2009

The producers of the two-night extravaganza at Madison Square Garden to celebrate the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s 25th Anniversary promised tons on surprises and they came through in a big way. From the moment special guest Jerry Lee Lewis kicked things off with Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On through the all-star finale of Darlene Love, John Fogerty, Tom Morello, Billy Joel, Jackson Browne, Peter Wolf and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performing (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher to end things well after midnight, night one was a full-on blowout.

Just check out the incredible setlist [via NY Times]:

Jerry Lee Lewis :
Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On

Crosby, Stills and Nash:
Woodstock
Marrakech Express
Almost Cut My Hair

Bonnie Raitt with David Crosby and Graham Nash:
Love Has No Pride

Bonnie Raitt and Crosby, Stills and Nash:
Midnight Rider

READ ON for the rest of last night’s setlist…

The Black Crowes are putting out a DVD documenting their experience recording Before the Frost…Until the Freeze at Levon Helm’s studio in Woodstock and it looks fantastic. The DVD hits

One of our favorite bands, The Band, was far from the most photographed/filmed act in the ’70s as such there aren’t many clips of The Band in action on YouTube. Yet, there are some and the ones that are on YouTube give a great view of this incredible ensemble doing their thing.

This week’s B List presents the ten best The Band vids on YouTube.

1. Don’t Do It (The Academy of Music ’71)

We didn’t know footage existed from the group’s legendary Rock of Ages shows, but this clip of the best Marvin Gaye cover ever is killer.

READ ON for nine more amazing The Band clips…

Kudos and thanks go out to Honest Abe over at Mystic Chords of Memory for compiling and sharing an amazing compilation of Pearl Jam tracks featuring a live version of

Not only will HeadCount be giving away free Ben & Jerry’s at Phish’s Festival 8, but the ice cream makers themselves will also have their own tent in Indio where

Words and Images: Tim Hara

As we exited our cab outside of the Park West in Chicago, we were immediately approached by a fan asking us if we had any extras for the sold out Pretty Lights show. Then another, then another, then another. Dozens of kids braved the miserable cold and rain with their fingers raised high in the air with hopes of scoring a ticket to what seemed like the hottest show in town. Sadly, almost all of them would get shut out.

Yonder Mountain String Band was playing at the House of Blues Chicago, but you wouldn’t have known it. All people were talking about for weeks was whether they had a ticket for Pretty Lights and how they were going to get in if they didn’t have one. Desperation led to some fans offering up to five times face value for a single ticket. I hadn’t seen this kind of pandemonium for a show in this city for a long time. We passed all the unfortunate, ticket less fans and entered the venue knowing that the evening was truly going to be something special.

Derek Vincent Smith, AKA Pretty Lights, creates infectious beats that seem to appeal to a wide audience. His music is so unique that even his biggest fans have a hard time describing exactly what it is that they are listening to. He blends a heavy electronic sound that walks the line of glitch, electro or even dubstep with a combination of samples that run the gamut of soul to funk to rap. The result is a live performance of non-stop dance music that truly provides something for everyone.

READ ON for more from Tim on Pretty Lights in Chicago…