We have just come home from a wonderful concert. Paal Flaata and Chip Taylor played at Smio in Vea. They had John Platania on guitar, Gøran Grini on el-piano and Paul Vikingstad was the sound guy (plus bass on the last two songs).
The show was sold out, it is a very small venue with, I think, a capacity of about 50 people. Very intimate. When the band played, they closed the toilet and they closed the bar. We were urged to listen and enjoy the music, but to do the talking before and after the show. Great rules! …and it’s sold out tomorrow as well. Continue reading Paal Flaata and Chip Taylor at Smio – Photo special→
This is not easy listening, it’s uneasy listening!
MTV Unplugged in New York is a live album by the American rock band Nirvana. It features an acoustic performance taped at Sony Music Studios in New York City on November 18, 1993 for the television series MTV Unplugged. The show was directed by Beth McCarthy and first aired on the cable television network MTV on December 14, 1993. As opposed to traditional practice on the television series, Nirvana played a set list composed of mainly lesser-known material and cover versions of songs by The Vaselines, David Bowie, Meat Puppets (during which they were joined by two members of the group onstage) and Lead Belly.
Rolling Stone ranked MTV Unplugged in New York at #311 in its list of “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time”
The album start with About a Girl:
Why is Nirvana’s unplugged album so much better than any other MTV unplugged effort?
It could be the stark contrast to their normal albums or the sparse, naked arrangements that shows that Nirvana could really play. This time they didn’t hide behind a wall of grunge, they displayed their vulnerability and, man, they could be just as intense in this format. It could also be the choice of songs, almost no hits, obscure songs were included, new and old cover versions also. It could come down to pure stage presence from a band at their peak.
When we saw Justin Townes Earle last year he ripped through a rousing version of Lightnin’ Hopkins’ My starter won’t start (I been burnin bad gasoline). I have looked at a lot of Justin’s performances to find one that is equally good, there isn’t one… That said, there are a lot of very good ones.
Since it’s Lightnin’ Hopkins’ birthday today we give you two of them, quite different but very entertaining and very good. Justin Townes Earle is a formidable player and singer!
Happy birthday to legend, Lightnin’ Hopkins rest in peace in blues heaven!
New Jersey 2011 (..and closest to the Bergen version):
Detroit 2010 (very different and very good):
Here’s Lightning Hopkins’ great original (audio only):
Recorded at the Fillmore East concert hall, the storied rock venue in New York City, on Friday and Saturday March 12, 1971–March 13, 1971, the album showcased the band’s mixture of blues, southern rock, and jazz.
~Wikipedia
[it] remains the pinnacle of the Allmans and Southern rock at its most elastic, bluesy, and jazzy.
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine (allmusic.com)
March 12, 1971–March 13, 1971
Fillmore East, New York
Genre
Blues-rock, southern rock
Length
76:26
Label
Capricorn
Producer
Tom Dowd
At Fillmore East is a double live album by The Allman Brothers Band. The band’s breakthrough success, At Fillmore East was released in July 1971. It ranks Number 49 among Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and remains among the top-selling albums in the band’s catalogue. The original album was released in both conventional two-channel stereo and four-channel quadraphonic mixes. This album has been certified as platinum by the RIAA as of August 25, 1992.
Recorded at the Fillmore East concert hall, the storied rock venue in New York City, on Friday and Saturday March 12, 1971–March 13, 1971, the album showcased the band’s mixture of blues, southern rock, and jazz. The cover of Blind Willie McTell’s “Statesboro Blues” which opens the set showcases Duane Allman’s slide guitar work in open E Tuning. “Whipping Post” became the standard for a long, epic jam that never lost interest (opening in 11/4 time, unusual territory for a rock band), while the ethereal-to-furious “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed”, with its harmonized melody, Latin feel, and burning drive invited comparisons with John Coltrane (especially Duane’s solo-ending pull-offs, a direct nod to the jazz saxophonist).
Wikipedia
In Memory of Elizabeth Reed:
..these shows — recorded in New York on March 12th and 13th, 1971 — remain the finest live rock performance ever committed to vinyl. .. At Fillmore East captures America’s best blues-rock band at its peak.
~Mark Kemp (rollingstone.com)
Tracks
Side one
“Statesboro Blues” (Will McTell) – 4:17
“Done Somebody Wrong” (Clarence L. Lewis, Bobby Robinson, Elmore James) – 4:33
“Stormy Monday” (T. Bone Walker) – 8:44
Side two
“You Don’t Love Me” (Willie Cobbs) – 19:15 (“Joy to the World” medley in the ending portions)
At number 29 in my countdown of the 30 best live albums in history, I have chosen Waiting for Columbus by Little Feat.
Many considered Little Feat to be over their golden age by 1977, but I think this live album shows them wrong. This is a band at its peak!
Willin’ 1977, Rockpalast:
Waiting for Columbus is the first live album by the “swamp rock” band, Little Feat. The album was recorded during seven performances in 1977. The first four shows were held at the Rainbow Theatre in London on August 1–4, 1977. The last three shows were recorded in George Washington University’s Lisner Auditorium on August 8–10 that same summer in Washington, D.C.
The band was backed by the Tower of Power horn section with whom they had recorded in previous studio sessions. And they really fill out the sound!
Dixie Chicken (w/Emmylou Harris, Bonnie Raitt and Jesse Winchester):
