Stars Enough to Guide Me is Jono Manson;s eleventh solo project and his debut for Blue Rose Records – continuing his genre blurring catalog
John Popper of Blues Traveler is expected to sit in with the Allman Brothers Band tonight
Marc Maron’s recent podcasts with Dave Grohl, Blues Traveler and more are must-listen material.
Blues Traveler performing at the Rotunda in the Mall of America, Bloomington, MN 8.6.12.
Watch Blues Traveler’s syrupy video for You Don’t Have To Love Me.
Best Coast kicks off a lengthy world tour this week at SXSW.
We’ve been watching the proliferation of music festivals in Florida over the last few years with great interest and this morning a new player has emerged in the form of
John Popper, the iconoclastic frontman of Blues Traveler has once again re-invented himself with The Duskray Troubadours. His month-long recording sessions in the mountains of New Mexico were much less a solo endeavor, and more or less a collaboration anchored by the strong musical bond between Popper and Jono Manson – bandmates from days of yore. Popper put it best as, “A liberating, scrappy roots-rock alter ego of Blues Traveler.”
Kicking off this month’s edition of our look at the month in photographs are a couple shots from Halloween. The first one is an amusing photo of Bill Nershi of the String Cheese Incident, face to face with his pint size replica at the Hampton Coliseum on Hulaween. Apparently an enterprising photographer snuck the little guy up on stage, giving everyone a good laugh. You can check out tapes from the evening on the archive and livecheese.com
[Bill Nershi w/ Barefoot Billy, photo by Chris Monaghan]
A review of the last few weeks wouldn’t be complete without a nod to Phish’s triumphant three night celebration in Atlantic City. Whether it was the Zeppelin and Little Feat covers, the outrageous costumes by the fans, the late night shows or all night parties at the Tropicana, a great time was had by all. Perhaps too good a time in one case.
[Phish at the Shore, photo by Seth Eisenstein]
READ ON for more of this month’s A Memory of Music…
We’re still abuzz from Phish’s fantastic interpretation of Little Feat’s seminal 1978 live album Waiting For Columbus that we wanted to continue to pay tribute to the highly influential, yet somehow criminally underrated band.
This week we’re placing that act’s classic trucker anthem, Willin’, into the squared circle – a song that has been rumored as the reason that Lowell George was asked to leave Frank Zappa’s Mothers Of Invention, and thus the impetus for the formation of Little Feat. The track originally appeared on the band’s self-titled debut sung in a sparse, talking, country-blues style by George and featured Ry Cooder backing him on steel guitar. The definitive version of tune was reworked for Little Feat’s sophomore release Sailin Shoes, and given the full band treatment with country-rock harmonies and some great piano work courtesy of Billy Payne.
Contestants:
The Black Crowes have no problem wearing their influences right on their sleeve with the band owing a great debt to Little Feat’s potent mix of rock, soul, gospel, jazz, country and funk. The Robinson Brothers & Co. have been covering Willin’ consistently since all the way back in 1992, with Chris channeling the ghost of Lowell George. Source: 2009-11-07
As an added bonus, here’s The Crowes with John Popper and the members of Wilco from a HORDE tour stop on August 27, 1995…
READ ON for more covers of Willin’ from the likes of moe., Uncle Tupelo, Linda Ronstadt, Bob Dylan, The Byrds and others…