Review: Evils Ways - House Of Blues - February 19th

Review
Evil Ways
February 19, 2011
House Of Blues

By now if you have been reading my stories and reviews for the past two years on clevelandrockandroll.com, you know how I feel about going out and hearing live music. There is nothing better, I mean nothing…….but on the flipside there is nothing worse than going out and hearing music played badly.

That’s why on Saturday I was a little apprehensive about making the trip to the House Of Blues to hear Evil Ways, a Cleveland based Santana tribute band headlining there. Look I didn’t know anything about the band before going to hear them on Saturday. During the day I tried to remember if I ever heard a Santana tribute band live before but couldn’t come up with one. I’ve heard plenty of bands over the years in bars and festivals play some Santana and for the most part, they shouldn’t have. There are just some bands that trying to replicate the sound, especially a sound as classic and iconic as Santana’s, you just shouldn’t unless you have some serious talent.

That’s why I said I was a little apprehensive about going. I even told Mrs. Bear before arriving “let me know if you want to leave” especially with her not being a big Santana fan in the first place.

Guess what…We didn’t leave.

After catching the last few songs of the opening act which being polite didn’t blow me away, I was starting to wonder if I made the right decision to come when Evil Ways took the stage. The eight piece band filled the stage and started out with an intro piece before launching into “Everybody’s Everything” which brought a smile to my face. I’ve loved that song since it came out, especially the horns which originally were played by the Tower Of Power (one of my favorite bands of all time) horn section on the album and on Saturday night Evil Ways horn section did it justice.

It was at that point I sent a text to my sister who just saw Carlos last month in concert and told her “these guys are good, you should be here”

They said they were going to be playing the full spectrum of the Santana catalog “from Woodstock till now” and they did. From Jingo off of the first album “Santana” to Game Of Love off “Shaman” they hit it all. For me the highlights were the fore mentioned “Everybody’s Everything”, “No One To Depend On”, “Samba Pa Ti”, and “Evil Ways” all some of my favorite Santana tunes.

The thing that could have killed it for me was if the lead guitarist struggled, I mean c’mon, could you pick someone harder than Carlos Santana to play? Mike Goldberg really impressed me, the guy has got chops. It’s nice to see a guitarist feel relaxed with the instrument and let the music flow from it instead of wrestling with it to produce the notes. The guy has talent. The band itself was tight all night. I mentioned the horn section earlier, Eric Dregne (Trombone) and Lizz Wilson (Trumpet), who to me really emphasized the importance of the horn section in Santana’s music and they did a great job. Kenny Baehr on vocals and percussion was great plus his energy was infectious to the audience. Michael Carabello himself would have been proud to hear Marko DiMicheli on congas and percussion. It would have been cool to see on old Hammond B3 organ like Gregg Rolle played on stage but keyboardist Dennis Augusta did a really nice job handling it and not to be forgotten Gregg Garlock (Drums) and Jim Curtis (Bass) provided the backbone of the music perfectly all night. Like I said a tight band.

You could tell they were really into the songs they were playing. The energy was high, they looked like they were having fun and they got the audience into it. I mean even Mrs. Bear was moving to the music.

If you like good music then this is a band to go hear, if you love Santana, then this is really a band you must hear! Either way you won’t be disappointed, I wasn’t.

For more information on Evil Ways shows, videos, and song clips visit their website at www.evilwaysband.com

Nuff said, least till next time
Peace
Bear
www.clevelandrockandroll.com

Wow, What A Strange Class Trip

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 2011 Inductees has been leaked across the internet before the scheduled announcement on Wednesday December 15th and I have to say this...it"s not a bad class. It"s a strange class...but not a bad one.

Welcome to the Hall Of Fame.....Alice Cooper, Neil Diamond, Dr. John, Tom Waits and Darlene Love.

Hard to believe isn"t it. Bear saying the inductees are not that bad. Don"t rush to judgment here, it could have been better, much much better but the voters could only vote for who the nominating committee sent over.

Did they miss the boat on not putting J. Geils in...Absolutely

Did they get it right by not voting in L.L. Cool J, Chic and Donna Summer...Hell yea

Look I actually like the five inductees. Alice Cooper was a no brainer, he should have been in when he was first eligible in 1995. I'm not so sure if Darlene Love is Hall worthy but I have always liked her and she is more worthy than Donna Summer. People will whine about Neil Diamond but before he went cheesy with Barbara Streisand he was considered rock in the 60’s and you would be hard pressed to find a more prolific songwriter of the past 50 years. Dr. John and Tom Waits I can put together as two artists I thought I would never see inducted, love them both but they are both so different from the mainstream I never thought they would see the inside of the hall except with a ticket. A happy surprise for sure.

Alice Cooper, Neil Diamond, Dr. John, Tom Waits and Darlene Love. Wow what a strange class...Can't wait to hear the jam at the end of the night. Wonder what Tom Waits song will they do?

Hopefully this version of rock's wikileaks is true.

Nuff said, least till next time
Happy holidays to everyone
Peace Out
Bear

Talent, We Don't Need No Stinkin Talent!

One of the best lines I ever heard in a movie was in one of my favorites. “A Bronx Tale” when Robert DeNiro’s character tells his son “There is nothing worse than wasted talent”.

It rings so true. Wasted talent, you can never go back in time and use that talent once it’s time has gone.

The more I look around the music landscape today it’s more like the famous line from The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (changed slightly for this story) “Talent, We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Talent”.

The sad thing is that in todays music world, most don’t have talent to waste.

Really you want to argue this point?

Okay, lets look at a couple of the “hottest” (and please read the sarcasim in this next word) “artists”.
Right now one of the biggest acts out there is Dustin Lieber. (What, hold on a minute someone is yelling at me. That’s not his name? It’s what? Justin Bieber, really? Does it really matter, in a couple of years won’t we be calling him “what’s his name” anyway?) Okay back to my story, JUSTIN BIEBER (is that better?) is right now the hottest thing out there and the only thing he is missing on his resume is talent.

This is a kid that was found on YouTube singing a song and someone who obiviosly did not have the sound up on his computer thought “Wow, great hair. We can make this kid a star!” and guess what they were right.
In this day and age, talent can only get in the way of screaming pre-teens that seem to drive the music world these days.

Look who was the big music tickets this past year, Dustin (I couldn’t resist), Miley Cyrus, Ke$ha, The Jonas Brothers (can you hear the tick, tick , tick of their 15 minutes of fame running out), Taylor Swift to name a few and guess what. Talent is very sparce in that group.

Oh don’t give me that crap of, “Taylor Swift doesn’t belong in that group, she is a superstar, she writes her songs, she’s great” No she is not. She is a very cute girl with a guitar with a very limited voice range and once celebrities learn to stop dating her she will have very little to write about. Period, argument over.

I did with these so-called artists, what I do with all the new music I listen too. I sat back, closed my eyes, opened my mind and just listened to the music and guess what….at the end. Nothing, Nada, Ziltch.

I’m sorry. these kids don’t have talent, they don’t have voices, you know what they have….looks and in some cases the Disney machine behind them. Either one is the same to the pre-teen girls that are programming our airwaves.

One notable exception to the group above that was a dominate force in 2010 was Lady Gaga. Why did I leave her off the list? Because she is probably the smartest person in the music industry right now. She does have talent but she also knows that talent doesn’t mean anything in todays music. Image does. Why do you think she walks around in a meat dress or in outfits while going thru airports that TSA would be afraid of patting down. Simply image. She keeps her name out there and acts as outrageous as possible. She is 80’s era Madonna in 2010. Why else would she come to Cleveland twice in 2010 for sold out concerts when most big acts simply skip over us (big shout out to Sir Paul for skipping Cleveland to play in Pittsburgh instead this year, thanks). She knows fame is fleeting (remember the Jonas Brothers comment earlier) and get the money now. She knows that the teens and pre-teens that are buying her music now have the attention span of a nat. For her it’s a simple fomula, Get the money now and later work on being a real artist.

Sometimes when I see the Biebers of the music industry out there performing I wonder could a band like the Eagles have made it today if they broke in 2010? I mean I remember the first time I saw them in 1974 when four guys came onstage in jeans and t-shirts and just said “Were the Eagles from California” and launched into four part harmony that just absolutly blew me away. You know what they had?

Talent…..
Would that work today?

The only way to end this story is this. There will be over a thousand musicians playing all over Cleveland this weekend in bars and clubs that have 100 times more talent than Justin Beiber will ever have but does it matter?

Sadly no………

Nuff said, least till next time
Have a great thanksgiving
Peace
Bear

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum’s 15th Annual American Music Masters Series

Hey Cleveland, one of the biggest events in Rock and Roll is coming back to Cleveland for the 15th year in a row, The American Music Masters Series

If you missed last years great event honoring Janis Joplin don't miss out this year when the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame honors the music of Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew. This great event will not only feature the music of Fats and Dave but also the great music of New Orleans.

I mean come on Cleveland the house band is none other but Dr John and the Lower 9-11 what could be better.

This isn't just a one night concert, no......this is a week long celebration starting on Nov 8 with Rock And Roll Night School: A Spotlight On Fats Domino And Dave Bartholomeaw with something new every night leading up to the main event on Nov 13th.

Last year a lot of people I told about the Janis Joplin event all said "Bear I wish I would have known, I would have loved to gone" Well now you know so go to http://www.rockhall.com/ to get tickets and for a complete list of events. It'll be the best $30 you spent lately for a night of great music.




For more information on the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and all of the upcoming events at the hall go to http://www.rockhall.com/

American Music Masters®

2010: Fats Domino & Dave Bartholomew
2009: Janis Joplin
2008: Les Paul
2007: Jerry Lee Lewis
2006: Roy Orbison
2005: Sam Cooke
2004: Lead Belly
2003: Buddy Holly
2002: Hank Williams
2001: Bessie Smith
2000: Muddy Waters
1999: Louis Jordan
1998: Robert Johnson
1997: Jimmie Rodgers
1996: Woody Guthrie

The Wizard Of Oz And The Rock Hall Nominees

I could while away the hours, conferrin' with the flowers
Consultin' with the rain.
And my head I'd be scratchin' while
my thoughts were busy hatchin'
If I only had a brain.

I can’t get this tune out of my head this week. It started when I first saw the list of nominees for the 2011 Rock Hall Inductions.

Seriously, doesn’t it seem we go thru this every year now?

Who on this distinguished board of music experts nominates Chic....LL Cool J….Donna Summer?

Who stands up in that room and advocates for them?

Bigger question, who voted for them to get them to the final ballot?

I listened all week to spokespeople from the Rock Hall try to justify the selections, telling us that the nominees are based not on sales, popularity, etc but on their influence on music and other artists, their body of work, the length and depth of their career and my favorite “unquestionable musical excellence.”

Really…..

Can the person that nominated Chic tell me who they influenced, how their long and storied body of work demands them being in the Rock Hall? Please tell me about the depth of their career and the innovations to music they exhibited or better yet who on the nominating committee can tell me why they voted them onto the final ballot! Again! I know if I was on the committee and in that room and when Chic was brought up my first response would have been “Are you f___ing kidding me! That’s the best you could come up with!”

Really……

Look there are people on the nomination committee I really respect, some I know personally. People like Jim Henke, David Fricke, Lauren Onkey, Steve Van Zandt and Dave Marsh, I really respect their musical opinions. I don’t know who they nominated or voted for but I would find it hard to believe one of them stood up and said “This year I think Donna Summer should be inducted.”

But others on the committee, ah no……

Look, LL Cool J is the new Abba for the Rock Hall. Abba was eligible for 11 years before all of a sudden a hit movie comes out and magically they are Rock Hall worthy. LL has a hit television show and you know what…. Bam, this year’s Abba.

LL Cool J has been eligible for two years and has made the final ballot both times. Do you really think he was a bigger influence and has a better body of work than say Stevie Ray Vaughan who has never even sniffed the final ballot or Leon Russell or Peter Gabriel or …….. I could go on and on but it falls on deaf ears, which is really a strange concept since we are talking about music.

Based on the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Foundation’s own criteria for nomination, I said it last year (click here) and I’ll say it again, Frank Sinatra, Willie Nelson and Barbara Streisand all should be in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. (I can’t believe I am advocating Babs to be in the Rock Hall, look what they have done to me) Tell me where I am wrong.

Let’s look at these three artists:

They have said in the past that it isn’t restricted to just “Rock” acts….okay check.

Their body of work…. check.

Influence on music and other artists…. check.

Depth of their career and unquestionable musical excellence….duh check.

Under the criteria we are told over and over when they try to justify their nominees to us, Are they qualified to be in the Hall Of Fame….Absolutely

Should they be in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame…..? No

You know what the smart move would have been for the committee this year. Give the public a final ballot of just rock acts. If they would have given us a ballot of let’s say, Alice Cooper, J. Geils Band, Rush, Steve Ray Vaughan, Deep Purple, Peter Gabriel, Electric Light Orchestra, Jethro Tull, Lou Reed, Steve Winwood, Todd Rundgren, Yes, Moody Blues and to stop the emails to me, Kiss they would have shut up the very vocal public and then next year they could have gone back to their convoluted, mysterious ways.

That’s all they had to do…..

Do you really think someone would have thought that out after the past years of controversy? Hmmm……Let me reference my opening lines of this story, you can sing along if you want.

Look folks, LL Cool J is going to be shoved down our throats each and every year until he is inducted. Period. That’s just the way it is. That is the thinking of this committee.

Our only hope is the voters. The supposedly largest block of voters is the past inductees of the hall. Hopefully the Ozzy’s of the Rock Hall have more votes than the Madonna’s of the Hall.

Do we really need the proclaimed “Queen Of Disco” in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame?

As Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Inductee David Gilmour once said “If you liked Disco, then you really didn’t like Rock And Roll.”

That says it all……

Nuff said, least till next time
Peace Out
Bear

An Old Pair Of Levi's And Jackson Browne

Do you remember coming home from the record store and putting Jackson Browne’s “Running On Empty” on the turntable and listening to it for the first time. I mean for me, the needle would hit the end of side 2 and I would flip it over and had to play it again. It was that good. Hell I’m listening to it now as I write this review.

Last night Jackson came to town and just like the first time I listened to “Running On Empty”, he didn’t disappoint.

To me Jackson Browne is like an old pair of worn Levi’s. He’s comfortable. He’s comfortable to listen too, always has been for me. His voice takes you back to a time and decades later, the man has changed but the voice and style of song writing really hasn’t.

Jackson started the show with opening act David Lindley and started out with an acoustic set which included the great Warren Zevon’s “Seminole Bingo” and Springsteen’s “Brothers Under The Bridge” before leaving for a short time as Lindley did a couple of songs solo.

When Jackson came back it was with his full band and they were perfect for this show. They never overwhelmed the songs, they were the perfect accompaniment for a Jackson Browne show. He started the show with selections off his 2008 album “Time The Conqueror” and even though I didn’t really know the songs more than a once over, I found myself right into a groove, head bobbing and enjoying the moment. It’s like I said earlier, Jackson is like that old pair of Levi’s, just comfortable.

He soon broke into the older tunes hitting back into the early seventies with “Your Bright Baby Blue Eyes”, “Fountain Of Sorrow”, “For A Dancer”, “The Pretender” and before starting up “Rock Me On The Water” he did a little speech about the concerns of using plastic and the effect on the oceans and he was going okay until he talked about seeing the sign behind the stage warning against littering in the river for the sake of the fish and he said “Is there fish in there? You do know it does have the distinction that it once burned” which brought a spatter of boo’s and comments. He quickly ended the speech and got back to giving us a beautiful rendition of “Rock Me On The Water”. Right after someone yelled “Rosie” and he started to laugh saying “sometimes you don’t know when to do Rosie” (who would have thought a song about masturbation would bring the biggest hand! Okay that was a bad pun) and asked the crowd “Do you want to hear Rosie?” which brought a huge roar. Maybe to make up for the Cuyahoga River reference or just that it hit him at the right time because he had not been playing it at other concerts, sitting at the piano by himself broke into the crowd favorite and members of the band had to rush back out to do the call and answer part of the chorus. Without a doubt, the highlight of the night.

One of the nice things about a Jackson Browne concert is the interaction with the audience between songs, giving us a little insight into the song and what inspired him to write it. One great one was the story of his girlfriend wanting a “love song” about her that inspired him to write “My Problem Is You”. He rounded out the night with his great hits “Doctor My Eyes” and of course “Running On Empty” before doing the encores “Mercury Blues” and Little Steven’s “I Am A Patriot”.

Last night proved again, comfortable is good, if not great. If you don’t believe me go throw on that old pair of Levi’s and put “Running On Empty” back on the turntable and sit back and relax. It’s what I’m doing.

Woodstock Comes To Cleveland

Tuesday night the Woodstock nation came to Cleveland. Okay it has been over 40 years since the Woodstock nation was at it’s zenith but looking at the crowd at the Time Warner Amphitheatre you might have stepped back in time as a huge crowd welcomed Crosby, Stills And Nash back to Cleveland.

It’s been awhile since I last saw them perform and I have to admit I was little worried about going to the show, that afternoon I almost talked myself out of it. C’mon a good scotch gets better with age, fine wines and chesses also but almost 70 year old voices….. especially voices that are as well known for it harmonies….. well that doesn't usually end well.

The verdict, I am glad I didn’t talk myself out of going and missing a great night of music.

It’s nice to go to a show and when the house lights go down the headliner knocks it out of the park with the very first song and that’s exactly what CSN did as they launched into “Woodstock”. For the next two plus hours the audience were treated to one of the iconic musical histories entrenched with idealism that stretched from Laurel Canyon to Woodstock.

“Long Time Gone”. “Southern Cross”, “Just A Song Before I Go”, “Déjà Vu”, “Wooden Ships” and that was just a part of the first set. How about throw in the beautiful Buffalo Springfield song “Bluebird” and you knew you were in for a great night of memories.

The voices, they still have it. The harmonies as always were beautiful but the strength they showed when they took the lead, was at times surprising. David Crosby showed that strength when he belted, and I mean belted out “I Almost Cut My Hair” you would have thought he was twenty years old again and rallying against the establishment! Don’t get me wrong there was a couple of rough spots especially when a moth flew into Stephen Stills mouth when he was singing Neil Young’s classic “Long May You Run” and he must have swallowed it as his voice broke a little through the song. The one thing that really stuck with me throughout the night was how good a guitarist Stills really is. He might be one of the most overlooked lead guitarist of rock and roll.

One of the only complaints, if you can call it a complaint is instead of the covers of other bands great songs they included in the second set is they left out some of their best songs. Granted hearing them do the Beatles “Norwegian Wood” and the Rolling Stones “Ruby Tuesday” (maybe better than the original?) was nice but I would have rather had them do their own great songs. Something like Stephen Stills great “Change Partners” and “Treetop Flyer” or throw in something from the The Byrds or how about just “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes”, “Marrakesh Express”, “Guinnevere” or “Wasted On The Way”. With so much in their repertoire I didn’t need them to play The Who’s “Behind Blue Eyes” but that again is a small complaint.

In all, It was a night of great music from three guys that at one time helped define a generation and still all these years later can still inspire me.