  The Beachland Ballroom is such a gem of a concert hall for Cleveland to have.  I keep preaching the gospel of Paul Thorn and followers keep being converted.  Hoss and Basha are two new Paul Thorn believers.  Paul Thorn converted the Beachland into his own church for the evening.  With his songs of twisted faith, good and evil, trailer parks and being a long way from Tupelo. 

He starts out the night with a rocking, gospel tinged, sing along "Promised Land". 
He moves into a bluesy "Walk Without My Crutches". 
Of course there has to be a cheating woman with Aqua Velva on her breath, "Burn Down The Trailer Park".  
Paul does a cover of  the Elvin Bishop tune "What The Hell Is Going On?", which is also the name of the Paul Thorn Band's new album.  He tells the crowd you are going to hell if you don't buy a CD after the show. 
He gets a little moody in "Mood Ring".
And keeps it slow with "Love Scar" about a tattoo that was gotten when a girl was in love and then finds out it was only a one night stand.
Paul covers a Lindsey Buckingham song "Don't Let Me Down Again".
Swings into a sexy song "Walk In The Shadow".
He sings a song that reveals how he grew up with a father who was a preacher and an uncle who is a pimp in the delightful song "Pimps and Preachers".
Paul now goes acoustic solo on "He Knows When I'm On Your Mind".
He covers a Donnie Fritts song "She's Got A Crush On You".
Still going it alone acoustically he wonderfully sings "Lift Somebody Up".
The full band joins Paul again in a swampy song called "Snake Farm", which had a real nice fade out at the end.
He gets the crowd revved up with "I Don't Like Half The Folks I Love".
He Keeps rolling with bring me a hoe there's "Weeds In Your Roses".
The band gets a little bluesy on an Allen Toussaint song "Wrong Number".
He sings of throwing a man off a bridge into the river on a Wild Bill Emerson song "Bull Mountain Bridge".  Great harmonies with the whole band on vocals.
They get Funky on "Ain't Love Strange".
A crowd favorite, a song of hope "I Have A Good Day Every Now And Then"
Paul will only tell his wife when he comes home late one night that he was "A Long Way From Tupelo".  This is one of Paul Thorn's best songs.
After lying and cheating in the last song he wants us all to "Rise Up".
The Encore is a 50's style rocker where Paul ends up walking through the crowd shaking hands and kissing women "Take My Love With You".

Paul Thorn is one of the great story teller, song writers of our time.  We need to get more converts coming to his shows.  When you leave a Paul Thorn show you have a smile on your face because you have truly been entertained for the past two hours.  I must say that his band seems to have stepped up their game some.  Billy Hinds is definitely a great mood setting guitarist.  Michael Graham may sit in the back of the stage but his keyboards are right out front on many songs.  Ralph Friedrichsen can be bluesy or funky or country on his bass.  Jeffry Perkins keeps the whole band together with a good back beat.

As always Paul Thorn puts out a 5 twirl show.

Walter Trout Canton Blues Fest. 6/8/12

I got a call from my friend Nob who lives in Canton telling me to come on down to Canton for the Blues Fest.  This is a free event held in down town Canton featuring two days of music.  Nob was very excited because Walter Trout was going to be head lining on Friday night and Coco Montoya was head lining Saturday night.  I have heard of Walter Trout from my friend Bri Boy so I decided to take the ride to Canton and check Walter out.  Man was I glad I went.

It was a beautiful summer night in the high 70's not a cloud in the sky.  An older crowd sat in lawn chairs or on blankets.  Nob and I stood off to the side of the stage. 

Walter Trout is a middle aged Blues guitarist that has played with Canned Heat and John Mayall's Blues Breakers.  He plays a rocking white mans blues which is a cross over between blues and rock and roll.  Walter likes playing the high notes on his Fender guitar which made most of thee night just scream with excitement.  The crowd danced and swayed on the grassy square between the down town Canton buildings.  

Half way through his set Walter Trout plugs tomorrow nights headliner Coco Montoya, who also played with the Blues Breakers, and who just joined band on the stage to play two songs with Walter Trout.  Coco just didn't play he also sang.  Seeing these two great guitarists on stage trading licks back and forth will be one of my concert highlights for years to come.

Walter finishes out the night with a rousing rendition of Freddie Kings "Going Down" which left everyone in attendance dancing and cheering for more. 

If you get a chance next year check out the Canton Blues Fest it is a well kept secret that everyone should become a part of. 

I give this show  5 twirls with some moth catcher hand moves thrown in.  I was wowed.

My rating system is based on Grateful Dead dance moves 5 twirls being the highest and Moth Catcher Hand Moves are like adding another half of point on.

Steve Kimock 5/18/12 Beachland Ballroom

I have seen Steve Kimock before but always playing in some one Else's band, Rat Dog, The Dead.  I was really looking forward to tonight seeing Steve perform his own music with the star studded group of musicians that he surrounded himself with.  Steve has 10 guitars on stage and through out the night will use them all.  Other than Steve Kimock, also on the stage was Bernie Worrel one of the best on keyboards in the industry  hailing from Parliment Funkadelic and the Talking Heads.  Bernie adds a bit of music royalty to any band he decides to sit in with.  Bernie does know how to Jam and this was going to be a Jam Band night.  Andy Hess on Bass from Gov't Mule and the Black Crows really fits in better with  this type of music format than he did with Gov't Mule.  The free form Jazz lets him play to his potential.  Wally Ingram from Sheryl Crow on drums, army helmet wood blocks, cymbals with beads that make a swooshing sound and other fun little doo dads to beat on. 

The night starts out with "Congo Man Chant" with hints of "Get Up Stand Up" we are jamming.
the sing along song "Whack" is next which had the whole crowd sounding like a bunch of ducks.  Whack...Whack Whack.  This was a fun song.

The rest of the first set ranged from Jazz based songs to rock and roll, to Jerry Garcia sounding jams with songs such as "Thing One", "One For Brother Mike", "High and Lonesome" and "You're The One".

The band takes a break and starts out with "Space" then drifts into a wonderful version of "Stella Blue".  They then drift in and out of "Its Up To You" "Better Get In Your Soul","Its Up To You".  They finish on a high note with "Take Me To The River".

This was not a show for everyone.  There was some very good moments of Jamming and musical playing where the crowd is dancing.  BUT, there were long periods where the crowd was just standing and staring at the stage.  These periods are when the band is playing what I call experimental music.  This might be fun for the musicians but it loses me and obviously the rest most of the rest of the crowd.  I don't mind a little of the experimental noise making but the second set just had a bit too much.  For me the experiment failed.  Steve Kimock is a wonderful guitarist, Bernie Worrel as I said is royalty on keyboards, Andy Hess is a very accomplished Bass player and Wally Ingram is fun on the drums but while they are having fun doing there experiment the crowd just stares.  Sorry but I give this show only 3 twirls.

Bruce Springsteen, The Q, 4/17/12

The last time I saw Bruce Springsteen live, it was in the late 70's at John Carol University in the gym.  I had seen Bruce at the Agora prior to that.  I thought why would I go to a large venue to see Bruce after having enjoyed him in these small intimate settings.  Well I changed that last night.  My Honey Bunny took me to see Bruce Springsteen and the new reworked E Street Band in Cleveland at the Q.  It was a wonderful show that had all of the power and energy that I remembered from Bruce's early years.

The house lights came up on the anxious crowd at 8:31PM as the band took the stage an hour late and broke into "Badlands".  From there on out the rest of the evening was filled with hard driving 50's influenced rock and roll.  The band only slowed down for a few songs all night.

"We Take Care Of Our Own".  The new "Wrecking Ball" about tearing down Giants Stadium.  "The Ties That Bind".  The civil war sounding "Death To My Hometown" from Wrecking Ball. 

Bruce shouts out "Good Evening Cleveland" to the delight of the crowd.  He mentions how he sees old faces, new faces, young faces.  there was a mixed bag of fans in attendance but mostly it was an older crowd.  He then slides into one of the quiet songs "My City of Ruins".  The only song he does from the old Agora days is "The E Street Shuffle".

Bruce keeps his political rhetoric to a minimum this night but gives a little talk about how bad the economy is before performing another slow song from Wrecking Ball, "Jack of All Trades".  The Band plays the changing tempo of "Trapped".  Then they play the haunting, close to home song "Youngstown" Nils Lofgren has a great guitar solo. 

Max Wienburg gets a drum solo during  "My Love Will Not Let You Down".  The civil war music returns with "Shackled and Drawn" from Wrecking Ball. 

"Waiting On A Sunny Day" Bruce leaves the main stage walks through the crowd to a stage out in the middle of the arena.  He brings a little girl up on the stage and lets her sing the chorus.  The crowd goes crazy.  He now carries the girl from the remote stage back to the main stage where Bruce and the girl have a sliding on your knees contest.  The little girl definitely wins.  A rousing "Promised Land" is next.

A beautiful piano song played by Roy Bittan "Racing In The Streets" quiets the crowd down.

Bruce talks about soul music and his performance at the Apollo Theatre.  He performs the Temptations "The Way You Do The Things You Do" Jake Clemons, Clarence's nephew, plays sax just as wonderfully as his father on this song. The band swings into  "634-5789".  Bruce is out on the stage in the middle of the arena, he crowd surfs back to the stage. 

The crowd is up and dancing during "Because The Night", "The Rising", "We Are Alive" from Wrecking Ball.  "Light Of Day" finish out the set in a rocking fashion.

The Encore
Michelle Moore one of the back up singers comes down to the front of the stage to trade vocals with Bruce on "Rocky Ground" from Wrecking Ball.

Hold on there is no slowing down now.  "Out In The Street" is rocked ou next.  The Cleveland Friday after work anthem "Born To Run" has eh crowd sining and dancing.  During "Dancing In The Dark" he brings a girl from the audience up on the stage to dance with him.  He now climbs up on the piano to start off "Tenth Avenue Freeze Out".  Bruce ends up out on the stage in the middle of the arena when he sings the phrase "and the big man joined the band" there is a visual tribute to Clarence Clemons, who died this past year from complications from a stroke, on the big screens.

For a band with its members in their sixties Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band rocked for 3 hours.  The fans stood on their feet and danced for most of the night.  I won't wait for thirty years to go back and see Bruce Springsteen again.  This is what a large arena show should be in entertainment value and duration.  16 musicians were on stage almost all night.  5 horn players, 2 backup singers, 1 violin/guitar/singer, 2 keyboardists, 1 drummer, 1 percusionist, 3 guitars and a bass player. I rate this a 5 twirl show, don't miss it if it is coming to a town near you.  Oh by the way we were sitting behind the stage and Bruce and the band played to us as much as to the front of the stage.

2012 Rock and Roll Hall OF Fame Induction Ceremony

As I walk the four blocks from the parking garage to Public Auditorium in Cleveland for the 2012 Rock and Roll Hall OF Fame Induction Ceremony I can feel an electricity in the air.  People are mulling around hoping to catch a glimpse of someone famous.  As I arrive at the front entrance there is a red carpet laid out for the rich and famous that is surrounded by fans and paparazzi.  This is not an every night event like it is in New York, this is a special night in Cleveland.  The floor of the auditorium is for the hoi ploi of society, the record executives, recording artists, politicians and movie stars.  The music fans sit in the balcony that wraps completely around the top of the auditorium. 

Little did anyone know as the show began that this night would turn into a marathon of music and speeches.  The show started at 8:00 PM Saturday and finished around 1:30 AM Sunday.  The curtain is pulled back and right off the bat the audience is punched in the face by Green Day playing their expletive filled song "Letter Bomb".  I'm no prude but I think "F" bombs should flow naturally and not feel so forced.

Of course there are a few opening speeches.  During the speeches the blue collar fans boo the mention of Governor  Kasich.  Jan Wenner also gets booed.  Mr. Wenner has expressed in the past how he feels Cleveland isn't deserving of the Rock Hall or the Induction Ceremonies.  Mr Wiener as I like to call him feels that only New York should host the Ceremonies because there is nothing to do in Cleveland.  Jan join Axl and stay at home we don't want you in Cleveland.

Dusty Hill and Billy Gibbons induct Freddie King into the Rock Hall.  They give a very nice speech and tell how they used to play with and warm up for Freddie King.  Dusty, Billy, Derek Trucks and Joe Bonamassa take the stage together and do an instrumental jam of Freddie King's "Hide Away" before launching into "Going Down".  Joe and Billy trade off vocals while all three guitarists trade off leads.  Of course Dusty keeps the the back rhythm flowing.  This is one of the highlights of the evening for me.

John Mellencamp inducts Donovan.  I guess there is another Donovan out and about because John actually called Donovan by his full name Donovan Leitch.  Growing up my whole life I knew there is only one Donovan, no last name needed.  Donovan gave a funny acceptance speech and recited a poem that he had composed for his inauguration.  Donovan on acoustic guitar with Will Lee on upright Bass perform "Catch The Wind".  Donovan then goes electric for "Sunshine Superman" and "Season of the Witch" sharing vocals with John Mellencamp.

Bette Midler gives a heartfelt induction speech for Laura Nyro.  Laura's son accepts the award and also gives a very loving acceptance speech.  Sara Barielles performed Laura Nyro's "Stoney End".  Sara not only had the dark hair and skin that reminded you of Laura but she had the range in her voice that made you think that Laura had come back to life.  I gave it a WOW moment.  I was hoping to hear Bette sing but that didn't happen.

Carol King the close friend of Don Kirshner welcomed him into the Hall of Fame.  Carol made us feel like we knew Mr. Kirshner a little better by the time she was through.  If you grew up in the 70's you knew Don Kirshner was a GREAT man that brought music into our homes with his Rock Concert series.  Darlene Love performed a very lovely rendition of Carol King's "Will You Love Me Tomorrow".

During a video montage of all of the music people who passed away this year Ledisi sang the Etta James hit "At Last".  Many in the crowd along with me were asking "who is she"?  Who she is is a Jazz singer with a beautiful voice.  Stevie Van Zandt even screwed up her name when he announced Ledisi. 

Little Steven inducted the Small Faces/Faces into the Rock Hall.  The mates gave a quirky speech and then got to playing some music.  Rod Stewart was sick and could not attend gala under doctors orders.  I thought of the Jeff Beck quote "I hate lead singers" at this time.  Mick Hucknall from Simply Red sat in on vocals and did a splendid job.  The band seemed to be having a great time as they ripped through "All Or Nothing", "Ooh La La" and "Stay With Me".

Smokey Robinson explained how even though there are lead singers such as James Brown, Buddy Holly, Gene Vincent, Hank Ballard and Smokey himself, they would be nothing without the rest of the band.  Finally after being overlooked for years the Rock Hall got it right and granted entrance into the Hall of Fame for the back up groups of the Blue Caps, The Comets, The Crickets, The Famous Flames, The Midnighters and the Miracles. 

Can I take a time out here and have a little rant.  Let me just say RAP AIN'T ROCK.  If Jan Wenner wants The Beastie Boys, Grand Master Flash and Run DMC in a museum then let him open, in New York City, a Hip Hop Hall Of Fame.  The long winded Heavy D did not use the term Rock and Roll once in his Beastie Boy's induction speech and neither did LL Cool J.  They call their form of art Hip Hop or Rap not Rock and Roll.  There are allot of bands who actually play Rock and Roll that are not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame that deserve to be there before anymore Rap stars get in.  Rush, Yes, The Nice, King Crimson, Joe Walsh as a solo artist, J Geils, T Rex and Todd Rundgren just to name a few.  Hell Nashville wouldn't recognize Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings because they weren't country enough. They were closer to their gendra of music then Rap is to Rock.  Rap or Hip Hop is a whole separate classification of music.  Lets not water down the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by claiming Rap and Hip Hop belong here. 

LL Cool J and Chuck D inducted the Beastie Boys in a long winded speech.  The Roots, Kid Rock and Travie McCoy with Quest Love on drums rapped out a medley of Beastie Boys hits.  There was a certain "Idiot Element" that was present in the audience that could have cared less about the Rock and Rollers who were being inducted.  They talked loudly, texted, stood up at inappropriate times blocking everyone elses view who was sitting behind them and were generally rude.  Now they were jumping up and down and swinging there fists wildly in the air.  I guess this is what they were here for.

Green Day inducted Guns and Roses into the Hall of Fame.  Billie Joe Armstrong introduced the dysfunctional Guns and Roses minus Axl Rose.  Steven Adler the original drummer seemed ecstatic to be on stage.  I felt happy for him.  Matt Sorum the new drummer made the comment about Steven that Steven deserved an award for being kicked out of Guns and Roses for doing drugs.  That is quite an accomplishment.  GNR with Matt on drums and Billie Joe dancing around the stage and Myles Kennedy from Slash's band on vocals performed "Mr. Brownstone".  Steven Adler gets behind the drum kit for "Sweet Child O Mine" and "Paradise City".

Robbie Robertson who inducted three Recording Engineers into the Hall Of Fame first gave a shout out to Levon Helm.  Maybe because of the bad blood between Axl and his band, made Robbie a little introspective?  The three engineers were Cosimo Matassa, Glyn Johns and Tom Dowd.  Cosimo Matassa's grandson accepted the award with Cosimo proudly watching from a wheelchair.  Tom Dowd's daughter also did a fine job of accepting posthumously Tom's award.  Glyn Johns accepted his own award.

Chris Rock comes out and entertains the crowd while inducting The Red Hot Chili Peppers.  The Chili Peppers Perform "By The Way", "The Adventures Of Rain And Dance Maggie" and "Give It Away".  They had Irons and Martinez on Drums.

The Encore is all of the Chili Peppers plus Ron Wood, Slash, Billie Joe Armstrong on guitars, Kenny Jones from the Faces on drums and Tre Cool and George Clinton on comic relief.  They perform a very bad rendition of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground". 

The Marathon is over but I must say over all a great show.  I must commend the sound engineers.  The sound in the large hall was impeccable.  I can't wait for three more years to pass for the reverie and pomp to return to Cleveland.  Rock on.

Mickey Hart Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concert 4/11/12

The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame gave a few privileged fans a sneak peak at the new Grateful Dead exhibit.  The exhibit covers the fifth and sixth floors of the museum and the bands iconic rise from a band playing at acid parties to the leading jam band in the world.  There are instruments that were used by the band over the years.  Although I did notice there were no artifacts from Bill Kreutzmann who has been in the band from the start.  There are biographies of all the band members even all five keyboardist.  I personally loved the live concert footage being played on the sixth floor and the hand decorated envelopes sent by fans to the band.  This is an exhibit worth seeing even if you are not a Dead Head.

Mickey Hart and his band played a concert in the Rock Halls lobby to help celebrate the opening of the exhibit.  My Honey Bunny and I were leaning on the stage right in front of Mickey's drum kit.  Mickey's drum kit consists of approximately 20 different drums, a 12 stringed synthesized instrument, a theremin and various pedals and boxes.  For a man in his sixties Mickey pounds and bangs and dances the whole time he is on stage.  He has to be in pretty good shape. 

At one point in the concert one of Mickeys foot pedals would not respond when he needed it.  Mickey was visibly upset that he could not produce the sounds he wanted.  Eventually Mickey's tech came out in front of the stage grabbed the pedal and fixed it.  Mickey was happy and back in business.  Most of the crowd probably never even noticed what was going on because the band just switched songs and kept on playing. 

The band played classic Grateful Dead songs such as; Not Fade Away, Brokedown Palace, Bertha, Franklin's Tower, And We Bid You Goodnight and a smoking hot Going Down The Road Feeling Bad.  They also mixed in some songs off of Mickey's new CD "Mysterium Tremendum" such as Heart Beat Of The Sun, Time Never Ends and Starlight Starbright. 

The band is made up of Crystal Monee Hall who gave a gospel sound to the music with her huge voice.  Tim Hockenberry who also plays with the Trans Siberian Orchestra shared vocals with Ms Hal and also played trombone and keyboards.  Gawain Mathews on lead guitar had a very Jerry sound.  He even got lost at one point in one of his jams and Mickey was trying to get his attention to come out of it so they could end the song.  That reminded me of how Jerry used to get lost in the music at times.  Ben Yonas on keyboards.  Percussion's Sikuru Adepcoju.  Drums Ian Herman.  And the one and only Dave Schools from Widespread Panic on Bass.

I danced, I sang, I had a good time and feel sorry for all of the people who chose not to go to this show.  The music was wonderful, familiar but different.  Mickey and the band kept every thing fresh.  I was expecting more of Mickey's original music but it was a nice surprise to have the band cover so much Grateful Dead music.  I would have to give this show a 5 twirl ranking.

Warren Haynes HOB 6/17/11

Warren Haynes whom I have seen with Gov't Mule, Allman Bros., The Dead and Dave Matthews is always a pleasure to listen to.  This time out Warren is flying with a little bit different type of band.  This band is more geared for Rhythm and Blues.  You have Ron Holloway on Sax, Ron Johnson On Bass, Terrance Higgins on Drums, a keyboard player who's name I did not catch and Alicia Shakur on heavenly vocals.  And, of course,  Warren Haynes on lead guitar and vocals.

Warren seems very relaxed with allowing the other musicians to take the front and center and show the crowd what they can do with their respective instruments.  There are times through out the night when he matches licks with the sax player, keyboard player and bass player.  Vocally Warren harmonizes with  Ms. Shakur and the keyboard player very nicely.  Warren also lets Ms. Shakur show off what her powerful set of pipes can do too.

The first five songs are off of the new album "Man In Motion", which is a risky move because you could lose the crowd, but they didn't, the new material was very well received.  Funky and bluesy in a R&B fashion.  Just superb.  "Sick Of My Shadow", "Rivers Gonna Rise", "Man In Motion", "A Friend To You" and "On A Real Lonely Night".  During "A Friend To You" Warren breaks a string but being the professional that he is he doesn't even stop, he just keeps playing.  Farmer, Warren's guitar tech, finally gets a new guitar out on stage and seamlessly trades guitars and the band just keeps playing.  Even though the new album has just come out most people new the words and were familiar with the music.

Then Warren and the Band go way back to pull two songs off of Warren Haynes first solo album "Tales of Ordinary Madness",  "Fire In the Kitchen" and "Invisible".  The band is smoking.  The first set has the crowd rocking. 

After the break Warren comes out solo and acoustic for "Real Thing".  "Patchwork Quilt", one of my favorites, is played with Warren and Ron Johnson.  Warren does a very nice job on John Lennon's "Working Class Hero".  Warrren proves he can play slide with the best of them when he plays Elmore James' "Rollin and a Tumblin" with Mr. Higgins on drums.

The full band comes back out and they produce some great harmonies on "Change is Gonna Come".  The crowd loves "What Is Hip" the old Tower Of Power song.  There is an older woman back stage that is just dancing up a storm.  "Hattiesburg Hustle" is off of the new album and a rocker to boot.  "Tear Me Down" off of Gov't Mule's "Deep End" album finishes out the second set.

The encore is a killer version of "Soulshine".  You had to be there.  The vocals, the Sax, the Keyboards and Warren on guitar.  WOW!

This is a five twirl show.  If you weren't there, let me tell you, you should have paid the thirty dollars to see this.  Excellent.  I bought a ticket out side the venue for $25.  best $25 I have spent in a long time.

Miami Heat Lose Playoffs

Yes the big three of the Miami Heat lost to the whole team of the Dallas Mavericks or like we like to call them the Mavaliers.  Miami fans thought they were going to be like the Yankees of MLB and buy a championship.  No matter how much money you spend on great players you still can't program what is between their ears.  Wade, The Wanna Be and The Other Guy might be good players but their mind's and their ego's get in the way.  They all want the ball at some time and if they don't get it I know one of them for sure will pout.

Yes, Lebaby does have a history of pouting.  He also does not like to be coached.  Back in High School Lebron was playing in a championship game and Drew Joyce the coach tried to tell Lebron how to close out the game.  Lebron did not listen to the coach because he knew better and they lost the game.  Mike Brown tried to coach Lebron during the Boston Cleveland finals and Lebron waved him off and did what he wanted.  Rumor has it that Shaq then stepped in in the locker room and told Lebron that Mike Brown was the coach and that the team as a whole needed to listen to him.  Lebron went out and stunk up the arena, pissed off the fans, his teammates and the coach ( yet in Cleveland we were willing to forgive him). 

Then LeBron waits until after all of the good free agents were picked and announces that he is taking his talents to South Beach.  A childish move.  So he moves to Miami and all of the ESPN pundits trip over themselves telling anyone who will listen how great the three players are.  Halfway through the season those same pundits started making excuses for the three great players who were only playing mediocre.  Then they started to gel.  But come playoff time there was something amiss they were winning but not huge like everyone thought they would. 

Now here comes David to Goliath.  A little hyped team who has failed before with some old guys who were good but never superstars like the Big Three.  But what the Mav's had was heart, desire and an unselfish style of ball where if one man was down the others picked him up and carried him until he got back on track.  Yes "Old School" Basketball, team play, move the ball, take good shots by anyone who is open not designated players.  The whole team cheered each other on and did not worry about statistics.  All they wanted to do was win, any way they can.

I knew that Dallas was going to win as soon as D Wade went into Lebron's room after game five and tried to tell Lebron how to play the game.  As soon as Lebron needed to be coached he shut down and blew the game for Miami.  He refuses to listen to anyone.  He knows better.  Lebron's name should not be mentioned in the same sentence with Michael Jordan or Scottie Pippin, he is no where near as good as either of them were.

Well Miami you are stuck with him now.  The best you can hope for is that your front office trades Lebron for Dwight Howard straight up.  Believe me you will be getting the better of the deal.  And trust me as long as Lebron keeps his "I am better than everybody alive" attitude he will never have a ring unless someone else wins it for him.

Vote Responsibly

I have been hearing a lot of complaining lately about Ohio's Bill 5.  Wisconsin has been up in arms over their Bill 5.  I guess people in both states did not vote responsibly.  Had the majority of voters voted responsibly they never would have voted in the Republican party that is ending up screwing the middle class.  People must have thought when the governors to be were campaigning and they said they were going to balance the budget by cutting jobs every one thought well not my job, I am to important.  Hah, guess what the only one i who is important to Governor Kasich is Governor Kasich.  He eliminated collective bargaining and he eliminated jobs and gave himself a raise because he is more important than anyone in Ohio.

In the midterm elections there were about 30% of voting age Ohioans that actually voted.  That means the winner only needed 16% of people over thee age of 18 to vote for you and you could win the position of Governor.  So a relative minority actually elected Governor Kasich but it sounds like a majority of people are upset with him.  Where were you on election day?  How come you didn't vote or how come you voted for Kasich?  Everyone knows that the Republicans are out for big business and screw the little guy.  It is the Teachers and the Fire Fighters and the Police that are killing the budget, they are over paid.  The fat cat politicians and the lobbyist that make more in one year than most teachers make in four years deserve their pay.

People when it comes to elections you have to vote.  You have to do your home work and find out what the candidates actually stand for.  Don't just watch TV and listen to the commercials because most of the commercials are sponsored by big business.  The Supreme Court just made it easier for big business to control what you will see on TV come election time.  So you will have to actually do some studying on your own to find out what the truth is about a candidate.  A good rule of thumb is if you don't make over $250,000.00 per year you should not vote Republican because you are going to get screwed.

Yes they are going to cut taxes, but only for the rich people such as themselves and their friends.  Someone will have to pay taxes to keep the government running that means yep, everyone who is making less than $250,000.00 per year will have to dig into their pockets to support the rich.  Oh but eventually the rich will trickle some money down to the rest of us.  I am not bitching about Kasich or the Republicans they are only doing what they have always done and always will do.  I don't like hearing all of the protesters and the whining and the crying.  We live in a Democracy where majority rules.  The majority spoke with their votes last November.  We got exactly what the majority of voters wanted.  If you don't like what is happening, if you thought the Republicans were talking about someone other than you and you were surprised to find out that you lost your benefits, then do your homework and vote in 2012.  Don't just vote but vote responsibly.

7 Walkers Beachland Ballroom 3/29/11

I caught the second set of the 7 Walkers at the Beachland Ballroom and was very impressed. This isn't just another Grateful Dead cover band. 7 Walkers takes Grateful Dead songs and makes them their very own. They have a mixed style between Jam band and New Orleans funk blues band. At times they sounded like Dr. John plays the Grateful Dead and at other times they sounded like Bill Kreutzmann plays New Orleans Rock. Very different but appealing to me.

I had one Dead Head telling me how longed to here that old Jerry twang in the songs. Jerry's dead this is new and exciting. Bill Kreutzmann Drummer, formerly of the Grateful Dead, did a fine job of switching between his old style of drumming to that syncopated New Orleans sound. Papa Mali Guitar and Vocals sounds like Dr. John vocally but plays an exquisite slide guitar and never once tried to reproduce any of Jerry's sound when they were playing covers. Matt Hubbard Keyboard, Harmonica, Trombone and Vocals multi instrumentalist that was very entertaining and added the twist that makes this band very different from any other band out there today. Reed Mathis Bass kept he rhythm going very nicely with Bill but stepped up to play the bass like a guitar which I always enjoy. As I said I only heard one set but was very impressed with the originals that they played kind of low down and funky blues, to up beat swing, to some good old rock and roll and they made the GD covers into their own. I loved them.

They had a light show like I have never seen before at the Beachland. They had the back stage surrounded in tie dyed hangings then they flashed lights onto the tied dyed hangings that brought the tied dyed hangings to life. At times I thought I saw faces then looked again and it was just tied dyed. I thought I saw fishes or birds swimming and flying through the different colors and then I looked again and it was just tied dyed. Very well done kind of reminded me of being basked in the 70's again. I give the portion of the show I saw Four twirls and some moth catcher moves thrown in.

Just Kids

Patti Smith's book "Just Kids" is a twisted story of her friendship, relationship and growth with the artist Robert Mapplethorpe. They meet in New York City under a mitigating circumstance. Patti was afraid of a man she just met and pretended that Robert Mapplethorp was her boyfriend. Her shining blue star saved her that night and they began a long journey of protecting each other and influencing each other through out their lives. This love story is filled with twists and turns as the two artists falter and hustle in New York City's growing art, rock and roll, poetry scene. Robert was trying to be an artist who ended up a shocking photographer. Patti also wanted to be an artist who became an underground poet and the leader of a punk rock band. They take you around the emerging scenes at places such as the infamous Chelsea Hotel, The Village Gate, Max's Kansas City, The Fillmore East and CBGB. The story chronicles their brushes with famous people or people who were to become famous in the near future. Patti reads tarot cards for Johnny Winter and is taken around town to meet emerging poets and rock stars by Todd Rundgren. She has a conversation with Jimi Hendrix and a heart to heart conversation with Janis Joplin. Artist, poets the Merry Pranksters were just another person on the street to Robert and Patti. Their relationship endures through hard money woes where Robert sells his body on the streets and Patti gives up books and pieces of art work that she loves so that the two can survive. Patti seems to be the more conventional worker, taking jobs in bookstores. Robert is hustler and a street kid who just knows how to make money in unconventional ways. Drugs, gay sex, poor but never alone because the two of them always have each other to lift and inspire each other . This book is a must read for anyone interested in the counter culture of the late sixties and seventies. A must read for anyone who loves a good story of love and friendship. A must read for anyone who has ever had a dream and wants to know how to achieve it.

Paul Thorn Beachland Ballroom 3/4/11

I know that I have covered Paul Thorn concerts many times before but for $18 you can't get any better entertainment than the PTB. We had another Paul Thorn Virgin with us Sharon, who half way through the concert turned to me and said, "I absolutely love this guy". The man has an infectious stage presence and the music is really good. I think he is one of the best story telling lyricists alive. The stories he tells between the songs are so funny he could easily be a comedian. Music and comedy for the price of one ticket, you can't beat that.

THE SONGS PLAYED
Your Not The Only One
Weeds In My Roses
Everybody Looks Good At The Starting Line
Nothing But the Devil
Better Days Ahead
Resurrection Day
All About People
Ain't Gonna Sin No More
Rise Up
Temporarily Forever Mine (solo acoustic)
I Don't Like Half The Folks I Love (solo acoustic)
Where Was I (solo acoustic)
Pimps and Preachers
Ain't Gonna Beg
Might Be Wrong
Mona Lisa
Lotta Good Reasons
Have a Good Day
Lovers Vacation
Long Way from Tupelo

Encore
That's All I Know Right Now
Mission Temple

Paul changed the mood of the night from slow bluesy tunes like "Lotta Good Reasons", "That's All I Know Right Now", "Ain't Gonna Beg". To hot rocking songs like"Weeds In My Roses", "Lovers Vacation", "Pimps and Preachers". He gave the band a break when he played three Acoustic songs, "Temporarily Forever Mine", I Don't Like Half the Folks I Love" and " Where Was I".

Through out the show Paul Thorn would stop singing and let the crowd take over singing the lyrics. It just amazes me that in a few short years the Paul Thorn Band went from maybe thirty people in the Beachland Tavern to a packed house in the Ballroom and everyone knew the lyrics.

The final song "Mission Temple" was like an old time bible revival with Paul Thorn singing out words and the crowd with their hands in the air repeating back the words. People were dancing singing and laughing the whole night long. Don't be surprised if the next time the PTB comes through you see another review. Sharon by the way I love this guy too.

I rate this show four twirls with some mothcatcher hand moves thrown in.

2010 year end report.

2010 for me was an awful year, it had some highs but it seemed like the lows were more prevalent. The loss of Loved ones seemed to fill the air at every turn this year. My Father passed away just before Christmas. I know I am not alone in my grief, many friends lost Fathers, Mothers, Wives, Husbands, Brothers, Sisters and Grandparents this year. As much as I like seeing old friends, I enjoy it more at a party than at a wake. My condolences go out to each and everyone of you who have lost a loved one this year but be comforted in the fact that we all now have an angel watching over us.

A group of my Nieces and Nephews proclaimed me Mickness the greatest Cleveland sports fan in town. Through thick and thin I hang in with my Cleveland sports teams but let me tell you it is getting harder and harder to keep going to watch Cleveland sports. Lebron left us this year to take his talents to Miami. If you look back through the Moral Compass you will see me defending this Benedict Arnold when he quit during the Boston series in the playoffs, then how I blast him for being the quitter that he is after watching "The Decision". My Honey Bunny took me to the Miami Cleveland game and I had a great time booing Lebron even though Cleveland got murdered.

The Indians had two ex-pitchers playing in the MLB playoffs. Yes the Indians are just a farm team for the rest of MLB.

The Browns just completed another year of 5 and 11 losing football. They did not show up for either Pittsburgh game. My Nephew Frankie and I went to the game by the third play of the game I was ready to leave but didn't, we stayed to the bitter end. Manidiot after the game said what a great organization Pittsburgh is and that everyone in the NFL should build their organization just like Pittsburgh does by having continuity in their front office and in their coaching staff. Nice try Manidiot I hope you are gone. Take Duh-boll with you. I heard a rumor that the Autistic Son of Buddy Ryan might be considered for a head coaching position. As a defensive coordinator the only thing that that fat Fuck could defend is a piece of cake on his lunch plate. Head coach my ass. If you look back through the Moral Compass you will see that right from the beginning I have said that these three stooges were wrong for the job. I did see some improvement this year but 5-11 is 5-11. I will give credit where credit is due. Manidiot did clean house when he came to Cleveland and got rid of a lot of big name underachievers but he did not replace them with any quality players.

Bright spot of the year Cleveland State Men's Basketball. Yes the Vikings are 15 and 1 with their only loss coming to West Virginia in a tight game. Quality wins over Kent State, Akron U, St. Bonaventure and South Florida have put them at the top of the Mid Major schools with a possible bid into the NCAA tournament. I hope to see all of you at the Butler game in February. C-S-U WHooooo.

I have tried to stay out of writing political commentary this year because some of my friends were getting upset by some of the things I wrote in the past. I have had people coming up to me lately and asking for more political commentary. I will think about it and get back to you. I do have to say I am back to work after a 20 month layoff, a step in the right direction. Not the best paying job but until I find something else I am paying the bills. So on my end anyway, the economy does seem to be coming back a little. I am working on Federal Jobs supported by Obama Money. A Conservative Democrat just like my Daddy.

I saw some great music shows this year, The Dead, Tom Petty, Gov't Mule twice, Paul Thorn, Joe Bonamassa, Grace Potter, Marcia Ball. I did not write about some of the later shows that I saw since August ie Farm Aid, Will Kimbrough, Paul Thorn, Sorry. I promise to get out the concert reviews for all shows I go to this year. Many of you might not know that I am a vocalist extraordinaire. I got a chance to show off my pipes by singing with the Earls at the annual Bruschetta Bash, a highlight of my life. I did not see any reviews of my singing so I can not tell you how I did. I don't know if I will be asked to sing again this year, only time will tell.

Yes 2010 was marked with some very low points but I believe that if you are reading this than that means we survived. If we all work together and keep a positive attitude, remember the life lessons that were learned from loved ones who have passed and stick together as family and friends we can survive anything. A wise old man once told me you can move a mountain with a teaspoon the hardest part is the first spoonful.

With a tear in my eye I say goodbye to my Father and 2010 and here is to all wishing you a much better 2011.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Blossom 8/31/10

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at Blossom Music center was an awsome display of raw Rock and Roll craftmanship. TP and the HB's have never waivered from their unique and well defined sound. The last time I saw Tom Petty and the band was at the Colliseum around 30 years ago. His stage presence has magnified and depth of the band has flourished. This is a Rock and Roll band that has weathered the test of time magnificently.

The band consisted of, the Mad Hatter himself Tom Petty on guitar and vocals. Original guitarist extrordinaire Michael Campbell. Original keyboard player Benmont Tench. Original bass player who left and is now back Ron Blair. With the band since the early 90's on harmonica, keyboards and guitar Scott Thurston. And with the band since the mid 90's on drums Steve Ferrone.

The mixed aged crowd sang almost every word to every song except for the few songs that they performed off of their new CD "Mojo". You could tell the new songs they have a bluesy edge to them. The Heartbreakers also played two cover tunes, "Oh Well" by Fleetwood Mac and "Carol" by Chuck Berry (the Rolling Stones also do a wonderful cover of this song). If you listen to Tom Petty's Buried Treasure show on XM you know Tom loves Chuck Berry and early Rock and Roll. Look down the list of songs and most people will know at least half of the songs.

Listen to Your Heart
You Don't Know How It Feels
I Won't Back Down
Free Fallin
Oh Well (Fleetwood Mac)
Mary Jane's Last Dance
Kings Highway
Breakdown
Jefferson's Jericho Blues
Good Enough
Running Mans Bible
I Should Have Known It
Learning to Fly
Don't Come Around Here No More
Refugee

Encore
Running Down Dreams
Carol
American Girl

Me, my Honey Bunny, Scarecrow and Ann sang and danced the night away along with every other fan that was there. The digital light show and TV screens were an awsome visual display to add to the aural pleasure we were experiencing.

As we were heading out to our cars I over heard some twenty somethings talking. They were wondering if there was any new bands just coming out that would be able to draw a crowd 30 years from now. They couldn't think of any off of the top of their heads but they sure were glad that they got to see one of Rock and Rolls top icons. I couldn't agree more. I rate this show 5 twirls, totally awsome.

Marcia Ball, Beachland Ballroom 8/19/10

If you are a fan of the Moral Compass then you have heard of Marcia Ball in some of my prior writings (see June 2009 Moral Compass). You have no excuse for missing a fantastic boogie woogie piano player with superb vocal abilities. Marsha has kept her current line up of backing musicians together for a couple of years now and they are all really starting to jell. On base forever is Don Bennett. Drums were aptly handled by Corey Keller. The superbly wonderful sax playing was performed by Thad Scott. The talented guitarist is Mike Keller. And of course on piano vocals and legs is the Handy Award winning Marcia Ball. Marcia no longer has to carry the band she can let the other band members take the front stage and play off of each other. Also a new twist was some harmonies with Don Bennett that reminded me of the Everly Brothers.

"Dance At The Ball", Come out of the gate running hard I always say. Great sax and guitar solos on this rocker.
"Red Beans", Marcia always cooks the piano on this scrumptious tune.
"Just Kiss Me Baby", proves this band can play classical blues with anyone.
"Watermelon Time", this song rocks in a Louisiana way that Marcia Ball has perfected.
Marcia Ball gave a huge shout out to the Knuckle Heads the founder "Stash" Cielec was sitting next to me. He had a smile on his face that was as wide as the Louisiana bayou. Stash also wanted me to be sure that I got the spelling of his name correct.
"Peace Love and BBQ", a great song.
"That's Married Life", Marcia wrote this song after one of her Delbert McClinton music cruises.
"Falling Back In Love With You", again Marcia can play the Blues with anyone.
"Honey Pie", shared vocals with Don Bennett, very nice.
"Don't Forget About You", three part harmony with Marcia, Don and Mike Keller.
"That's Enough Of That Stuff", Marcia excels at the syncopated piano style that Professor Longhair made famous. A wildly entertaining, uptempo, song.
"Coming Down With You Blues", a Fats Domino's type blues tune with a great sax solo, pointed out to me by my friend Michael sitting next to me.
"Louisiana" I don't know the name of this song but it was smoking.
"Right Tool", I am guessing at the name of this song also. It had a ZZ Top drum beat that broke into a guitar solo that could have had Paul Berrer form Little Feat playing instead of Mike Keller.
"Luelda", guessing again but a rocking tune none the less.
"Big Sister Little Radio" this is an original tune of Mike Keller's. A very catchy song that makes me want to go out and listen to more of his music.
Marcia announces that hopefully if we all pray that a new CD will be out by the end of the year.
"Craw fish", the whole band get in on the act on this one, guitar, sax, guitar, sax, guitar, sax, piano, sax, guitar. The crowd loves it people are up and dancing.
"New Orleans Is A Party Town", here's that syncopated piano again on an old favorite that keeps the crowd on their feet.
"Louisiana 1923", a Randy Newman song that tells of the troubles and tribulations of New Orleans. A slow ballad that always brings a tear to my eye.
"Play With Your Poodle", how can you not love this song, the crowd is up and dancing again.
Encore
"This Used To Be Paradise", Marcia is solo on stage just her and her piano. A very poignant song about corporations killing small businesses.
"I Wish You Well", the whole band is on stage for this final sweet song.

Over two hours and 21 songs well worth the $25.

The Sethro Quartet opened the show. They are a quirky band with a electric mandolin, upright bass, drums, guitar and a sometimes an instrument that the guitarist invented called a Jay Bridge. They played a loungy kind of Jazz, Blues with a touch of Boogie Woogie.

After the show ended we dropped into the Beachland Tavern that is attached to the Beachland Ballroom and caught a few tunes by Deke Dickerson who plays a Dick Dale style guitar. When we walked in they were playing "Ghost Riders In The Sky". He had one of the band members from Los Straight Jackets sans Mexican wrestling mask, playing with him. Quite entertaining.

Overall another entertaining evening at the Beachland Ballroom. What a diamond of a venue Cleveland has right in its old neighborhood. I hope this place stays open for a long time because no one else is providing the smaller name bands a chance to perform and get their music heard. A person in the crowd said "Live music isn't popular with the younger generation". Live Music is where it is at and it is happening at the Beachland Ballroom. Great show Marcia we will see you next year.

A Five Twirl Show.

Gov't Mule Buffalo NY 8/7/10

Gov't Mule and Jackie Greene played the Erie Canal Harbour for $10 in advance and $20 if purchased the last week before the show. I don't think you can find a better deal than that any where. Erie Canal Harbour is a park sandwiched between the Buffalo River and the Buffalo Sky way. You get beautiful River scenes with boats cruising by and a wonderful sunset and yet you are on the edge of Downtown Buffalo. A portable stage was set up to accommodate the weekend long affair. Herbie Hancock and Johny Lang played Friday night at the venue for the same price.

Jackie Greene played his Americana style music of original music mixed with some Beatles and Grateful Dead hits. Jackie had a stellar backup band and played a few acoustic songs also. I had never seen Jackie Greene before but I will be purchasing some of his CD's soon.

Gov't Mule took the stage just before dark and proceeded to light up the crowd with "Bad Little Doggie". Warren Haynes, Matt Abts, Jorgen Carlsson and Danny Louis were as tight tonight as I have ever seen them. They played two sets with a short intermission between. Gov't Mule played many of their best songs such as; "Thorazine Shuffle", "By A Thread", "Broke Down On The Brazos", "I'm A Ram", "Slack Jaw Jezebel". They also entertained the crowd with a Pink Floyd song and "Too Lazy" by Deep Purple. The encore was a very mornful version of "Morning Dew" with Jackie Greene on guitar with Warren Haynes switching leads and sharing vocals. I looked at Scottie who was standing next to me when the song ended and we both at the same time said "WOOOOW". It doesn't get much better than that.

The crowd was filed with people of all ages from little kids to old folks who have a hard time standing for 5 hour any more (like me). Many people brought lawn chairs and sat behind the standing mass of bodies. It was a beautiful night in the mid seventies to listen to some good Rock and Roll. I wish Cleveland would get their shit together and plan a weekend of music like Buffalo does. The three hour trip was well worth the weekend of music for a total of $20, gas and hotel. I give this show 5 twirls, totally awesome. I did do some twirling while I was dancing in the crowd and I danced all night.

Will Kimbrough Beachland Tavern 7/9/10

Last night I went to the quaint Beachland Tavern, not to be confused with the larger and part of the same complex Beachland Ballroom, to see the the ever charming, multi talented, singer, songwriter, guitarist extraordinaire, Will Kimbrough. Will plays a sort of Americana crossed with Rock and Roll, Blues and Southern Rock. He uses a loop machine to play the rhythm section and then he plays the lead guitar over the top of that. He is a very talented musician but Will is also a great songwriter. His songs tell stories about life with his daughters and wife, friends, of being on the road, and even some political commentary.

Will Kimbrough took to the stage in front of a quaint crowd of fifty people. He started the show playing an acoustic guitar, harmonica and slide on the upbeat "Piece of Work". He then broke into two songs off of his new album, the title track "Wings" and "Three Angels". Both songs are sure to grow to be some of Wills' more requested songs in the future. He then performed "Horse Shoe Lake". The next song I am not sure where it came from but it was a cute ditty about a small town big haired girl. He then performed the ever popular "Hill Country Girl".

Will switches guitars to a red electric hollow body possibly a Gretsch guitar. He uses the loop machine to get a full sound. "Nobody From Nowhere", was quite lively with a nice slide solo interlude. The crowd really got into the playful "Wash and Fold". Mr. Kimbrough slowed the tempo down on "Philadelphia Mississippi". Another new song "A Couple Hundred Miracles" was next. Then a nice bluesy jam dedicated to J. J. Cale with the lyrics "It aint cool to talk about people when their not around". Then Will gets the crowd involved and has them sing the second half of the verse, Will "You made your bed" and the crowd responds "You got to lay in it". He again slows the tempo down for "Good Night Moon".

For the encore he gets a couple of requests and plays the fast paced "Cape Henry" and the lazy slow "Champion Of The World". He could have kept on playing and I am sure the very receptive crowd would not have complained.

It is a shame that only 50 people show up to listen to this under rated showman. I love it because it is like my own personal concert. If every thing in the world was just, Will Kimbrough would be a household name. After the show I hung around and bought an autographed, for my wife, CD "Wings". I listened to the CD on my way home, it is exceptionally good. I give the concert five twirls and the CD five twirls. Will Kimbrough gets TEN twirls from me on the night.

PS. Will Kimbrough at the start of the show put things in perspective, he said I know Cleveland feels it is going through a tragedy right now. Down where I live we are going through a tragedy too (The Gulf Coast Oil Spill). I will trade you my tragedy for your tragedy any day. Thanks Will I needed that perspective to bring me back down to earth.

Lebron James Quitter

Lebron James has just made his free agency decision to leave Cleveland and play for the Miami Heat. When he made his announcement I yelled at the TV "F YOU, YOU ASSHOLE", and I meant it. My Honey Bunny is now stuck with worthless Cavs tickets for next years season. Lebron said that Cleveland watched him grow from a kid into a man. Sorry a man would have stayed and brought a championship to Cleveland like he said he would when he was drafted to Cleveland. A chump runs off to play third fiddle after he has failed to do what he has promised.

Yes Lebron we the fans in Cleveland have supported you in all of your glory and your failure. You were supposed to be one of us. You never were one of us, you just used us for seven years. We knew you were not one of us when you wore your Yankees hats and your Cowboys jerseys. You claimed you wore those viral, hated, signs out of loyalty to teams you have watched and rooted for your whole life. Loyalty would have been to root for Cleveland teams like a true Clevelander does. We Cheer for our teams win or lose. We cheered for you win or lose, but in the end you slapped us in the face.

Lebron has just set a new record, he has bumped Art Model from being the most hated person in Cleveland. Go ahead move to Miami. Sell your house in Bath and sneak out of town just like Art Model. Take your alcoholic mother, two bastard children, girlfriend, posse and your business and get out. You are no longer welcome in my Cleveland. I will boo you whenever you come to town. I will no longer back any of your charities. If I ever come close to you I will spit on you for being the piece of shit human being that you have proven yourself to be.

I will pray every night that people around the world realize what a Judas you truly are and that they stop buying your apparel. I hope now everyone will see what a back stabbing Brutus you are and they quit buying any thing you endorse. The Chinese have a sense of honor, something you don't have, so you will never be as big as Yao or Kobe over there. I wish, hope and pray for you to fail and that the fans in Miami and around the world come to hate you as much as I hate you right now.

I hope that leaving Cleveland becomes the biggest mistake of your life. You want to feel the love, well you are not going to feel the love in North East Ohio any more. You have closed the door on this part of your life forever. Good Bye and remember that you failed to accomplish your goals and dreams in your home town. Quitter.

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Beachland Ballroom 6/19/10

My Honey Bunny, Miss Beth and I went to the Beachland Ballroom to see Grace Potter and the Nocturnals on Saturday June 19, 2010. The Ballroom was packed with a sold out crowd. I can remember just last year Grace Potter only had half of the Ballroom filled. Her popularity is catching on. FM 107.3 here in Cleveland was doing a live broadcast of the show.



The Band came on stage dressed as though they were attending a 1975 homecoming dance. The men were wearing suits with no ties and their shirts unbuttoned down two buttons. The bass player, Catherine Popper, had on a knee length, flowing, purple dress. Grace had on a sort of Greek Goddess, blue, mini dress cut up way high on her outer thighs. The back of the stage had three screen doors hanging with the screen crumpled to help reflect the lights, simple but effective.



Grace and the Nocturnals open the show with the rocking " Some Kind Of Ride". Then they move into the bluesy "Joey". Grace proves she has one of the best screams in rock and roll during "Joey". Grace is doing her hippie dance behind the organ while the band plays an ethereal instrumental in "Oasis". The crowd is dancing to "Money". There were excellent harmonies with Catherine Popper on "Good Bye Kiss". Grace and the band kick out the jams on "Only Love". Grace now straps on an acoustic Gibson guitar for "One Short Night". Grace now tells people it is OK to dance and loosen up. She grabs her Fender Flying "V" guitar and rocks out to one of my favorites "Ah Mary". Grace goes back to the organ and Benny Yurco helps out on the drums for "That Phone". "Fooling Myself" did not make the record, but according to Grace, it sold more copies than any of the songs on the record. "Fooling Myself" is a beautiful slow song with wonderful harmonies. Hacienda's drummer Jaime Villanueva plays maracas on "Mastermind".
Next is a song of freedom, hope and courage, smoke fills the stage for "Hold On Tight". Yes Grace you do have the medicine everyone wants. "Medicine" is rolling along when the whole band gathers around the drum kit, Grace on her knees playing the bass drum, and they all play different parts of the drum kit. Grace grabs the Flying "V" again and Rocks the crowd with Oooh La La La La La La La "Paris".

For the first encore The Nocturnals play 2:22. Grace again proves she is one of the great screamers in rock and roll. Oh my are we really going to go back to the sixties for a wonderful rendition of "White Rabbit". Grace playing what sounds like a church organ for a mournful version of "Apology". The whole crowd sings a very nice version of Happy Birthday to Grace. Miss Potter reminds us that she is still 26 years old. The band winds up the crowd during "Hot Summer Night".

The crowd is screaming and clapping and just like the old days as long as you screamed the bands used to keep coming out and playing. Grace takes the stage solo for an acapella version of "Nothing But The Water". The rest of the band filters back on stage and they play an electric version of "Nothing But The Water".

What a great night.

The Band is comprised of Scott Tournet on lead guitar a very capable player. Benny Yurco on rhythm guitar. Much of the time it is like having two lead guitarists on stage. Matt Burr on drums, very strong. The new addition and what a great addition she is, on both backup vocals and bass Catherine Popper.

People have asked me if Grace Potter is like Janice Joplin my answer is some what, but she also has Aretha Franklin's soul, Tina Turners energy, Ricky Lee Jones spaciness and Suzy Quatros and Chrissy Hynds Rock and Roll attitude. Grace Potter can be compared to the others but she is her own, new, unique Rock and Roller. Go and see Grace Potter and the Nocturnals now before they make it big. Believe me they are right on the cusp of hitting the big time.

This was a great show. The crowd was filled with young and old alike. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. I give this show five twirls.