Grace Potter, NYC - Nov 20, 2009

Well, lucky me... I found myself in NYC for a performance of a Debussy Opera of Poe's "Fall of the House of Usher" in which my brother was singing the lead. Great excuse to get out and check out some good music over the weekend. So I ventured to Terminal 5 @56th St. & 11th Ave. for a double-bill of Brett Dennan with Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. These two groups have been on tour together, often with Dennan closing, but this was an opportunity to see the Nocturnals headline a show. And NYC is about as high-energy as it gets!
Here you can see an epic shot of Grace at her Hammond B3. Yours truly is admiring from the very bottom right corner. Glad to be included in this shot! The crowd was appreciative, and who wouldn't be?
Not only is Grace an energetic and engaging performer, she's got mad skills. Her voice is very powerful and her organ playing is superb. She has gathered around her a collection of excellent musicians - the band is solid and tight, high-energy and rocking, with good communication. I especially liked their new bass player, Catherine Popper, who blends fitting harmonies to Grace's strong melodic lines.
My favourite part of the night, though, was meeting the Deadhead tapers who took me to Chinatown for a debrief and a listen to the recording over a bowl of veg soup. Thanks Todd & Mike!

I highly recommend checking them out on tour:
http://www.thisissomewhere.com/
for show dates.

GPN Setlist, Nov 20,2009
Terminal 5, NYC

Some Kind of Ride
Medicine
Mastermind
Tiny Light
Apologies
Oasis
Things I Never Needed
Ah Mary
Big White Gate
Paris
Sweet Hands

E: White Rabbit
Nothing But the Water

For complete coverage of the show, including Brett Dennan, check out this article:
http://www.jambase.com/Articles/20634/Grace-Potter-and-Brett-Dennen-11.20-NYC

STOP MAKING SENSE

Saw this one recently, surprisingly for the first time. What a show. This film is an incredible document of the Talking Heads at their most energetic. Jonathan Demme's got lots to work with here.













He gets out of the way and lets the band do its thing. It was shot over the course of three nights at Hollywood's Pantages Theater in December of 1983, as the group was touring to promote their new album Speaking in Tongues.
Some musical highlights include:
The building setlist, especially when they hit Slippery People, Burning, Wartime and Flippy Floppy. I'm a fan of Naive Melody, and the Tom Tom Club performance of Genius of Love is sweet and boppy. Crosseyed and Painless ends the film and we are left with a rich document of a great band.
Highly recommended!!

Goodbye Rothbury!

ROTHBURY!

What a party!
I'll be singing your praises for a long time to come. I'll miss your vibrant reveling spirit...
Your jumbo, non-stop party campgrounds that are such a challenge to walk... making it so attractive to ride the funky taxi carts...
Your hula light magic...
Your naked freedom...
Your Sherwood forest...
And your unique beauty.
You are a haven and a phenomenon.
Can't wait to find out what's up your sleeve for next year. I can imagine it will be a whole different musical vibe, but the Rothbury experience will surely prevail.

Peace! Love! 'Til next time!