Photos by Robert Massie of the Derek Trucks Band performance at the Odeon in Cleveland OH, January 19, 2006. For more of Robert’s work see: jampics
Aloneaphobe is Steven Mark
The absolute highlight of this night from either band was the monstrous Pink Floyd masterpiece of "Echoes" that closed the set.
Television guitarist/vocalist Tom Verlaine will simultaneously release two new albums this spring. “Around,” a 16-track set in the vein of the 1992 instrumental album “Warm and Cool,” and “Songs and Other Things,” Verlaine’s first “vocal” release since 1990’s “The Wonder,” will arrive in late April via Thrill Jockey.
“Around” features drumming Television’s Billy Ficca on several tracks, highlighted by the beautiful, late-night instrumental “Eighty Eights,” the strutting, nearly honky-tonk “Wheel Broke” and guitar-only exercises like “Mountain.” Elsewhere, bass-aided cuts like “Balcony” wouldn’t sound out of place on an album from Verlaine’s new Thrill Jockey labelmate Tortoise.
As for the 14-song “Songs and Other Things,” it finds Verlaine dabbling on bass in tandem with Television’s Fred Smith. Among the notable tracks here are the genial “From Her Fingers,” the snaking guitar lines of “The Day on You” and the confident rock of “All Weirded Out,” which bears the unmistakable lineage of vintage Television.
Verlaine is planning to debut a live band in New York in late April or early May in advance of his first world tour in more than 10 years. As for Television, Verlaine told Billboard.com last year the group had “about seven [new songs] nearly ready to record” but added, “I have no idea who for — what label, that is.”
Source billboard.com.
An upcoming four-day music and film event in New York is being touted as the biggest Earth Day (April 22) celebration in the United States. The inaugural Green Apple Music & Arts festival will get underway on April 20 with the sixth annual The inaugural Green Apple Music & Arts festival will get underway on April 20 with the sixth annual Jammy Awards and will continue through April 23 in 20 venues throughout the city.
Although participating artists have not yet been announced, organizers Peter Shapiro and Relix magazine promise 50 shows ranging from rock, blues, folk and world music. Concerts will be held at such venues as Carnegie Hall, Irving Plaza, the Blue Note, B.B. King’s, Nokia Theater, the Bitter End, the Bowery Ballroom and the Knitting Factory. Details will be listed on Greenapplemusicfestival.com.
The Jammys are scheduled to take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. The event will include an all-star tribute to Frank Zappa, who will be posthumously honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
“The Green Apple Music & Arts Festival was created to raise the visibility and awareness of Earth Day,” says Shapiro, who owned the environmentally focused New York venue Wetlands Preserve. “What better way to celebrate Earth Day than to bring it to every major music venue in New York?”
The festival is being put together in conjunction with the non-profit Earth Day New York. That organization will stage its annual EarthFair April 21-22 outside of the city’s Grand Central Terminal, which will also feature free family entertainment and musical performances.
Additionally, the film festival will be held April 23 at the American Museum of Natural History and a series of children’s events is being planned.
Throughout the Green Apple Music & Arts Festival, attendees will receive information on environmental issues and causes at each venue.
If things go well, Shapiro and Relix intend to stage the festival in multiple cities in the future. “We want to spread awareness to people who aren’t already environmental experts,” adds Relix president/publisher Steven Bernstein. “We want to make them aware of what they can do in their daily routine that will make a difference to the environment.”
Source billboard.com.
egendary rock trio Cream, which reunited last year for a handful of concerts in London and New York after a bitter breakup in 1968, has scheduled more shows, according to vocalist/bassist Jack Bruce.
But don’t expect a world tour. Rather, Bruce says he, guitarist Eric Clapton and drummer Ginger Baker will set up camp in select cities for multiple dates, just as they did last year.
“What we feel is that it’s so special, and also so emotionally draining that it’s not something we could do every day,” he says. “We will play more, but where and when I’m not at liberty to say.” He declined to say when an official announcement might be made, joking that he would “get chopped” if he said anything.
Bruce is in Los Angeles to accept a lifetime achievement award for Cream at tonight’s (Feb. 8) Grammy Awards. He will be the group’s sole representative, saying Clapton had other commitments, while it was impractical for Baker to leave his farm in South Africa.
Prior to last year, Cream hadn’t played live since its 1993 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the spring, the group grossed $3.6 million from four sell-outs at London’s Royal Albert Hall. An Oct. 24-26 run at New York’s Madison Square Garden grossed more than $10.6 million and drew 56,151 people, according to venue officials.
Bruce says he is less explosive in his old age, and the band know better how to handle problems, but there remains an underlying, brotherly tension with Baker. On the other hand, he describes Clapton as “the most beautiful, kindest, most understanding guy that I’ve come across.”
Source billboard.com.
On the heels of the recently released Taught To Be Proud, San Francisco’s Tea Leaf Green has announced a March tour.
The album, released in November ’05 on Reincarnate, comes on the heels of an epic year of growth for TLG. The band’s mid-afternoon Bonnaroo set attracted an estimated crowd of 10,000 people, and the buzz has been swelling ever since. Recently, the band has sold out shows in Chicago, Denver, Minneapolis, and others.
Current confirmed tour dates include:
February 17 Belly Up Taven Solana Beach CA
February 18 14 Below Santa Monica CA
February 19 Coach House San Juan Capistrano CA
March 01 Grey Eagle Asheville NC
March 03 The 5 Spot Atlanta GA
March 04 Barley’s Knoxville TN
March 05 Local 506 Chapel Hill NC
March 07 Alley Katz Richmond VA
March 08 State Theatre Falls Church VA
March 09-10 The Knitting Factory New York NY
March 11 NXNW Philadelphia PA
March 12 8×10 Baltimore MD
March 14 The Haunt Ithaca NY
March 15 Iron Horse Music Hall Northampton MA
March 16 The Paradise Boston MA
March 18 Wiseguys Lake Placid NY
March 19 Toad’s Place New Haven CT
March 21 Crowbar State College PA
March 22 Mr. Smalls Theatre Millvale PA
March 23 Milestones Rochester NY
March 24 El Mocambo Toronto ON
March 25 Town Ballroom Buffalo NY
More dates to be announced. Visit tealeafgreen.com for more information.
Galactic is proud to announce the upcoming 2006 Coup De Gras Midwest Tour. The spring run is an extension of February’s Coup De Gras Tour, which was inspired by New Orleans’ annual celebration of Mardi Gras. The tour will feature openers throughout that represent an eclectic mix of funk, rock and the best that the Crescent-City has to offer. Each stop will be a unique New Orleans’-style celebration centered around Galactic’s progressive funk. Kicking off in Augusta, GA on March 29th, the tour winds north through the Midwest, making stops in Nashville, Chicago and Minneapolis, before heading back south and culminating with a pair of shows in Atlanta, GA on April 21st & 22nd.
Opening for several dates in the middle of the tour, percussionist Mike Dillon adds his rock/latin/jazz fused combo, aptly dubbed Mike Dillon’s GoGo Jungle, to the mix. Also Les Claypool’s percussionist and often a live collaborator with Galactic, Dillon’s unique style adds to Galactic’s progressive funk like no other and makes for a must-see experience. Memphis natives The Gamble Brothers Band bring their mix of old-school Memphis R&B and southern rock to the first third of the tour. New Orleans’ own Dirty Dozen Brass Band will open on April 2nd in Indianapolis, IN, joining Galactic for a very special night of funk and collaborations. One of the most prolific brass bands ever to emerge from New Orleans, their one-night-only performance with Galactic will be a true representation of the musical talent and diversity New Orleans has to offer. The final tour dates will include the Rebirth Brass Band, one of the Crescent-City’s most well-known and loved acts.
CONFIRMED TOUR DATES BELOW:
MARCH
29 The Mission Augusta, GA *
30 City Hall Nashville, TN *
31 Headliners Louisville, KY *
APRIL
1 Michigan Theatre Ann Arbor, MI *
2 Music Mill Indianapolis, IN **
5 Opera House Toronto, ON ***
6 Mr. Smalls Pittsburgh, PA ***
7 Beachland Ballroom Cleveland, OH ***
8 The Intersection Grand Rapids, MI ***
9 Barrymore Theatre Madison, WI ***
11 Canopy Hall Urbana, IL ****
12 Memorial Union Ballroom Iowa City, IA ****
13 Cabooze Minneapolis, MN ****
14 The Vic Theatre Chicago, IL ****
15 Copper Dragon Carbondale, IL ****
20 Sogo Live Baton Rouge, LA
21 & 22 Roxy Theatre Atlanta, GA
* – Gamble Brothers Band supporting
** – Dirty Dozen Brass Band supporting
*** – Mike Dillon’s GoGo Jungle supporting
**** – The Rebirth Brass Band supporting
