My Year in Music 2014

Raw Statistics

This was supposed to be a year of hiatus to fix things around the house and more or less that happened.  However it didn’t quite happen to level we expected so 2015 might be another lean year as far as shows go.  The good news is that 2016 should see us back to gallivanting around the county with a completely finished house.

Phish Shows – 6

Other Shows – 16

Studio Albums

I only bought two official live releases in 2014 but there were a plethora of good studio albums that didn’t make the cut for my Top 5.  Mike Gordon, The New Mastersounds, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, moe., Rich Robinson, Phish and Dopapod (in order of release date) all put out discs that are worth checking out, but I had to draw the line somewhere.

5) Leftover Salmon – “High Country”

This is the first LoS album to feature drummer Alwyn Robinson and Little Feat’s Bill Payne on keys.  Vince Herman contributions “Home Cookin’” and “Finish Your Beer” feature comical lyrics and Drew Emmitt does his thing on “Western Skies” and “Two Highways.”  Andy Thorn supplies instrumental “Thornpipe” and the Drew sung “High Country.”  Payne and Robert Hunter penned “Bluegrass Pines” might be the highlight of the entire disc and Feat’s “Six Feet of Snow” seems made for bluegrass.

4) New Monsoon – “Diamonds and Clay”

Some might think I’m partial to NM’s first studio album in seven years because my name is in the liner notes for contributing to their Kickstarter campaign (3^rd one too).  While that may be somewhat true the disc actually does rock from start to finish.  There is no letup during the first five tracks with highlights being “Light of Day” and “Tower” (my fave).  The second half of the album is mellower but songs like “Positive Days” and “A Good Man” grow on you.  “Time Won’t Wait” is the final rocker on this fine record.

3) Medeski Scofield Martin and Wood – “Juice”

The first studio release in eight years from MSMW is their best effort since 1998’s seminal “A Go Go.”  From the opening groove of Eddie Harris’ “Sham Time” it’s unmistakable who you are listening to.  The covers don’t stop there as they also give The Doors’ “Light My Fire,” Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love” and Bob Dylan’s “The Times They are a-Changin’” their instrumental treatment.  Chris Wood’s “Helium” is a highlight as is “Juicy Lucy” which was loosely based on the riff from “Louie Louie” per John Scofield.

2) Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe – “New Ammo”

This is the first KDTU release to feature guitarist D.J. Williams who contributes the title track and “Everybody Knows That.”  Karl D himself only has two writing credits and “My Baby” with Nicki Bluhm guesting on vocals is a highlight.  There’s a whopping six covers on this album but they don’t seem out of place, especially the instrumentals “Grenadiers,” “The Duel,” and “Après Ski.”  If you stick with this disc all the way through Chris Stillwell’s “Malgorium” and ancient KDTU tune “Odysseus” bring it home in style.

1)  Greensky Bluegrass – “If Sorrows Swim”

From the opening notes of Paul Hoffman’s “Windshield” through the end of the album your ears are thoroughly entertained.  Hoffman is one of my favorite current songwriters and he delivers on “Burn Them,” “In Control,” “Forget Everything,” (lyrical fave) “Demons” and “Leap Year.”  Dave Bruzza also contributes winners like “Worried About the Weather,” “Kerosene” and “Wings for Wheels.”  This is truly a band in their prime and if you don’t already own this record do yourself a favor and go out and buy it.

Top 5 Non-Phish Shows

5) 3/19/14 • Mike Gordon • Portland, OR • Wonder Ballroom (7^th show)

I: Jumping, Radar Blip, Jones > Spiral, Spock’s Brain, Twist and Bends, Angatta, She Said She Said, Tiny Little World

II: Surface > Meat > Long Black Line, Peel, Another Door, Mississippi > Morphing Again, Hand in My Pocket > Soulfood Man

E: Yarmouth Road, Skin it Back

I was oh so psyched up for my first MGB show in two years.  Maybe a little too psyched as the wine went down like water (literally) during our pregame at Toro Bravo.  Once inside the Wonder it was all smiles at my favorite venue in PDX bumping into random phriends that we only see at such shows.   

I wasn’t enamored with the opener but all was forgotten when “Radar Blip” dropped.  The next highlight of the show was the song I wanted to hear most.  When the unmistakable bass line from “Spock’s” started up I may have injured a few people around me I was going so wild (sorry if you are reading this).  Keyboardist Tom Cleary’s “Twists” was a nice interlude before percussionist Craig Myers picked up the n’goni for “Angatta.”  I have heard MGB rip The Beatles’ “She Said” several times and this one was no different with guitarist Scott Murawski building up a big jam. 

The second set took off like a rocket with nearly 22 minutes of “Surface > Meat > Long Black Line” and it never let up.  “Peel” was the longest jam of the night at 13 minutes and its creepy vibe, for lack of a better term, is pure Mike.  “Another Door” straight ripped as usual and Mofro’s “Mississippi” was a good change of pace after so much intensity.  The segue into “Morphing” was seamless and I’m not sure this band gets enough credit for their quality segues.  Anyway, “Morphing” was another highlight and Alanis Morissette’s “Pocket” was just a setup for the biggest treat of the night, the first “Soulfood Man” since 12/10/11. 

“Soulfood” was the proverbial song I wanted to hear that they would never ever play, so yeah, I was pretty happy.  The encore was 18+ minutes of awesome with a nice jammed out “Yarmouth” and the first MGB version of Little Feat’s “Skin it Back” since 3/18/12.  Considering that one of their tour busses broke down on the overnight drive from San Francisco to Portland, forcing two busses worth of people on to one, the band showed remarkable energy and fluidity under the circumstances.

4) 2/28/14 • Greensky Bluegrass • Eugene, OR • WOW Hall (9^th show)

I: Radio Blues, When Doves Cry, Foggy Mountain Special, Better Off, Broken Highways, White Freightliner Blues, 200 Miles to Montana, All Four, Road to Nowhere

II: Depot Bay, Coming in From the Cold, Train Junkie, Into the Rafters, I’m Still Here, Through the Trees, Gold Rush, Gumboots, Tarpology, Bringing in the Georgia Mail

E: Drink Up and Go Home

I’ll always remember this night since earlier that day we had to put our long time dog Althea down.  Obviously my mind was in a very weird place for this one but when they busted out a 16+ minute version of Prince’s “Doves Cry” I temporarily forgot my grief.  Flatt & Scruggs “Foggy” was the absolute perfect comedown after such a powerful opening jam.  “Broken Highways” was a very fitting song considering the day we had and somewhat put my grief in perspective.  “200 Miles” came next and I was able to forget again since I love that song.  “All Four” stretched to 17 minutes and The Talking Heads’ “Road to Nowhere” closed a strong set down properly.

“Depot Bay” was on the list of songs I really wanted to hear and made for a great opener.  Bob Marley’s “Coming in From the Cold” was a nice setup for the nearly 16-minute “Train Junkie.”  “Rafters” was another tune on my “list” and at this point it seemed like they were tailoring the setlist to my preferences.  Dave Bruzza did a really nice job handling the vocals on John Hartford’s “I’m Still Here.”  Paul Simon’s “Gumboots” was a great call late in the show and set up the final big jammer of the evening, a 13-minute version of “Tarpology.”  Reno and Smiley’s “Georgia Mail” and Freddie Hart’s “Drink Up” were solid closer and encore choices respectively since the real business had already been taken care of.  It was a very fitting way for Althea to be remembered.

3) 10/30/14 • theNEWDEAL • Las Vegas, NV • Brooklyn Bowl (2^nd show)

setlist unknown

If I had a dollar for every person that said to me “You are doing a late night show prior to three nights of Phish?” I’d have been a rich man.  40 is just a number people.  Anyway, without the setlist it’s really hard for me to break down this show.  Suffice it to say tND brought some extreme heat over their two sets, the first of which started just after midnight.  One takeaway from this show besides the music was that the Brooklyn Bowl is a top notch venue.  If you are ever in Sin City you should check it out, even if you aren’t seeing a show.

2) 9/9/14 • Trey Anastasio • Portland, OR • Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (1^st show)

I: First Tube, Frost, Divided Sky, Brian and Robert, Stash, Time Turns Elastic

II: Guyute, Architect, Petrichor*, You Enjoy Myself

E: Water in the Sky

* debut

I’ve seen Trey in several configurations but never before with a full orchestra backing him.  I rolled solo for this show although I knew plenty of people in attendance.  There’s something I really enjoy about seeing shows alone and being completely in charge of my own destiny, but I digress.  I had second row seats for this one just off center to the right and I couldn’t have asked for anything better.  All the post-show reports of chattiness and rude phans not paying attention had zero affect on me.  I literally did not hear them at all.

When “First Tube” dropped I immediately understood this would be a different, almost once in a lifetime, experience.  The power of the full orchestra was truly something to behold, especially from so close up.  “Divided Sky” worked as perfectly in the orchestral setting as “First Tube” did.  “Brain and Robert” was the biggest surprise of the evening in terms of songs that I never thought I’d hear with an orchestra.  “Stash” brought things back to the “composer level” and I even saw some of the players shooting glances at each other like “this is more difficult than I thought it would be.” 

Everyone knew “TTE” was coming and I guess a good portion of the crowd didn’t even give it a chance.  From my seat I totally enjoyed it and got a full understanding of how Trey really did write it for this setting.  “Guyute” also shone brightly with bits of “My Friend” worked in here and there.  The highlight of the night by far for me was the debut performance of “Petrichor.”  I could not believe how good it sounded and it gave me a new appreciation for Trey’s musical genius.  Just the fact that he could think up something like that is impressive enough, much less pull it off with aplomb. 

“YEM” was as good as you’d expect it to be but “Petrichor” almost made “YEM” anticlimactic, if that’s really possible.  “Water” was mailed in to me but a lot of the players looked tired by then so I understood.  A good friend of mine stealth recorded this show and I’ve heard that it came out pretty good.  Here’s to hoping he (cough::Dean::cough) finds the time to post it this year.  It’s really too good to never hear again.

1) 11/14/14 • Southern Soul Assembly • Eugene, OR • McDonald Theatre (1^st show)

Baton Rouge, The Sun is Shining Down, Back to Mississippi, The Meeting, Shine, Hide & Seek, Another Way to Dance, Karmic Debt, Let Me Leave, Brighter Days, Marmalade > Jamaica Nights > Marmalade, Yard Man, Home, She’s on Fire, Summertime in New Orleans, Shake > Mannish Boy > Shake

E: Annabel, ???, Lochloosa, For All We Know

This was my first fully seated show at the McDonald…in maybe ever.  It really didn’t detract from the show at all, in fact, it probably enhanced it.  I had no expectations for what SSA would bring to the table and that’s probably a factor in why I was so blown away, but let me backup a bit.

SSA is J.J. Grey, Luther Dickinson, Anders Osborne and Marc Broussard.  The story goes that it was Grey’s idea to get some of his fellow Southerners together to try and capture the ambiance of sitting around a campfire, telling stories and singing songs.  Well let me tell you, it worked, and probably better than J.J. could have ever imagined.

Broussard was the only guy that I wasn’t familiar with and he opened the festivities with a cover of Frankie Miller’s “Baton Rouge.”  He pulled it off so perfectly that the audience was immediately drawn in giving the stage their full attention.  The guys on stage were equally impressed since Marc had just heard the song for the first time earlier that day.  Grey went next but Anders stole his thunder by claiming he was sick (he did sound terrible) and then absolutely belting out “Back to Mississippi.”  To hear him talk and sound like death and then sing like a complete mad man and sound so good was amazing.  That made two big highlights for me in the first three songs if you are keeping score.

Luther went next and that is how they proceeded all night until the encore, Marc > J.J. > Anders > Luther.  Osborne and Dickinson were the clear MVPs since they were constantly changing instruments to back the others up.  Luther played a lot of bass, some mandolin and a single string on a can thing while Anders switched between electric axes.  The chatter amongst the musicians on stage was pretty funny at times and they weren’t afraid to involve the audience in the banter either.

The next big highlight for me was Luther doing “Yard Man.”  Let me just say that I can relate to the story he told prior and to the lyrics of the song.  It’s almost like he wrote it about me!  Anders’ “Summertime” was also good but his voice started to fail a little toward the end.  The “Shake” sandwich around Muddy Waters “Mannish Boy” was really a nice way to close it out with Grey killing “Boy.”

The encore started with Anders doing his second ballad of the evening and then moved to Luther doing an instrumental.  J.J. saved the best for last absolutely slaughtering his anthem “Lochloosa.”  It’s not a stretch to say that Broussard has the best sheer pipes of the bunch and he decided to show them off for the final tune of the evening.  He stepped to lip of the stage without a mic and belted out John Coots’ “For All We Know” straight a cappella without any instrumentation from the other guys.  It was a ballsy move but he managed to pull it off.

Overall I’d say Anders won over a ton of new fans in Eugene and he’d be wise to come back soon to capitalize on that.  The peeps of Eugene already loved Luther and he only enhanced that reputation with his versatility and showmanship.  Marc was the most unknown of the group (to me at least) and he made a definite impression with his string of heartfelt songs.  The biggest kudos have to go to J.J. though.  Not only was it his idea, but he handpicked the players and made it happen as well.  He also was able to supplant his ego being that he wasn’t the most talented guy on the stage by any means.  I feel fortunate to have seen this bunch of guys in this setting.  It’s not something I’ll soon forget.

Top 2 Phish Shows

2) 12/31/14 • Miami, FL • American Airlines Arena (157^th show)

I: Sample in a Jar, The Wedge, 555, Heavy Things, Wolfman’s Brother, Halfway to the Moon, Bouncing Around the Room, Kill Devil Falls, Train Song, Waiting All Night, Axilla, A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing

II: Birds of a Feather, Ghost > Theme From the Bottom > Cities > Chalk Dust Torture, Martian Monster

III: Dem Bones* > Auld Lang Syne, The Dogs, Tweezer, Simple > Limb By Limb, Bug, Backwards Down the Number Line, The Horse > Silent in the Morning, Julius

E: Golgi Apparatus, Tweezer Reprise

* debut

It was great to be back in Miami for the third time on New Year’s Eve.  There’s something to be said for seeing a show in shorts and a t-shirt while everyone back home is freezing.  We had great seats straight on in the lower bowl just left of center (thanks Dean).  The first set really didn’t have much to write home about other than a phunky mid-set “Wolfman’s” and a top-notch version of “ASIHTOS” to close the set.

When “Birds” kicked off set two it seemed like maybe NYE wouldn’t pack that much punch but then “Ghost” started up and that notion went right out the window.  This “Ghost” featured two distinct jam sections over its 16+ minutes before a buttery smooth segue led into “Theme.”  This was no ordinary “Theme” though as the boys created a rocking jam after the composed section and took it for a nice ride.  As the jam was winding down you could hear Trey was trying to lead the rest of the band somewhere and the transition into The Talking Heads’ “Cities” was expertly pulled off (again).  After a nice phunk workout the boys had one more solid segue left in them and “Chalk Dust” closed down 48+ minutes of “Grade A” Phish.  The set could have ended there and most people would have been happy but the second ever version of “Martian Monster” was a much better choice to get people ready for the countdown to come.

James Johnson’s “Bones” was used as the setup for the NYE “gag,” if you want to call it that.  After singing “Bones” barbershop quartet style Fish stepped up to the vacuum for a solo only to have his Electrolux get stuck to his face.  After a few minutes of trying to pull it off Mike had the idea to flip the switch on the vacuum “from suck to blow.”  As luck would have it that worked and there was a big explosion and then a giant balloon of Fishman ascending to the ceiling of the arena during “Auld Lang Syne.”  When “The Dogs” started up a massive amount of balloons dropped from the ceiling creating a classic NYE scene all over AAA.

The meat of the third set was a 17-minute “Tweezer” that had the whole place moving in unison.  “Simple > LxL” was the last highlight of the evening as the rest of the third set kind of fizzled from there with several questionable song choices in a row.  That said, the run from “ASIHTOS” through “LxL” was high-quality Phish well worth the price of admission.  With a visit to the rage cage and a Heavy Pets sunrise show yet to come the night was still young as we exited on to Biscayne Boulevard.

1) 10/31/14 • Las Vegas, NV • MGM Grand Garden Arena (154^th show)

I: Buried Alive, Ghost, Scent of a Mule, Sample in a Jar, Reba, 46 Days, Big Black Furry Creature From Mars, Lawn Boy, Saw it Again, Tube, Wolfman’s Brother

II: The Haunted House*, The Very Long Fuse*, The Dogs*, Timber*, Your Pet Cat*, Shipwreck*, The Unsafe Bridge*, The Chinese Water Torture*, The Birds*, Martian Monster*

III: Punch You in the Eye, Golden Age > Tweezer > Heavy Things, Guyute, Sand > Tweezer Reprise

E: Is This What You Wanted*, Frankenstein**

* debut

** last time played 7/1/12 (100 shows)

Any write up about this show has to start with the madness that was getting in.  It was like three huge lanes of people that had to merge into one check point, just utter chaos.  Our delay getting in caused us to miss out on getting a Phishbill but luckily for me Angel had an extra that she was willing to part with post show.  Once inside we settled into our straight-on seats in the lower level (thanks Mom) and were ready to rock.

As opposed to the first set from 10/31/13 this show got started right away with Halloween themed tunes.  “Buried Alive” was a very fitting opener and the second slot “Ghost” almost reached 10 minutes.  You could kind of already tell that something special was afoot and the antics in a 10+ minute “Mule” did nothing to derail the momentum.  “Reba” was well placed and juxtaposed a hard rocking “46 Days” really well.  The first “BBFCFM” in 87 shows continued the Halloween theme and by “Lawn Boy” we needed a break. 

I was totally pumped to hear “Saw it Again” and even though I wish they would have stretched it out some the drop into “Tube” made me immediately move on from that thought.  A 10+ minute and very strong version of “Wolfman’s” made it five Halloween themed songs in set one so I was satisfied on multiple levels.

At set break we borrowed someone else’s Phishbill for a minute but somehow all we got out of it was that Phish was improvising a score to a fictitious haunted house.  “Cool” we thought, but not really someone else’s album.  It wasn’t until after the show that we realized they actually covered “Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House,” a Disney album from 1964.  It didn’t really matter because once the stage was transformed into a graveyard with a giant haunted house in the middle that was all we could talk about. 

The musical cover set started with a creepy voice over about a haunted house delivered by a ghoulish lady that emerged from Esther’s tomb.  When the band started playing “The Haunted House” you could tell they were inside the house on the stage but we couldn’t see them…yet anyway.  It wasn’t until the end of “The Very Long Fuse” that the top of the haunted house collapsed to reveal the band inside.  They were wearing zombie makeup, white tuxedos and performing facing each other rather than the crowd.

After everyone was done cheering like crazy the in between song narration started up again and they tore into “The Dogs” and it was really on.  During all these songs Page was triggering the actual sound effects from the album on his keyboard at various strategic points during their playing and it worked really well.  When the screeching of “Your Pet Cat” started up I have to admit I was thinking “Wild dogs and now cats, how cheesy.”  But I was very wrong as “Cat” erupted into a straight up dance party.  The entire MGM could not get enough and it was during this song that a switch flipped in my head and I “got it.”  I fully understood what they were doing and appreciated it even more.

The closing trio of songs really brought things home in style.  “The Chinese Water Torture” was the somewhat mellow setup for the power of “The Birds.”  “The Birds” hit hard and kept on hitting with many well timed “They Attack” effects from Page.  By this point EVERYONE in the place was going absolutely bonkers and “Martian Monster” would take that energy and double down on it.  The sound bite in its entirety was “Due to the incredible speed of your rocket, your trip is short.”  Trey decided to vamp on the “Your trip is short” portion and he did it oh so well.  All the other songs were between 4-6 minutes but “The Birds” went to 9+ and “Martian” made 14.  The band was having so much fun with our trip being short that it seemed like they didn’t want to leave the stage, and we didn’t want them to either, but as with all things it had to end.

At set break looking around the arena all there were was jaws on the floor and people looking at each like “What just happened?” and we still had another set to go!  It’s been a while since I was at a Phish show were I knew history was being made in the moment and what made this show different was that EVERYONE knew the same in real time.

“PYITE” was the perfect third set opener taking the crowd’s intensity and boomeranging it around the intimate MGM.  TV on the Radio’s “Golden Age” transformed the place into a dance party and then “Tweezer” straight up imploded the building.  I have to admit I was hoping for something better than “Heavy Things” next but the band pulled off the transition so smoothly that I couldn’t complain.  “Guyute” was another questionable call to me but there was no questioning that they played it well and kept the energy pulsating.

When “Sand” started up I had high hopes and “The Phish from Vermont” delivered a version that was better than I could have expected.  Clocking in at 18 minutes and featuring two distinct jam sections it seemed like boys didn’t want to stop playing it, which would have been fine with me and everyone else in attendance.  Eventually they segued into “Reprise” and anything that was left of the roof was completely blown to bits.  

The encore of Leonard Cohen’s “Wanted” probably looked better on paper than it came off but it does contain the line “Is this what you wanted, to live in a house that is haunted” so I smelled what they were cooking.  Edgar Winter’s “Frankenstein” was a perfect capper to the evening before hitting the sheer madness that was the MGM casino floor on Halloween.

Back at Kenny’s Sky Loft after the show all the talk was animated as everyone there realized what had just gone down.  There was some best show ever talk, which may have been a bit too far, but my favorite Halloween experience out of the five I’ve been to was right on the money.  Even after all this typing I don’t think words can ever truly do the second set justice so if you have 1:09:16 to spare check out this YouTube video of the official second set webcast.  You won’t be disappointed.

> The winner of this year’s prestigious and highly coveted NBA-Jam band on the rise award goes to TAUK from Oyster Bay, NY.  They don’t sing but their brand of heavy instrumental rock fusion will you get out of your seat and moving.