Top Live Shows of 2011
Welcome 2012! For the last of Shady Groove’s Year in Review, I bring to you the top live shows of the past year.
Top 11 Live Shows 0f 2011
11. Joe Pug (Johnny Brenda’s) – Johnny Brenda’s is prob my favorite small venue to see a show in philly. Joe Pug sounds like an early Dylan, honing his craft.
10. Ziggy Marley (The Keswick Theatre) – crowd was great, dancing and singing. Praise to the Most be High. JAH! Rastafari.
9. Doc Watson (The Keswick Theatre) – epic. Legendary. He’s blind, he’s nearly 90. Amazing.
8. Hoots and Hellmouth (Yards) – Barn Stomping, hell raising folkies from Philly put on a rollickin show at Yards. All were dancing and singing. The band also brings wooden boards to stomp on. For real.
7. Hayes Carll (WCL) – Rockin band, great lyrics. They didn’t put the tables on the floor downstairs. That means the floor was open for dancing!
6. Mason Porter (WCL upstairs) – Mason Porter is prob my favorite local Philly band. Their old school folk and rock influences blend to create a magnificent union. Must see.
5. Cake (The Keswick Theatre)– Epic. Crowd. Involvement. Totally awesome. John McCrea can control a crowd, at one point screaming “I’ll Stand here all Fucking Night!!”
4. Carolina Chocolate Drops (TLA)– Wow. One of the best live folk experiences.
3. My Morning Jacket (The Mann Center) – Great new album. Heard big things about their live show. Did not disappoint. Jim James is a bona fide rock star. Endless hooks, ambient jams. Transcendental light show (see below)
2. The Gourds (The Saint, Asbury Park NJ)– High energy. Rejuvenated with some new material. Fresh off of their brand new album, Old Mad Joy, recorded up in Woodstock, NY at ‘The Barn’ at Levon Helm’s Studios.
1. David Wax Museum (Johnny Brenda’s)– Well put together group of musicians. Something totally different from your run of the mill folk/indie group. They also play significantly under-known instruments, Donkey Jaw bone being one of them.
Honorable Mention:
Taj Mahal (The Keswick Theatre), Levon Helm Band (Philly Folk Fest), Trombone Shorty (Philly Folk Fest), The Wood Brothers (Philly Folk Fest), The Ebony Hillbillies (Chestnut Hill), Just The Tip (Half Moon Booze Cruise), The Low Anthem (WCL)
Shady Groove’s Top 11 Albums of 2011
Well, well. We’ve come to the end of another year. There were so many great albums to choose from this year. It was not easy narrowing it down to only 11. These are the ones that stood out; that are playable all the way through. These 11 albums were consistently on the playlist, turntable, and cd player. They were played over and over again, in their entirety.
Shady Groove’s Top 11 Albums this year:
11. Tedeschi Trucks Band – Revelator
Derek and Susan have been playing together for years. Now they have a proper name and a sick backing band for the best Husband/Wife duo in the biz. Rock on.
10. Various Artists – Rave On Buddy Holly
I would normally shy away from putting a compilation album, let alone a tribute compilation, on this list of best albums. This one is just too good NOT to put it on the list.
9. Dawes – Nothing Is Wrong
The harmonies and song writing are awesome on this, the 2nd album from Dawes. These guys really embody the Laurel Canyon sound. Neil would be proud. Plays well front to back.
8. David Wax Museum – Everything Is Saved
The mexi-folk wonders are the real deal. This album is a welcome change from the everyday folk album.
7. Wilco – The Whole Love
Hats off to Jeff Tweedy and the boys for coming back with a stellar follow up to 2009’s self-titled album. Great album.
6. The Wood Brothers – Smoke Ring Halo
Gotta love the Brothers down home bluesy sound. It hits home again with Smoke Ring Halo. You’re sure to stumble on some gems as you sit and listen through this one.
5. Blitzen Trapper – American Goldwing
The Portland rockers are back with another killer set of tunes that will make you think you’ve taken a trip back to 1973. But we’re not talking a total throwback here. These guys are doing things Neil Young and Crazy Horse never did.
4. Gregg Allman – Low Country Blues
Man, T. Bone Burnett has an amazing ear for a good tune. When he sent Gregg a playlist of over 200 old blues songs to pick from for their new project, Gregg could tell it was going to be something special. Fresh off a brand new liver, Allman sings his heart out on this solo project. Great tracks from a great blues singer.
3. The Gourds – Old Mad Joy
Not to be confused with Old Man Smell. Austin’s finest alt/county/blues/folk/rock/cajun/gospel/bluegrass band has really got something special with this album, thier 11th. And they’ve done it in fine fashion, recording with longtime dylan bandmate/now fixture in Levon Helm’s band, Larry Campbell up in Woodstock NY at the legendary Barn, Levon Helm’s Studios. Larry pushed the boys to their limits, wringing out some of their best material in 15 yrs. The album rolls from front to back seamlessly. While listening, its hard not to hear sounds of The Band, The Rolling Stones, even the The Who. So crank it up and let it play, you’re sure to enjoy.
2. Hayes Carll – KMAG YOYO (& Other American Stories)
I was hooked when I first heard the Hank Williams style, Hard Out Here. The Texas country rock man Hayes Carll is part of a growing genre of texas troubadour, country/folk outlaws that is alive and well. Some of the songs on this album are so familiar, you’d think you were listening to a cover. But that’s not a bad thing. He has no interest in doing anything different. Carll and his band take the honky tonk, rock n roll to a new level. They have never sounded so good and will even make the biggest Townes Van Zant follower a fan. Have fun with this one.
1. My Morning Jacket – Circuital
Not a conventional rock album by any means, My Morning Jacket follow up 2009’s Evil Urges with a superb set of new songs. Circuital itself means coming full circle, everything starts and ends in the same place. In a way this album does just that. Yim Yames talks about how even the songs have a more circular form, as opposed to the more triangular wave forms on the last album. This album moves you through the songs in a very systematic way. It is very well put together. A listen to it from front to back will reveal endless hooks, ambient jams and great triumphant endings. Well done folks, well done.
Honorable Mention:
The Black Keys – El Camino
The Decemberists – The King is Dead
Cheers Elephant – Time Well Wasted
Those Darlins – Screws Get Loose
G. Love – Fixin To Die
Wanda Jackson – The Party Ain’t Over
Shady Groove’s Top 11 Songs of 2011
The time has come to reveal Shady Groove’s best of 2011. It has been a great year for music and as I look back I am reminded just how amazing a year it was. I was fortunate to be able to enjoy and comment on some amazing tune-age and I am super psyched to bring you my favorite songs.
Top 11 Songs of 2011:
11. Middle Brother – Blue Eyes
10. The Wood Brothers – Stumbled In
9. Florence and the Machine – Not Fade Away
8. Gregg Allman – Floating Bridge
7. The Black Keys – Lonely Boy
6. My Morning Jacket – Circuital
5. Blitzen Trapper – American Goldwing
4. Cake – Bound Away
3. The Gourds – I Want It So Bad
2. Alabama Shakes – Hold On
1. Hayes Carll – KMAG YOYO
Honorable Mention:
Wilco – Dawned On Me
G. Love – Just Right
Dawes – A Little Bit of Everything
David Wax Museum – Born With A Broken Heart
Tedeschi Trucks Band – Come See About Me
Festival of Light and Dark
^ Mason Porter – Dark As A Dungeon ^
A Celebration is in order! For 2 reasons:
1. Hanukkah!
First of all, Hanukkah begins tonight at sundown. That being said, we should all be ready to light those candles at 4:37pm. The funny thing is that we’re gonna need all that candlelight, being that for this year, the special holiday begins on the 2nd shortest day of the year. A significant event indeed.
2. Winter Solstice
We have come to the darkest days of the year folks, the winter solstice. One might also say that we are entering the 2 longest nights of the year. For these next 2 days, Dec 20 and 21, everyone on earth will experience what it is like to live in Greenland during the winter. Today, we will have 9 hours and 19 minutes of daylight. Tomorrow will be 4 seconds shorter, clocking in at a whopping 9 hours and 18 minutes and 56 seconds of daylight.
So, here is the real kicker. After tomorrow, we begin the long awaited climb towards summer. Lighter days are on the way! Just to give you an idea of how fast we’ll be gaining light, by January 30 we will already have gained an extra 20 minutes. Let the light shine.
So, from The Shady Groove to you, keep the light shining. Have a great Hanukkah, and enjoy the solstice.
Buddy Guy, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones: @ the Keswick
Tonight:
November 16, 2011
Buddy Guy with special guests Indigenous and Michael Williams Band!
The four-time Grammy Award winner who inspired Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix & Stevie Ray Vaughan – high-energy guitar histrionics & boundless stage energy, along with his uniquely-tortured vocal style nearly as distinctive as his incendiary, rapid-fire fretwork!
Tomorrow:
Thursday November 17, 2011
Bela Fleck and The (Original) Flecktones
The Original Line-Up
Bela Fleck * Howard Levy * Victor Wooten * Roy “Futureman” Wooten
plus Marco Benevento
Touring in support of their just-released Rocket Science album – the totally unique quartet that melds jazz, bluegrass, classical, funk, country, world & more into sounds that defy description!
Buy Tickets at: