Charlie Mars at City Winery: January 2, 2013

For the first Wednesday night in 2013 the mood at City Winery in Lower Manhattan was surprisingly subdued. The room traffic was light and the show began mostly on time as the very fun Charlie Mars was in for a set on January 2.

Mars emerged onto the stage and leapt right into his somewhat droll storytelling; something he would do quite often throughout most of his 2 hours+ set. He marveled right off the bat that this morning he woke up in his bed in Mississippi and suddenly, he’s here for his 8pm show in New York City.

His first song, he said, was about a relationship where he had “possibly behaved badly.” It was this self-deprecation that he would return to again and again; whether it be in discussing his marijuana smoking, intoxication, reverence for and double talking to the Almighty, or his most popular spoof, relationships.

He used a harmonica a couple of times alongside his acoustic guitar. He remained tethered to his ax save two songs at the ivories. 

His forlorn longing would rear its head again and again; even as he was a lot more dubious than his descriptions let on.

Before tonight’s set I was not familiar with Mr. Mars and while his down home Mississippi attitude shone through, his fingerpicking and slap guitar style evoked many of my folk favorites. The lyrical line shifted a number of times from the howling at the moon like Michael Penn or Mark Olson to his more slick lyrical hyperbole of Jason Mraz.

The guitar playing drew influences from any number of sources; Bob Dylan, Jeff Buckley, Matthew Sweet or many others. But it was the guitar line combined with the poppy melody which drew out tones of Bob Marley and a far less produced sounding Mraz.  There was no pomp and fanfare here; only a guy and his stories which he played out on his guitar.

Mars’ invocation of acoustic guitar musicianship used slow plucking, slap technique and the vacant spaces between his breaths to tell stories all their own.

Unlike many other guitar players in that vein his was a tight narratives line; many of his songs simply stopped dead once they were over; very much like Evan Dando of The Lemonheads. This was somewhat jarring yet also strangely refreshing in a style of music, folk, which is beleaguered with long rambling listless narratives which seem to stretch on indefinitely. The artistry in Mars playing lies not in complexity or over-layering but in deceptively simple accents and arpeggios of which he has gotten quite good in his six album career.

His set was just over two hours and I must confess, as the evening weaned on, I began to tire to a lot of his tropes and clever little lyrical tricks. He asked us to do a call and response sing-along towards the beginning of his set. I thought that was cute. But when he asked us to do it four or five times; to four or five different songs; it seemed to be a little much. 

Towards the end of the night though, he did lay himself bare in a rather surprising turn when he leaned right into a small vignette of Bruce Springsteen’s “I'm On Fire.” He then told a story about how the record “Nebraska” was one of "...three or four albums which changed my life." While I didn't hear much of The Boss in Mars performance this night, the musicians early influences offer a bit of insight into who the performer has become.

Charlie Mars comes through City Winery regularly enough. If you’re looking to sing along or just enjoy some tunes, give him a shot the next time he’s through. To hear some of his stuff, check out his webpage or YouTube page.

Night of Discovery & Healing for EB

While the rock and roll lifestyle of the modern musician might seem to be all sound and fury, there are many who take time out from their busy schedule in order to do things for those less fortunate and draw attention to things that need our attention. Eddie Vedder, lead singer of the seminal band Pearl Jam, and his wife Jill are shining examples of that pay-it-forward attitude. They both are drawing some attention to a terrible illness which affects young children.

The Vedder’s both took part in "A Night of Discovery & Healing for EB" recently at Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose. This event happened a day before The Bridge School Annual benefit concert. The evening was an awareness and fundraiser for “Heal EB.”  Heal EB is a nonprofit organization dedicated to finding a cure while raising awareness for Epidermolysis Bullosa.

If you have never heard of EB before, it just sounds dreadful. EB is a painful congenital disease that causes blisters after the mildest trauma. The Myoclonic describes EB:

“Epidermolysis bullosa (ep-ih-dur-MOL-uh-sis buhl-LO-sah) is a group of skin conditions whose hallmark is blistering in response to minor injury, heat, or friction from rubbing, scratching or adhesive tape.”

Maybe the most terrible thing about EB is that children are the ones who suffer from it.

“Most types of epidermolysis bullosa initially affect infants and young children, although some people with mild forms of the condition don't develop signs and symptoms until adolescence or early adulthood. Mild forms of epidermolysis bullosa may improve with age, but severe forms may cause serious complications and can be fatal.”

While the fact that EB may improve with age is one small bit of hope for those diagnosed, that is not always the case. And there still remains no known cure. For most kids who develop EB the treatment is all about dealing with the pain and preventing outbreaks. Kids will be kids though; imagine having had to have lived your whole youth in a bubble; reacting violently and painfully to even the slightest abrasion. Depending on the type of EB, the effects can be mild, disabling, or life threatening. Children with severe cases of the disease oftentimes do not make it to adulthood.

Mrs. Vedder has a dear friend, Heather Fullmer, whose son who suffers from EB. Mrs. Fullmer is CEO and founder of the Heal EB non-profit. Because she was so deeply moved by the pain of these children and the strain they endure, Mrs. Vedder sits on the Heal EB board of directors.

During the night, the Vedder’s made fast friends with a number of children who are grappling with EB. Eddie also got up to do an impromptu performance with the event band, Big Daddy Sunshine. Together they played "Running Down a Dream", "Come Together", and "Rocking in the Free World."

In order to raise awareness and help spread the word, Heal EB has an auction currently up on EBay. The auction is running through 9am Pacific this Friday October 26. There are a number of Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam items up for grabs, including:

• - Autographed Eddie Vedder ukulele, autographed Eddie Vedder Deluxe Edition songbook, front row tickets to an upcoming Eddie Vedder solo date (first time front row tickets are being offered for bid)
• - Eddie Vedder solo tour front row tickets and autographed poster package
• - 2 autographed Pearl Jam posters (Made in America and Montreal 2011)

There are a ton of other great items from athletes, fellow musicians and others. If you are a fan of the band or if you are interested in getting some cool auction items and helping a great cause like Heal EB you should check out the whole lot and see what strikes your fancy.

Fiona Apple - WCSU Ives Concert Park - 6/29/12

For a very particular slice of the public consciousness lexicon, the name Fiona Apple is one filled with reverence and mystique. However Fiona Apple's also a name which fell from public consciousness as mysteriously as she appeared.

If you're a young person today who divides your time evenly among names like Justin Bieber and Katy Perry, you probably have never heard of Fiona Apple before.

At the same time if you're too old to appreciate the names who headline the Lilith Fair embargo (Sarah McLachlan, Tori Amos, Ani DiFranco) and instead fall back on old standards like Heart, Pat Benatar, and Annie Lennox then the name Fiona Apple probably means as little to you as anything.

However if you do fall in that tender slice of years (say high school graduating class 1994-1999) then you may know who Fiona Apple is. You may have known her firsthand or maybe you had an older sister or cousin who turned you on to songs like "Criminal" and "Shadowboxer." Maybe this relative turned you on to her inverted and tortured music and filled your head with some of the wilder stories about Apple like that she allegedly had an eating disorder. Or perhaps you were drawn in by the very true story of how she was raped when she was very young. Whatever the bait was time turned you around and her impression was indelibly made and you were hooked.

So when Fiona Apple was reported to be coming through the Western Connecticut State UniversityWestside campuses Ives Concert Park I was delighted to find myself present for that show. I saw on Pitchfork earlier in June a new song from Apple, "Werewolf," from her new record "The Idler Wheel is Wiser than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Ever Do." This song is incredible and so I looked forward to this concert with great anticipation. 

Much to this reporters delight the Fiona Apple of today looks much the same as she did in the mid-90's. Her arms are a little stronger looking but she's still very gaunt and this fact tells me that this is just who Fiona Apple is; she's just a thin woman. 

The concert took its time to get going; the opening band came out a little after 8pm and strummed along for almost an hour. Then just after 9, Apple took the stage to thunderous applause.

She was in pretty strong form which was also pleasantly surprising; still with a defiant attitude throughout. She stood with an almost stoic indignation as she sang the lyric to "Sleep to Dream," and I thought that maybe she was a little resentful of that simple song's powerful commercial success. "Is she just going through the motions," I wondered. But then, as though reading my mind, as the band riffed off on an extended solo the singer totally lost it and began thrashing in a manic dance all over the stage. The cheers came and she cavorted herself further still before curling into a fetal position and squeezing her knees tight to her breast sitting on the stage floor for the songs conclusion. 

She was a very energetic performer but Apple never lost her groove though. There were other moments, later on in the show, where she stood with her arms akimbo, sighed and let her exhausted and frazzled looking head fall backwards even as her sultry hips kept moving with the underscored beat. Just when you thought she might collapse from exhaustion or fall into a heap she then would thrash her body about some more. She ended one song retreated to a full surrender of her upper torso even as her legs stood taught like toothpicks. 

Of course Fiona Apple had soulful moments as well. One such occasion was her stirring rendition of "I Know." Apple commanded the microphone and laid down her longing vocal line around the warm encapsulating synth, simple drum brushes, tiny plucks of the bass and the single note twang of the guitar. 

Her voice was certainly edgier than I remember from FM radio. A new song like "Daredevil" was filled with a guttural rawness which was at once refreshing and unnerving. 

I can't wait to hear what's next from Fiona Apple. I also apparently need to be a better fan and pick up her intermittent recordings as well. If this show is coming to an off-the-beaten-path venue near you, I would get my tickets right away! 

The Bacon Brothers at City Winery; New York City -- with Vance Gilbert 4/26/12

Bacon was on the menu recently at City Winery in Lower Manhattan. Not cured strips of meat from the rumpus of a pig but Kevin Bacon and big brother Michael; the Bacon Brothers. Michael Bacon is a CUNY (City University New York) professor and an accomplished musician and film scorer; little brother Kevin is also a well-respected thespian; star of numerous big and small screen reckonings. Kevin Bacon even has his own “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” game where you can apparently link any actor to Kevin Bacon (alive of dead) by no more than six degrees of separation. However together this duo (and their excellent backing band) simply do the deed of playing an interesting bit of soul, blues, folk, ballad, jazz, country, and good old fashioned rock and roll.

 Before we get to the Brothers Bacon though there was the mystery of opening act Vance Gilbert. Gilbert was a twangy-blues laden singer songwriter. He actually called himself “The Black Folk Star of Love.” His short set might have been okay if he were the attraction. Maybe such macabre, heartbroken musings such as his would have been more appropriate for an engagement at a coffee house or something. But as an “opening act” for a group as full of verve and energy as the Bacon Brothers, it would have stood to reason that Gilbert would have played some more upbeat songs.

 Forgetting the topics of his set for just a moment; Gilbert had a glaring self-awareness and a corny disposition coupled with a sharp wit which at times elicited laughter.

 “You’re so old,” he joked to one audience member, “you’ve got a signed copy of the Bible!”

 His songs though were very intentionally oppressive and languid. Despite this fact Gilbert had a fierce set of lungs on him which oscillated between a practiced John Denver high to an extended Herman’s Hermits vibrato.

 Still, I go to the audience for the most fun quote of the night. One of the individuals sitting nearby me, who had even appeared to enjoy portions of the opener remarked, as Gilbert was exiting the stage:

 “For most of that performance, I wanted to stick something in my eye.”

Bacon Brothers. City Winery, New York City. 4/26/12.

 Then out came the Bacon Brothers. Both Bacon’s were spry and full of life. The entourage was Kevin and Michael trading lead vocals and both wielding rhythm lines on the electric and acoustic guitars. Kevin played the conga drums, a Latin shaker tube, and was the one man dance party as though everybody were hanging “Footloose!” Michael also played a floor string instrument like a standup bass only stouter.

 The first two songs were sung by Michael and Kevin simply sang backup vocals, strummed along as a second rhythm guitar, and played some very insignificant conga lines. When I pointed out to my wife that you didn’t even really hear the conga, she remarked that it's attributable to the fact that Kevin’s an actor. Actors onstage (or onscreen) should always have some kind of an action for their hands. I couldn’t disagree with her.

By the third tune though, a song Kevin dubbed “the iPod song” he had earned his place onstage. Just before breaking it down Kevin took his audience on a funkdafied history of what it was like when he first came to New York City in 1976. He danced and cavorted to the tight funk line the song was electric.

 All the musicians onstage appeared to be effortlessly competent at their instruments. The bass player slid all over his fret board while singing harmony and doing something of a queer crouching crab step. The lead guitar player and organ player both cut out nice solo lines when they were called on to do so. The drummer also had no problem tearing up the skins a little bit like Animal from the Muppets.

 I wasn’t able to stay for the whole evening but from what I saw of the Bacon Brothers, they are a group worthy of your attention. A lot of times famous actors get a hard time when they just want to play in a band. But Kevin Bacon rips that stigma out and chucks it to the side. He just appears to be having a great time with his big brother, playing the music that’s had him dancing inside his head for all these years.

Marcy Playground - City Winery - NYC - 3/25/12

When I heard that Marcy Playground was coming to one of my favorite Manhattan music venues; all I could think was “Sex & Candy,” the bands 1997 hit song which was its only, to date, charting single.

1997. That was 15 years ago. A lot has happened in the last 15 years; for me anyway. In 1997 I was still a comparative novice to things like modern rock and was still a heavy fan of candy. Regardless the last 15 years have been something of a rollercoaster for Marcy Playgrounds lead singer/guitarist John Wozniak. Marcy Playground has written and released two other CD’s following 1997’s eponymous debut and now they are back with a fourth album “Leaving Wonderland…in a Fit of Rage.” Wozniak boasts the new album is “by far the best thing I’ve ever done.”

So it was with a great deal of anticipation that I took the A trains long journey from Northern Manhattan all the way down to the City Winery SoHo location on a brisk Sunday night in an otherwise tropical New York City winter/spring to see Marcy Playground and find out just what Wozniak was talking about.

The ambiance at City Winery was relaxed and jovial as it always is. The place was full of Marcy Playground fans because as soon as they introduced the band everyone “shushed” everyone talking and waited for the music to begin.

Wozniak came out alone at first and began playing the admittedly appropriate “All the Lights Went Out.” My wife asked me if this was a one man outfit. As though on cue the bass player and drummer entered the stage and began accompaniment following the first verse.

Maybe one of the things which most immediately impressed me about Marcy Playground was their deep bass lines and audibly vibrant tones. Because my investment with this band to this point had not been very deep the only tune of theirs I knew was kind of timid and sparse; radio-friendly as it were. There were certainly other songs they played tonight which I could see coming across on the FM dial but that wasn’t the whole deal with these three; there were sonic arpeggios and long, dissonant periods of feedback.

In the middle of the third song Wozniak made a motion to hold on for one second and he went offstage to change guitars. He would do this again. He couldn’t seem to decide which of the two identical looking guitars he liked. If you hadn't seen him walk offstage during “Devil Woman” you never would have known that he'd left. The bass player and drummer kept a rollicking beat going for 16 bars or so while he was offstage and his absence just sounded like an extended bridge.

I'm sure he wasn't intentionally trying to upstage him but I was enthralled with the drummer, Shlomi Lavie. In very minimalist fashion he had the most basic setup: snare drum, bass drum, bass-tom, hi-hats, and a ride cymbal. That's it. But watching him play was like watching Animal from The Muppets. He thrust his arms and flailed about in such a crazy way, it was mesmerizing for me as a former drummer anyway. Ask any drummer; getting a good “crash” from a ride cymbal is difficult. To compound his thrashing though many of his crashes included him banging on his open hi-hats.

The bass player, Dylan Keefe, was interactive with Wozniak and Lavie. On more than one occasion he chimed in to one of Wozniak’s musings. Carefully reminding the audience not to give Wozniak too big of an ego. Keefe also did a really nice thing and told an abridged story of Michael Dorf who founded both City Winery and earlier The Knitting Factory and gave his heartfelt thanks to the venues owner.

Towards the end of their set the three had a dissonance reckoning with everyone playing as fast and with as much extended feedback as they could for about 5 min.

When they finally got to “Sex and Candy” they were almost done with their set. Wozniak called the song an indelible gadfly. The song included a somewhat muted sing-along (their instruments were still really loud) and just like that the evening was over.

Marcy Playground are back on tour and that just makes me feel old. But if you’re like me and miss that lost generation we knew as the 1990’s, check out Marcy Playground when they swing through your neck of the woods.

Jane’s Addiction - Palace Theater - Waterbury, CT 3/7/12

The fathers of 'modern American alternative rock' and one of the best bands to come out of the 1980's, Jane's Addiction were a group whose influence entered my life at a pivotal moment. Perry Farrell is the front man and a zany one at that but for those who don't know the band they likely know another of its members; guitarist Dave Navarro. It may have been his relationship with the likes of Carmen Electra, it may have been his work with other bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Panic Channel or it may have been his hosting reality TV shows or selling other products but Dave Navarro is one of those guys whose face is out there. I also had an affinity for Jane's drummer Stephen Perkins who was popular in the drumming world around when I was first learning the craft. They've had a bunch of bassists; Chris Chaney joins them on this current tour.

Jane's Addiction has a few songs which may ring a familiar chord ("Been Caught Stealing" and the songs chorus of guard dogs may be the most familiar). Jane's Addiction has broken up and gotten back together they've even taken an extended break for Farrell and Perkins to team up with others for Porno for Pyros (MTV aficionados of my era my remember their song "Pets" which got video and radio airplay). But Jane's Addiction was always bigger than that. They were pretty influential; they remain pretty amazing. The Lollapalooza Tour was founded by Farrell and it's always been their live shows which have drawn the most intrigue. Intrigue was in the air when I reviewed their live show in Waterbury Connecticut at the Palace Theatre.

The Jane's Addiction portion of the evening started out with the Pink Floyd song "Welcome to the Machine." Anyone who knows that song knows that it's kind of long and strange with this building crescendo of synthesizers and guitar. The crowd grew restless as the seven minute song droned on and all I could think was what a waste it would be if indeed the band did not show up onstage. After several minutes of stops and starts from the audience though they finally did show up.

I must admit; I am a Jane's Addiction fan from their first incarnation: "Jane's Addiction," "Nothings Shocking," & "Ritual de lo Habitual." Those are the three albums I'm familiar with and those are the three albums most fans know. There are some others; the album "Kettle Whistle" is a live/rare one with a few new tunes and they just put out a new record. But by and large it's the first three that matter. So a few of their initial songs I was not totally familiar with.

The second song they played though; "Mountain Song" I knew very well. When Farrell screams "Everybody has their own opinion," it's as though he's singing it for the first time. One couldn't help but notice that they were really quite loud. Farrell had some kind of a monitor for his vocals onstage and it was during the guitar line in "Mountain Song" that he first dove into getting feedback from the bass guitar; it was reverb city.

Farrell then told a story about how he was stealing and was confronted by a police officer. His bravado seemed genuine enough if for no other reason than a mystique has always surrounded him. And of course one of the most well-known Jane's Addiction songs is "Been Caught Stealing."

Right after that they dove into "Ain't no Right." It was during this song that I noticed how so many of his words were getting lost; primarily because of Farrell's cavorting with the crowd. More than once he dove into the audience and at the very least was up front high-fiving everyone. This loss of vocals actually didn't matter because everyone in the audience knew every word. Perkins, Chaney and Navarro were also so bombastic, loud, and unrelenting. It was almost as though they were playing a festival show or an arena show in the few thousand seat Palace Theatre.

During the song "Nothing's Shocking" was when Dave Navarro took off whatever shirt he'd been wearing to show off to the audience all the lovely artwork all up and down his body.

I was sitting in the middle of the mezzanine and noticed that everyone in the audience stood up before the first song. Even though the Palace is a "theatre-proper" with seats even up in the mezzanine everyone wanted to get as close to the action as they could.

They moved a drum-set skeleton downstage for a couple of songs. "Classic Girl" was the first and Navarro and Chaney sat down on stools. The drum kit had electronic steel drums which are the signature instrument in the song "Jane Says."

Farrell noted that it's not a concert; his shows are a "carnival. We drive in on the bus and they say to me, 'Do you wanna go to a party?' and I say sure." That is what is most impressive about this band; after 30 years together and breakups and makeups they still have a festival atmosphere. There are girls in leather (one of whom is reportedly Farrell's wife) and they still get all the sound and atmosphere out of each other that made them famous on the Sunset Strip in the early 1980's.

For our portion of the evening there were two more songs I'd like to mention; "Three days" and "Stop." "Three Days" is one of the best songs in their whole catalog and one of my favorites. Seeing this song played out live was also one of the coolest musical performances I've ever witnessed. There is an almost unassuming bass solo line that's flipped around in the intro. The song on the album is part of a second-side that's like a symphonic movement. But when the four played it this night it worked well as a standalone track. Navarro's got a pretty amazing extended solo which he took on for an extra 32 bars or so. Most of the songs remained largely as they are on the record but with this solo Navarro and Perkins both showed off their chops. During the songs drum break towards the end, Perkins really took it home. I could imagine thins song being the way Jane's Addiction began the end of plenty of sets in the past.

After the exhausting, extended mix of that long song they played "Stop." Farrell addressed the crowd by saying "Good night Connecticut; now the real party starts!" and they walked offstage.

I couldn't hang around to see their encore; stupidly I'd parked in a zone which from November 1 - April 1 had to be cleared out for snow removal, so by the time they finished their main set it was already half-past 11pm.

I stepped out into the warm Waterbury March twilight, saw a wonderful near full moon in the sky, and considered myself privileged to have been a part of the musical-carnival of Jane's Addiction in this way, on this night. My temples were throbbing, my head was ringing, but my mind could not stop dancing.

The Southern Gentleman Tour, City Winery, 2/21/12

The mood was jovial at City Winery in Manhattan on a recent February Tuesday. There were some southern gentlemen in the house and their aims were pure enough. The Southern Gentlemen tour is the collaborative arrangement between Ed Roland of Collective Soul and Kevin Griffin of Better Than Ezra. Both bands stake their roots in the south (Georgia and New Orleans, respectively) and from the ambling demeanor of the evening, both appear headed for the same ends as my dear old grandpa and others I'd met while living in the south. Folks in the south could just go on for days about anything and everything (which, coincidentally, appeared to be the narrative of the Southern Gentleman show). They spoke about their families, their kids, their misadventures one day prior to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and their love/hate relationships with their respective bands (which, Roland says, is like another marriage).

Six minutes past the top of the hour and there was a fair amount of seats towards the rear which sat vacant. I wondered if that would change as the night progressed and it really didn't. Throughout the evening though I learned that the Southern Gentleman Tour began in this same venue months prior. Many of the fans who were here on this February night were also here in October. And it was a Tuesday night in the middle of winter; so in a way I understood the sparse audience. This seemed more of a thank you to the die-hards; fans who were there were cheering in full support.

When the two hit the stage I must admit I was a little taken aback but for different reasons. Anyone who knew Collective Soul in the 1990's knew that Ed Roland had something of a Jesus/wrestler thing going on. He had long hair, a beard, and appeared very muscular. He struck these epic poses, he led his crew around; shepherding them through their troubles as it were. Roland today looks totally different. He came out in professorial spectacles, had a curly gray bob-haircut, and had a suit jacket on. Having just brushed up on my Collective Soul earlier in the day I had to admit I was a little surprised.

Kevin Griffin looked the same. Basically the same. Tall and skinny. Roland I would later discover is only a few years Griffin's senior. However it was something about their respective dispositions which also made an impression. For Griffin who did a lot of the talking; he seemed very comfortable with Roland (and their percussionist/accompanist) and comfortable with the audience. Roland on the other hand seemed very comfortable with his stage-mates. And he communicated easily enough with the audience; it just didn't appear to be what he preferred to be doing. I don't know if it was just the way he was feeling this night but I got the impression that Roland was much more comfortable playing than he was performing.

These two showmen didn't waste any time jumping right into the fracas with one of Collective Soul's more well-known numbers, "December." They played a couple of songs together before Roland took to the stage himself to play some songs of his own, Collective Souls, as well as another group The Sweet Tea Project.

Songs rolled off his guitar which I was unfamiliar with. Lyrics like "Goin' to Birmingham" and "When it comes down to love" were in the mix. Then he introduced two new songs. "You Said That You Loved Me," had a droning and monotonous repeat of title or the line "it was a long time ago." The song ends with refrain Amazing Grace ("…how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me…"). All I could think was some songs should stay in the studio. Apparently his wife agreed. He wrote this just the week prior (or so he says) and played it for her on Valentine's Day. She rejected it so he wrote an upbeat poppy tune, "All I really need is love." This song was full of biblical allusions "walk the earth," "once was lost," "lift you up." However when he capped off this tune with the same refrain from "Amazing Grace" it was funny. So I guess the lesson here is that you never know what you've got until you tag it with a familiar refrain. He also played a surprisingly reflective, quieter, almost pained version of another one of Collective Souls more well-known songs, "The World I Know."

Kevin then came on and played some of his songs. It's interesting I have very detailed notes from the Roland solo session but my only notes about Griffin's time was "Kevin played..." I think that's because he was a lot more entertaining. Don't get me wrong I liked Roland's songs but I guess it's akin to studying for a test or going to a birthday party. Or so it seems to me.

The whole of the evening came across less as a Southern Gentleman's tour and more of a real mellow jam session between friends. Their whole thing was just two singer songwriters telling stories, razzing one another on the couch.

I am more familiar with Collective Soul than Better Than Ezra, but I was shocked to find all the work that Griffin had done on popular songs with artists. The two guys had stark contrast in their demeanor. Griffin appeared that he could care less. He was impersonating Bono and took the stage as MASTERS OF RAWK!

Roland on the other hand was a lot more reserved. His demeanor was open but he looked tired. He appeared to almost be saying, "are you serious? You guys are going to let me play another day?" - as though he knows his jig should have been up. But he's a good musician. So he should just milk it. Maybe Roland is moving into a different phase in his life. Griffin on the other hand was busy singing about Daisy Dukes and Ugg Boots. I could picture Griffin being the kind of guy to leave the toilet seat up, as it were.

When both reappeared they played songs like "Shine" which had the extended "Midnight Train to Georgia," remix and "Good". The whole crowd remained engaged for both choruses and requisite "YEAH" or "Aha."

For their encore they came out and played a really brief medley of "Wonderwall," "Kids" (MGMT),"Shattered," "Feel Good Inc," "White Wedding," and I think that was it. And then the show was over. The lights came up, the doors swung open and we all spilled out into the streets.

And everyone who'd been to that show on that night couldn't stop smiling.

Sources:

https://www.facebook.com/southerngentlementour

http://www.collectivesoul.com/

https://www.facebook.com/KevinGriffin

http://www.betterthanezra.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6exsatE-DUk

https://www.facebook.com/thesweetteaproject

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7TLTjqUyog

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_m0bI82Rz_k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF9fqx4H_Cg