Hidden Track

Our second quasi-annual Grateful Dead week rolls on with a look at the most exciting moment of Spring Tour 1990. On March 29 in Uniondale, the Dead were joined by sax star Branford Marsalis for one of the most memorable guest appearances in the band’s history. Marsalis brought out the best in the Dead each […]

While everyone is either off unwrapping presents, drinking eggnog and enjoying some time with their family or figuring out which movie they’ll see followed by chomping down on some Chinese food I figured we’d cut right to the chase and unload a batch of links to get you through the day…. List Time: Stereogum’s 20 […]

We are all familiar with the Grateful Dead’s prowess as an electric rock band, but when the boys unplugged they were also quite the formidable roots-Americana act – deftly moving from folk to country to blues. Their acoustic, electric shows from 1970 (with Jerry also logging in a set playing pedal steel with the New […]

It’s Christmas Eve and I’m stuck at work with no early exit in sight for your old pal. I needed some cheering up this morning and I got it in the form of a forwarded email from Wilco which HT contributor Luke Sacks kindly sent my way. Tweedy and the boys announced that they are […]

Bela Fleck and the Flecktones have scored a genuine hit with Jingle All the Way, a brilliant holiday album that finds the uber-talented quartet interpreting classic Christmas tunes such as Jingle Bells, Silent Night and Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas with typical Flecktone flair. The Flecktones’ impressive version of the 12 Days of Christmas […]

To say that the city of New Orleans has been through a lot in the last few years, would be an understatement. While the Crescent City recovers from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the one constant has been its rich music tradition and its flagship event the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. The fest […]

Yesterday, we kicked off our Second Quasi-Annual Grateful Dead Week with a clip of the jam pioneers’ tender performance of Peggy-O towards the end of their career in 1994. Today, we’ll go back to the band’s peak during the legendary Europe ’72 tour. On April 17, 1972, the Bozos and the Bolos made their first […]

No big surprise last week that our top two candidates were Phish and Neil Young. Over the weekend Phish pulled ahead as the winner of last week’s edition when we looked at covers of The Beatles’ A Day In The Life.

Check your pulse if this video doesn’t make you smile:

This week we look at Hey Bulldog off The Beatles’ 1969 release, Yellow Submarine. Yes, that’s right, we’re doing Beatles’ tunes in back-to-back weeks. Wanna fight about it? Lennon once described this song as a “good sounding record that means nothing.” While this may be true for parts of the verses, I’ve always loved the line, “Some kind of happiness is measured out in miles. What make you think you’re something special when you smile?” I think it’s funny and a little harsh. Also, one of the best basslines ever. For a boat load of fun info check out the song’s entry at The Beatles Bible.

We’ve got a nice mix of artists this round and I’ll say I was surprised at how many versions of this are out there. Once again, I have left off a number of them that I had found.

As always, be sure to register/login to Imeem before starting the playlist below to ensure you stream full-length clips.

READ ON after the jump for the details on this week’s competitors…

On Friday and Saturday at NYC’s Terminal 5, The Beatles’ last three albums will be recreated live with a level of authenticity the legendary quartet couldn’t even dream of when they recorded the White Album, Abbey Road and Let It Be in the late ’60s. America’s quintessential Beatles tribute band, The Fab Faux, have studied these recordings backwards and forwards since the LPs came out and have been working out their brilliant live arrangements of the classic tracks since the NYC-based quintet got together in 1998.

After completing 2008 with this weekend’s “The Final Three” concerts at Terminal 5, the Fab Faux gear up for an action-packed 2009 jammed with performances across the country. The Faux head west in late January for gigs at the Celebrity Theater in Phoenix on the 23rd and the Orpheum Theater in L.A. on the 24th before returning east for shows at the Forum Auditorium in Harrisburg on February 14 and Glenside, PA’s Keswick Theater on March 21. We spoke with Fab Faux/David Letterman House Band bassist Will Lee about the Terminal 5 shows and what the future holds for the Faux. READ ON for the HT interview with Will Lee…

‘Tis the season for gift giving and the fellas from Umphrey’s have kicked down quite the stocking stuffer. Head to the band’s download portal, Umlive.Net, to download a free holiday EP of never-before-released material spanning holiday shows from the last few years. The Chicago-based sextet and their organization sent this note to fans announcing the gift…

Dear Friends,

The holidays are upon us and after enjoying a good balance of work and play at Holidaze, our preparations continue to ensure we close out the year in style. While the palm trees and white sandy beaches of Chicago in December aren’t quite as nice as those in Jamaica, we couldn’t be more excited to celebrate the end of 2008 with fans, friends and family in our beloved hometown.

As we said in the Umphdate that announced Mantis, we are eternally grateful to have your support, and are humbled by your relentless dedication and energy. Thank you so much for making it possible for us to do what we do. In appreciation, we’ve decided to give away a free holiday EP of never-before-released material spanning holiday shows from the last few years. Please click here for the free download. If you already have a umlive.net account just add the tracks to your shopping cart and download. If you don’t have an account, signing up is free and fast after you add the gift to your cart. Please, please, please tell your friends as we’d like to put this in the hands of everyone, but we would appreciate if you would send them to UMLive.net to sign up and download rather then sending the files yourself through email or by file sharing.

READ ON for the rest of the band’s note to their fans…