Radio station Lightning 100 recently kicked off the sixth season of its free Live on the Green concert series downtown in front of the Courthouse. Music City Mike set his sights on seeing Spanish Gold, the first of three bands to take the stage for the opening week. I was eager to see them after […]
The Joint in the Woods was just that: a plain shed-like building hidden in a North Central Jersey forest. It was one of the first music venues I recall visiting that had few seats requiring most everyone to standup general admission style. For a place out in the middle of nowhere (about 30 miles due […]
The name of legendary songwriter and record producer Richard Gottehrer doesn’t turn up as often as it once did. This is understandable given that the producer of the debut records by Blondie and The Go-Go’s is now 74. However, the one project to which he still adds his magic touch is managing and producing the […]
Without even knowing the competition, I will take a chance and say that The Feelies are the best part-time band in the world. Since calling it quits in 1991 and reforming in 2008, these post-punk popsters from Haledon, New Jersey play on average only about ten shows every year. With guitarist Bill Million now living […]
L.A.’s loss was Nashville’s gain. It seems that the closing of his favorite studio led Beck to write and record his latest record in Nashville. It’s a safe assumption that this migration influenced his long overdue return to the Music City concert stage. The L.A. native had not played here since a 2006 show at […]
I learned to love Steely Dan through the influence of Robert Christgau’s short clever record reviews in the Village Voice. So enamored with their work, they seemingly became his standard to judge everything else by. (FYI: The Christgau Record Guide rates the first four Steely Dan LPs all in the “A” category.) I started with […]
Growing up in New York in the late 70s, I looked forward every summer to the outdoor concert series held at the ice skating rink in Central Park. Although the shows weren’t free, they were cheap. During my tenure, orchestra seats started out at a mere $2.50 and were eventually raised to a still unthreatening […]
When it gets right down to it, doesn’t everyone like good instrumental rock music? Even if you have never heard the songs before, there is a good chance that they will at least get your foot moving if not get all of you out to the dance floor. Well, my dancing days are over, but […]
Hot summer weather returned to Forecastle on its final day causing me to take things slow and rest up for my major musical event of the decade—the return of The Replacements. My laid back afternoon consisted of checking out small samples of several artists in between taking in the air conditioned splendor of the VIP […]
It was a long and tiring but musically-satisfying second day at Forecastle. I got to see many great bands on a warmer but still pleasant day, including perhaps one of the best sets I have ever seen by anyone, anytime. My day started early with the tail end of an enjoyably fresh set from Hurray […]
Music City Mike 