2008

Fasten your seatbelts, kiddies… How will this all go down? We’ll FINALLY find out shortly…

Is the Mothership preparing to host the most important gigs in the 25-year history of Phish? According to the Merry Swankster, the quartet is on the verge of announcing a

I’m going to go ahead and declare a tie from our edition two weeks ago with The Bridge and Mr. Blotto refusing to quit as the votes go higher and higher – so we’ll call them both winners from when we looked at covers of Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys. Last week’s however has a clear winner, no big surprise here as Jerry Garcia & David Grisman received the majority of votes when we examined covers of Sitting In Limbo.

This week, we look at the title track off of a Buddy Miles album from 1970: Them Changes. While not as well known as the version on Band Of Gypsies, the studio cut features a funky groove with a horn section whereas the live Hendrix cut is more of your straight power-trio rocker. What’s great about this week’s Cover Wars is that we’ve got some bands with horns that play the lines from the studio recording and some guitar bands that are a little closer to the version most people know. Lots of good guitar work this week.

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READ ON to cast a vote for your favorite Them Changes cover…

I was all set for a great night of music on Wednesday. Three bands that I have never heard of or seen. Well, not true, really. I had heard of Liam Finn, but never experienced his music. I had done quick Myspace and YouTube searches and came up with a thumbnail synopsis of how he does what he does. With his use of loops and drums and guitar, all in all a pretty unique sound. It made me look forward to his portion of the show.

But first, there were two other bands to open the festivities. I purposely didn’t check either of them out ahead of time. Surprise me, I thought. Give me your best shot, let’s see how you rock and roll.

The venue for tonight was the Doug Fir Lounge. Originally a diner attached to a motel, the Doug Fir underwent a major overhaul a few years ago and became one of the premier smaller halls in Portland. The diner still functions as it was originally designed, and the motel still rents rooms with a unique catch. Obviously knowing their clientèle, the managers turned Room 117 into a retail establishment where guests may purchase any of a myriad of sex toys, videos and the like.

Below the parking lot, on the street level is a tattoo parlor. Upstairs, next to the diner is the cocktail lounge and below that, the concert hall Looking like the inside of a log cabin (Made from, of all things, Douglas fir) the room has a nice feel and great acoustics. The best seats in the house are on the steps, just below the sound booth. Perfect sound and view above the bouncing heads on the floor, plus an easy shot around the corner back to the bar. Nice digs all around and SO Portland.

READ ON for A.J.’s thoughts on the three acts in question…

This past Sunday night in Montreal, Vermont’s Grace Potter treated the stunned crowd at Petit Campus to a first-time played cover of My Morning Jacket’s Golden. While her band, The

I appreciate live music for many, many reasons, not the least of which is the uniqueness of the performance. Not that the artist has not performed the material a million times in front of audiences more or less identical to each other. But on any given night, something can occur that hasn’t ever been seen before. The band could pull out a cherished song they usually don’t play live. There may be a cover tune or holiday treat that may not be appropriate elsewhere or at another time. Admit it, the first time you heard Springsteen and The E Streeters giggle their way through Santa Claus is Coming To Town, you wished you had been there that December night in Syracuse.

The audience at Edgefield Manor on Saturday night was treated to just such an event. The surprise this night was the opening act and its interaction with the headliner. John Callahan and his trio, aptly named Callahan began the show shortly after six on a simply perfect early autumn night. John Callahan is well known around Portland and the world as the irreverent underground cartoonist, whose weekly single panel strip often deals with the less than perfect side of life. A quadriplegic since a 1972 accident, the author of such black humored titles as He Won’t Get Far On Foot and Will The Real John Callahan Please Stand Up? is also a singer songwriter with one release to his credit, 2006’s The Liberator.

Callahan’s songs tend toward the darks side, much like his cartoons. Suicide and tears and memories of his Portland girl filled lyrics behind well crafted, almost bluegrass melodies. Jim James came onstage and joined in for a few songs on acoustic guitar and background vocals (the aforementioned uniqueness factor) and the pair harmonized like they were brothers. Callahan commented that one song in particular felt like having feeling in his legs. Live music magic, right there, my friends.

READ ON for A.J.’s thoughts on My Morning Jacket’s set…

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