Kim and I headed down to the Pepsi Center last night for the rescheduled Billy Joel and Elton John show.  The “Face To Face” show was originally scheduled for November 22nd, but it was later rescheduled.  We bough some of the cheapest tickets in the arena, which were still $50, and we were pleasantly surprised when we found our seats.  We were slightly behind the stage, but felt the view must have been better than from the far side of the arena.  We could easily see both performers and their entire bands and only really missed out on the large video screen across the top of the stage setup.

The show started with both performers trading verses on Elton John’s “Your Song.”  They then moved through “Just the Way You Are,” “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me,” and “My Life” in the same manner.  It was neat to hear each sing on the others songs.  And their voices actually complimented each other really well.  From there, Elton John’s backing band arose from the stage trap-doors to accompany him in an hour-long set of hits.  I had honestly forgotten how many hits he had.  Some of the songs in the set included “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” “Crocodile Rock,” “Tiny Dancer,” “Levon,” and “Rocket Man.”

From there, the backing bands switched spots, and it was Billy Joel’s turn to run through some of his hits.  Kim has always been a huge fan of his music, and has helped introduce me to more songs than just the hits.  However he stuck to mostly the hits in his hour-long set, which included “Allentown,” “Don’t Ask Me Why,” “She’s Always a Woman,” “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song),” “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant” (Kim’s personal favorite), and “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me.”  Though Elton John appeared a little reserved in his performance, Billy Joel was up dancing and even grabbed the guitar for “We Didn’t Start the Fire.”

Rather than taking a drawn-out encore break, Elton John simply joined Billy Joel up on stage at the end of his set for another round of duets.  This medley of songs was especially good, including “I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues,” “Uptown Girl,” “Bennie and the Jets,” “Candle in the Wind” and “Piano Man.”  Every one knew “Piano Man” was going to end the show, but it was still a perfect ending to a great three-hour night of music.

Last night Kim and I met up with our old friend MER.  He was passing through town and decided to get some friends together at Scruffy Murphy’s for open mic night.  He was first on the stage for the night and delivered a very solid five song performance.  There were many comments from the other performers that there was no way they could follow his act, and though they tried their hearts out, their earlier sentiments were the truth.  He played a couple of new songs that were nice to hear, as well as a couple of old favorites, and a cover of the Foo Fighter’s “Everlong.”  Besides the music, we were able to catch up and discuss this year’s Pig-Fest, though no details are available at this time.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but I had one of those moments where my online life mixed into my real-world life. I mentioned livingcraigslist.com a few weeks ago, and since then I have continued to follow the website. I later learned that the author had moved to the Denver area and figured that he was living somewhere in the downtown area of town, just like yours truly. On Saturday night, a group of us decided to head to an old favorite bar of ours, Ogden Street South.

It was karaoke night at the bar, and not long after entering the bar we were entertained by a rather good performance of “That Thing You Do.”  It wasn’t until I read livingcraigslist.com the other day, that I realized the singer was none other than the author of the site.  I wish I would have realized it at the time, as I’d love to chat with him about his experiences thus far.  Perhaps our paths will cross again.  A video of his performance can be viewed on his site.  Unfortunately, there is no video of my show closing performance of George Michael’s “Faith.”

Continuing the trend from last year, there isn’t a Dave Matthews Band tour date within 500 miles of Denver.  It is another sad year, but I am really going to try to make it to at least one show this summer, which I didn’t do last year.  I’m leaning towards the Deer Creek weekend, Noblesville, IN for those not familiar.  The HullabaLOU festival could be a good time as well.  Time will tell, but I am definitely going to try harder to make it to a show.  Our summer calendar doesn’t seem as busy as it’s been the last couple of years, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed.  Here’s the full list of dates:

• May 28 – Comcast Theatre – Hartford, CT
• May 29 – Comcast Theatre – Hartford, CT
• June 1 – Molson Amphitheatre – Toronto, Canada
• June 2 – Darien Lake Performing Arts Center – Darien Center, NY
• June 4 – Saratoga Performing Arts Center – Saratoga Springs, NY
• June 5 – Saratoga Performing Arts Center – Saratoga Springs, NY
• June 7 – Comcast Center – Mansfield, MA
• June 8 – Comcast Center – Mansfield, MA
• June 15 – Riverbend Music Center – Cincinnati, OH
• June 16 – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater – Maryland Heights, MO
• June 18 – Verizon Wireless Music Center – Noblesville, IN
• June 19 – Verizon Wireless Music Center – Noblesville, IN
• June 22 – Huntington Park – Columbus, OH
• June 23 – DTE Energy Music Theatre – Clarkston, MI
• June 25 – Blossom Music Center – Cuyahoga Falls, OH
• June 30 – Susquehanna Bank Center – Camden, NJ
• July 1 – Susquehanna Bank Center – Camden, NJ
• July 3 – Alpine Valley Music Theatre – East Troy, WI
• July 4 – Alpine Valley Music Theatre – East Troy, WI
• July 9 – Hersheypark Stadium – Hershey, PA
• July 10 – PNC Park – Pittsburgh, PA
• July 13 – Bethel Woods Center for the Arts – Bethel, NY
• July 14 – Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain – Scranton, PA
• July 16 – Citi Field – Flushing, NY
• July 17 – Citi Field – Flushing, NY
• July 20 – Virginia Beach Amphitheater – Virginia Beach, VA
• July 21 – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Charlotte – Charlotte, NC
• July 23 – Nationals Park – Washington, DC
• July 25 – HullabaLOU Festival Churchill Downs – Louisville, KY
• July 27 – Aaron’s Amphitheatre at Lakewood – Atlanta, GA
• July 28 – Ford Amphitheatre – Tampa, FL
• July 30 – Cruzan Amphitheatre – West Palm Beach, FL
• July 31 – Cruzan Amphitheatre – West Palm Beach, FL
• August 14 – InTrust Bank Arena – Wichita, KS
• August 17 – USANA Amphitheatre – West Valley City, UT
• August 20 – Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre – Chula Vista, CA
• August 21 – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater – Irvine, CA
• August 23 – Hollywood Bowl – Los Angeles, CA
• August 25 – Sleep Train Pavilion at Concord – Concord, CA
• August 27 – Sleep Train Amphitheatre – Marysville, CA
• August 28 – Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View – Mountain View, CA
• August 31 -  Taco Bell Arena – Boise, ID
• September 3 – Gorge Amphitheatre – George, WA
• September 4 – Gorge Amphitheatre – George, WA
• September 5 – Gorge Amphitheatre – George, WA
• September 10 – The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion – The Woodlands, TX
• September 11 – Superpages.com Center – Dallas, TX
• September 14 – Qwest Center – Omaha, NE
• September 15 – Xcel Energy Center – Saint Paul, MN

The latest release from O.A.R., Rain Or Shine, debuted this past Tuesday.  Here’s the description of the album that I put together for oarsa.org:

Recorded over two nights of the summer 2009 tour at Chicago’s Charter One Pavilion, Rain or Shine almost didn’t come to pass. After an amazing first show on June 18th the band was facing ominous skies and a challenging weather forecast. The crowds had been kept outside of the venue for their own safety and it seemed likely that the show would need to be postponed or canceled. Yet when the time came to make the final call, two hours after the original door time, there was no doubt from the band that they were determined to make it happen – Rain or Shine. The four disc set that makes up Rain or Shine contains 37 tracks and over four hours of music with both electric and acoustic versions of “Shattered” and “That Was a Crazy Game of Poker.” Also included are two previously unreleased tracks, “Tonight,” the first song the band ever wrote, as well as “Rhythm of your Shoes.” As a special bonus, the recording includes a cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Fool in the Rain” with Robert Randolph.

Now that I have finally taken a couple of listens to the live four disc package, I can honestly say that it is one of their finer pieces of work to date.  “Tonight” has always been a favorite track of mine, and I’m glad to finally have a flawless copy of it to listen to.  The five song acoustic set to start of the second disc is a nice touch and shows the varying styles of the band.  The mix of the album is wonderful, sometimes too good.  At the beginning of “Delicate Few” you can hear the crowd really try to ruin it when half of the crowd doesn’t know how the intro is sung.  Overall, this is definitely one of their best live releases that they have put out.  It is definitely worth the special $15 price from Target or a quick download from iTunes.  Plus the cover-art is incredible:

If I had to pick a current favorite band, it would absolutely be The Avett Brothers.  Their latest release, I and Love and You, has been listened to countless times, and one of their tracks made an appearance on this years NOW That’s What Ed Calls Music.  I hope that you have heard at least that track, and I would highly encourage purchasing the entire album.  Their Wikipedia page describes the band as a mix of “bluegrass, country, punk, pop melodies, folk, rock and roll, honky tonk, and ragtime…”  It really is an album full of nearly every style imaginable, and everyone should at least find one song that they enjoy.  My bet is that you will fall in love with their entire catalog.

The tradition of barely releasing NOW That’s What Ed Calls Music before Christmas has continued into this year. They always say it’s better late than never. Without further delay…NOW That’s What Ed Calls Music 2009.

1. Butch Walker – The Weight of Her
2. Roman Candle – Eden Was a Garden
3. Railroad Earth – Hard Livin’
4. Gregory Alan Isakov – That Moon Song
5. Mat Kearney – Closer To Love
6. Newton Faulkner – If This Is It
7. Elmwood – Night Caper
8. The Alternate Routes – The Future’s Nothing New
9. Brandi Carlile – Dreams
10. Dave Matthews Band – Why I Am
11. SoundRabbit – From The World I Have Known
12. Noah Gabriel – Grey On Gray
13. Will Hoge – Even If It Breaks Your Heart
14. Needtobreathe – More Time
15. Avett Brothers – Laundry Room
16. O.A.R. – Love Is Worth The Fall
17. Ingrid Michaelson – Maybe

All tracks are available for download from this site and I’ve also added them to sendspace.com (download link toward the bottom of the page), which should be a much faster download.  If you prefer to have a hard copy, the cover-art is included in the zip file.  Please support these artists by buying their albums and attending their live shows.  As always I hope you enjoy the compilation and happy holidays.

Last night, Kim and I headed up to the Ogden Theatre to see Grace Potter along with Brett Dennen.  I thought that Grace Potter was going to headline, but she actually ended up playing before Dennen.  I’m glad we got there when we did, as we walked in just before she took the stage.  Her set was definitely the highlight of the night for me.  I’ve seen her a couple times before, both times at festivals, and I must say that I’m even more impressed with her now than I ever was after last night’s near 1.5 hour set.  Her backing band, The Nocturnals, are all great musicians and really put down the perfect sound for Grace’s powerful vocals to take center stage.

We saw Brett Dennen for the very first time at the same venue about two years ago.  Since then I’ve seen him play a few other times.  Each time I enjoy it, but I wouldn’t say that I’m ever really amazed.  I really like his studio releases, but for whatever reason I just can’t get into the live performances.  So when they didn’t start playing until around 11, we only stuck around for a few songs and then called it a night.  I hope we didn’t miss anything too amazing, but it’s been a long week.

One thing that I wish I would have remembered was that you should get to the Ogden early enough to secure some of the many stools up in the large balcony.  If you arrive too late you could be forced to watch the show from a spot with very bad sight lines of the stage.  Maybe I will actually remember this the next time we go.

Last night, Kim and I headed downtown to see Ray LaMontagne play a solo show at the Ellie Caulkin Opera House. I’ve seen him a couple of times before, but I believe that he had always had at least one person playing with him. Playing solo last night definitely subdued the overall feel, but allowed for his wonderful voice to really shine. With that said, I still think that I’d prefer to see him play with other musicians included.

Prior to last night, I had always thought that Ray was sort of introverted. And though he admitted that he doesn’t really like to be in the spotlight, he opened up last night telling stories and laughing along with the crowd. That definitely helped lighten the load of rather somber music. In the room normally reserved for opera performances, the crowd remained seated the entire show. Pictures were not allowed at all, and the tuxedoed ushers made sure to enforce the rule.  I still managed to grab a couple of quick photos with my iPhone from our seventh row seats.

I realize that those pictures leave a lot to be desired.  Fortunately, I found a small collection of photos from his concert the night before, also at the same venue.  The Denver Post also has this review of the same performance posted online.  The setlist last night had many similarities to this one at the bottom of the review, including the same covers.  I’m not sure if our main set was shorter than the night before or not, but we actually had a four song encore instead of two.  Either way the hour and half performance was easily worth the price of our tickets.  I just hope that he brings along some additional musicians in the future.

Entries for the last two times I’ve seen Ray LaMontagne:

• September 20, 2005
• August 11, 2008

Last night I joined a few friends for a concert at the Bluebird Theater. They had already bought tickets, but won a couple of extras so invited me to come along. I didn’t know anything about the bands playing other than listening to a couple of tracks from the headliner earlier in the day. Overall it turned out to be a good time along with a loud and rocking show.

We walked in just as the second opening band of the night took the stage, The Features. This four piece band from outside of Nashville consisted of singer/guitarist, bassist, keyboardist, and drummer. They started out with some loud rock right from the start. We immediately noticed a similar sound as The Killers. They had some pretty strong vocal melodies, along with strong hooks. I was fairly impressed by the band. One thing I didn’t care for were the few times the members of the band would spit across the stage. I can’t say I’ve seen that move in years.

The headliner of the night was The Whigs. Again, the set from the traditional three-piece band from Athens, Georgia started off rocking. I was immediately impressed with the guitar playing and vocals of the front-man. And the drummer was no slouch either, though it took me awhile to figure out why the left-handed musician looked funny to me. The only disappointment for me was that the crowd seemed to thin as the night wore on, thus losing some of the energy that The Features had created. I feel sorry for them though as they missed the best song of the night, which was played last, “Right Hand on My Heart.”