2005

The Rex Foundation, otherwise known as the philanthropic wing of the Grateful Dead, paid tribute to its fallen leader Saturday evening at the Greek Theater in Berkeley, California. Although a decade has passed since Jerry Garcia’s death, the sold-out Comes a Time: A Celebration of the Music & Spirit of Jerry Garcia concert is the first major event to honor him, with all proceeds going to the Rex, formed by the Dead in 1983.

The six-hour show kicked off on a beautiful, clear day near the announced 5 p.m. start time, when, paying homage to Garcia’s bluegrass roots, a stripped down, acoustic performance from David Nelson, Sandy Rothman and Zion Godchaux featured classic Jerry fare like “Oh, Babe, It Ain’t No Lie” and “Oh, the Wind and Rain.”

Following was a newly configured String Cheese Incident, also with keyboardist Jeff Chimenti, from Bob Weir’s band, who rode through Garcia chestnuts like “Friend of the Devil,” “Catfish John” and “Ripple.”

Keeping the chronological theme, a tribute was paid to Garcia’s longtime side project, the Jerry Garcia Band. Former cohort, pianist Melvin Seals along with vocalists Jackie and Gloria were joined by Dark Star Orchestra guitarist and vocalist John Kadlecik for a set which included “Cats Under the Stars” and in closing, an explosive “Deal” with Warren Haynes on guitar and Bill Kreutzman on drums. As was the case all night, each song played was one traditionally sung and associated with Garcia.

Next up were Bob Weir and his band, Ratdog. They ripped through a set which included “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo,” “Big Railroad Blues,” and “Bird Song.”

Master percussionist and longtime member of the Dead’s circle, Hamza El Din lead all in the house through an invocation in the spirit of Garcia, before giving up the stage to what was officially billed as the Tribute to Jerry Garcia. Weir’s band acted as the house band for a guest-laden set of cherished compositions, which also featured vocalist Donna Jean Godchaux and Garcia’s dear pal, Merl Saunders. Trey Anastasio joined the group along with Bruce Hornsby for a reading of “Help on the Way,” the classic 1976 tune, while Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, and String Cheese’s Michael Kang took turns with the former Phish frontman playing with the house band, before being joined by the Dead’s original drumming section of Kreutzman and Mickey Hart.

Many fans forget that Hornsby spent time in 1990 and 1991 as one half of the bands keyboard chair (along with Vince Welnick). His rendering of “Standing on the Moon” with Anastasio was among the show’s best moments.

Following a trifecta encore of “Brokedown Palace,” the finishing up of the “Dark Star” started earlier in the set and the band’s late phase anthem “Touch of Grey,” Hart addressed the crowd and as he did ten years earlier at Garcia’s memorial, by posing a combination challenge and request. “Take this feeling we all share home,” he said, “and do something with it!”

Source rollingstone.com.

Altitude Records is proud to announce that Matt Pond PA will be joining forces with both Liz Phair and Guster for their respective fall tours. The tour gets underway with Liz Phair for an October run that will span 14 cities from the east coast through the Midwest. That tour kicks off October 6th in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, and will include stops in New York, Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia. Following the stint with Liz Phair, Matt Pond PA will continue the fall tour supporting Guster on dates through November. The Guster leg begins October 28th in Charleston, IL, and will ultimately head back east, culminating with a show at the new Nokia Theatre Times Square in New York City on November 18th.

While on tour the band will celebrate the release of their next studio album, Several Arrows Later, due out October 11th on Altitude Records. Recorded this past winter, the new songs are urgent, rocking compositions that frame Pond’s imagistic and evocative lyrics and come together as Matt Pond PA’s finest record to date. The music is already
making major waves in the music press on both sides of the Atlantic. Rolling Stone recently named the band as one of this year’s “Ten Artists To Watch”, while The Sunday London Times raved, “Pond’s wonderful Robert Smith meets Peter Gabriel meets Conor Oberst voice is shot through with wistfulness.”

Although Matt Pond PA has more than enough to keep busy for months to come, they’re already hard at work on their winter schedule. Following a trip to the UK in the late fall, the band will commence a nationwide tour at the end of January 2006.

CONFIRMED TOUR DATES WITH LIZ PHAIR

OCTOBER
6 Revolution Ft. Lauderdale, FL
7 House of Blues Orlando, FL
8 Jannus Landing Tampa, FL
10 Roxy Theatre Atlanta, GA
12 9:30 Club Washington DC
14 Avalon Boston, MA
16 Theater of the Living Arts Philadelphia, PA
17 & 18 Irving Plaza New York, NY
20 U of Buffalo Center for the Arts Buffalo, NY
22 Caf

Immediately following his performances at the Vegoose festival (October 28th

An exclusive track featuring Tom Waits and the Kronos Quartet leads the lineup for an upcoming double-disc compilation from clothing retailer Urban Outfitters and Filter magazine. The project will be available in mid-October in 80 Urban Outfitters stores and through the company’s Web site. Proceeds will be donated to Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.

The compilation also features rare or previously unreleased tracks from Death Cab For Cutie, TV On the Radio and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. It will also offers remixes of songs by Beck, Gang Of Four and Calexico, plus album tracks from Grandaddy, Sigur Ros and British Sea Power. Only 10,000 copies will be made available, from which the companies hope to raise $150,000 for the American Red Cross.

The benefit sprang from another Filter/Urban Outfitters partnership earlier this year, when the two companies released a double-disc for tsunami relief, featuring Hot Hot Heat, Wilco, Franz Ferdinand and Interpol.

Waits’ “Little Drop of Poison,” sans Kronos Quartet, also appeared on the “Shrek 2 Soundtrack” (2004).

Here is the “Filter Magazine/Urban Outfitters Hurricane Benefit Compilation” track list:

“Little Drop of Poison” (previously unreleased), Tom Waits w/ the Kronos Quartet
“Dry Drunk Emperor” (previously unreleased), TV On the Radio
“Natural

Dave Matthews Band has scheduled a short run of dates to close out 2005. The trek will begin Nov. 26 in Minneapolis and run through Dec. 15 in Boston. Opening acts include Soulive, Gavin DeGraw and former Soul Coughing frontman Mike Doughty.

Before the tour, Matthews will play solo Oct. 28 at the Vegoose Festival in Las Vegas and Oct. 30 at the Bridge School Benefit concert in Mountain View, Calif.

Nov. 26: Minneapolis (Target Center)
Nov. 27: Omaha, Neb. (Qwest Center)
Nov. 29: Madison, Wis. (Kohl Center)
Nov. 30: Champaign, Ill. (Assembly Hall)
Dec. 3: Detroit (Joe Louis Arena)
Dec. 4: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Dec. 6: State College, Pa. (Bryce Jordan Center)
Dec. 7: Rochester, N.Y. (Blue Cross Arena)
Dec. 9-10: New York (Madison Square Garden)
Dec. 12: Manchester, N.H. (Verizon Wireless Arena)
Dec. 13: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center)
Dec. 15: Boston (TD Banknorth Garden)

Source: billboard

Dave Matthews, Norah Jones and Bright Eyes lead the lineup for the 19th annual Bridge School Benefit concerts, to be held Oct. 29-30 at Shoreline Amphitheatre outside San Francisco. Event founder Neil Young will also perform with his CSNY bandmates David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash.

Among the other acts set to appear are Jerry Lee Lewis, Emmylou Harris, Good Charlotte and Los Lobos, as well as guests to be announced. Tickets go on sale Sunday (Sept. 25), according to the show’s official Web site.

The shows traditionally feature stripped-down performances and rare collaborations from some of rock’s biggest names, including Bruce Springsteen, the Who, Paul McCartney, Elton John, David Bowie and Pearl Jam. Sources say several of these artists are being asked to perform at the Bridge School’s 20th anniversary, which will be held in October 2006.

The Hillsborough, Calif.-based Bridge School, which Young founded with his wife Pegi, assists children with severe physical disabilities. Students from the school can routinely be found taking in the concerts from the stage each year.

Source billboard.com.

After nearly fifteen years of promises, Neil Young is now confident that a slew of material from his vaults will begin to see the light of day in 2006. With his latest album, Prairie Wind, out next week, the rock legend is planning several eight-disc sets packed with outtakes, home recordings, album tracks, live cuts and DVDs.

“It starts with my earliest recordings in 1963,” says Young. “Then several recordings with a group called the Squires, into the earliest Buffalo Springfield stuff. Then there’s a live record culled from a week’s worth of performances at the Riverboat in Toronto.”

Fans can expect a 1970 show at Toronto’s Massey Hall, featuring material from Harvest a year before its release, as well as Crazy Horse live at the Fillmore East. “It’s got a sixteen-minute ‘Cowgirl in the Sand,'” Young says of the Fillmore gig, “and a super-long ‘Down by the River.'”

One live performance, the rock vet is convinced, trumps the original recording: the entirety of Tonight’s the Night, recorded live at London’s Rainbow Theatre. Says Young, “It’s better than the record.”

Source rollingstone.com.

Rock act Garbage will take “an indefinite break” after its Australian tour ends Oct. 1 in Perth. “We’re taking a hiatus — I don’t know if we’re calling it a day,” singer Shirley Manson told the Melbourne Herald Sun. A group spokesperson had no comment on the developments.

Rumors have been circulating that things were not right in the Garbage camp after the band cancelled European dates scheduled after the Australian tour.

Band members admitted Garbage almost broke up during the making of its latest album, “Bleed Like Me,” but later insisted they were thrilled with the finished product. “Because we were on the verge of losing it all, we made the album of our career,” drummer Butch Vig told Billboard. “We feel completely rejuvenated.”

The set debuted in April at a career-best No. 4 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 245,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. It spawned the band’s first top 10 Modern Rock hit since 1998 with “Why Do You Love Me,” which reached No. 8.

“We’ve not stopped for 10 years,” Manson told the newspaper. “We always swore if it wasn’t 100% fun, we’d stop it.”

Source billboard.com.