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Geezerville
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Three Things
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Feb 3, 1:41pm
Tags: Cactus Cafe
Saturday afternoon the news of the Cactus Café’s closing hit the Internet with the force of a hurricane. I felt lucky, since I planned to attend the Todd Snider show in the Union Ballroom that night and I’ve got a good relationship with Griff Luneburg, the venue manager.
Jonathan Richman's Eyes
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Jan 27, 3:08pm
It’s in his eyes: Dark, haunted, at times vacant but rarely smiling, no matter what the subject of the song or the raw emotions he was trying to convey. Last night at the Cactus Café, Jonathan Richman played two short 30-minute sets of proto-folk. He continues tonight and tomorrow at the Continental Club.
Great White Lie
Jim Caligiuri
Thu Jan 21, 12:41pm
The Greatest White Liar by Nic Armstrong & the Thieves is one of the great overlooked gems of the past decade. Released in 2005, it’s a bouncy blast of Britpop that could have been beamed from the middle of the original British Invasion.
You Can Fly
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Jan 13, 2:26pm
Tags: Freedy Johnston
If I ever did a list of desert island discs, it would most likely include Freedy Johnston’s 1992 LP Can You Fly. It’s a perfect singer-songwriter album – thoughtful, crunchy, and full of stick-in-your-brain melodies. It put him in the same lofty league of pop writers as Paul Simon and John Hiatt.
One Last Gasp
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Jan 6, 12:25pm
Here’s one last salute to 2009, a mix of songs that made it a little more pleasant. When I was putting this together, I was struck by the age of the artists, as it favors the over-40 crowd, but that’s where I am these days.
Chuck Loves Tacos
Jim Caligiuri
Thu Dec 17, 3:28pm
, 2009
Tags: Chuck Prophet
Just a couple of random thoughts before I turn into Santa for the rest of December. Sunday night Sarah Jarosz was transcendent opening for Dave Rawlings Machine at the Parish. The audience was amazingly quiet, not unexpected with kindred soul Gillian Welch in the house.
One Man’s View
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Dec 9, 12:54pm
, 2009
There are decade lists popping up all over and, although I’m even not sure if the decade ends this year or next, I see those lists and note what’s missing: Austin. Sure, there’s been a mention here and there for Shearwater or Okkervil River, but our music scene is so much more. The national music press is so rock-oriented, they ignore many of the roots artists.
Sound and Vision
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Dec 2, 12:48pm
, 2009
Tags: Vic Chesnutt
Vic Chesnutt has collaborated with an unusual range of artists: Michael Stipe, Lambchop, Bill Frisell, Elf Power, Widespread Panic, the Cowboy Junkies.
Good Night Austin, Texas, Wherever You Are
Jim Caligiuri
Fri Nov 20, 5:27pm
, 2009
First a little personal history to put Thursday night’s Zappa Plays Zappa performance at Stubb’s into perspective. The first rock show I attended was Frank Zappa & the Mothers of Invention at the Fillmore East in New York City, June 1971.
Funk No. IV
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Nov 18, 11:34am
, 2009
Saturday night a decidedly slimmed down FunkFest, the fourth, hits the Parish with the Stanton Moore Trio, led by the drummer of New Orleans jammers Galactic and the rarely seen supergroup Garage a Trois, featuring Marco Benevento on keyboards, Skerik on saxophone, Mike Dillon on vibes, and Moore on drums.
Dust In the Air
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Nov 11, 4:03pm
, 2009
Tags: Jay Farrar
I’ve referred to Son Volt as the premier American roots-rock band of our day and in my mind, its latest, American Central Dust (Rounder), confirms that notion.
Fun Fun Fun Too
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Nov 4, 2:10pm
, 2009
There's the official Fun Fun Fun Fest aftershows this weekend, and the totally unofficial fare for geezers like me, beginning with three shows dedicated to beloved musical icons no longer with us.
A Case for Case
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Oct 28, 11:47am
, 2009
Many people know Peter Case from his days with Eighties L.A. power-poppers the Plimsouls and their hit “A Million Miles Away.” Remember their appearance in Valley Girl with a young Nicholas Cage? After the Plimsouls, Case pursued a successful solo career, appearing often here in Austin.
Anyway
Jim Caligiuri
Thu Oct 22, 12:35pm
, 2009
Walking into last night’s Amy Farris memorial/tribute at the beyond capacity Continental Club, grief hung like the dark clouds over South Congress. A native of Austin, Farris passed away late last month in L.A., at the age of 40.
After the Deluge...
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Oct 14, 3:33pm
, 2009
Now that the Austin City Limits Music Festival is over, it’s time to jump into a pile of new releases. With the holiday season fast approaching – and it’s coming faster than ever considering the Christmas decorations I saw at Lowe’s this week – lots of Geezerville favorites have hit the racks.
Cedar Fever
Jim Caligiuri
Fri Oct 9, 12:05pm
, 2009
Tags: Wilco
It was 35 minutes into last night’s set at the new Cedar Park Center before Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy addressed the audience: “This is a new experience for us, a hockey area in Austin, Texas."
Kickin’ the Mud Off My Sneakers
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Oct 7, 12:22pm
, 2009
I’m not like most of the folks who attended the Austin City Limits Music Festival. A t-shirt I saw last weekend pretty much sums it up: “I’m here for the opening band.” I get in early, get my fill, and leave before the headliners hit the stage.
Beyond Austin City Limits
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Sep 30, 1:48pm
, 2009
If you’ve decided not to participate in the Austin City Limits Music Festival this weekend, you’ve still got plenty of options. Here are some recommendations, or where I’d be, if I wasn’t standing in the middle of Zilker Park with 70,000 of my closest friends for three days.
Saturday Night's Alright
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Sep 16, 2:21pm
, 2009
Tags: Bloodshot Records
This Saturday shapes up to be one of the best days of music in Geezerville since South by Southwest, Saturday, 2001. That was the day I caught full sets from 15 bands, ended up doing tequila shots at the bar of the Continental Club with two women from Australia, and lived to tell about it.
On the Baby Bus
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Sep 9, 12:54pm
, 2009
Elizabeth McQueen is a trooper. After two weeks on the road and dearly in need of sleep, the Asleep at the Wheel vocalist spent some time on the phone with me last night just catching up.
Radney's Revival
Jim Caligiuri
Thu Sep 3, 2:10pm
, 2009
I last interviewed Radney Foster in May of 1999. It hardly seems that long ago.
Secret, Profane and Sugarcane
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Sep 2, 11:43am
, 2009
Tags: Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello’s affection for American music was in full bloom Tuesday at Bass Concert Hall. On record it’s been on display with an album of country covers, 1981’s Almost Blue, his watershed acoustic opus King of America from 1986 and latest Secret, Profane and Sugarcane, an amalgam of country styles performed with some of Nashville’s best musicians.
This and That
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Aug 26, 11:58am
, 2009
Tags: Elvis Costello
Tomorrow night, upstairs at Lamberts, the FunkyBatz crew begins its Hot Funk in the City series, which brings two local up-and-coming funk/soul bands to the stage for the next three Thrusdays. I’ve heard the ready-to-explode guitar and sax histrionics of Uncle Bruno, who appear Sept. 10, and if they're any indicator of the talent the Batz are wild about, it will be a golden opportunity to shake your moneymaker and check out some new bands. $5.
Leon's Clinic
Jim Caligiuri
Fri Aug 21, 12:06pm
, 2009
Rock legend Leon Russell rolled into Threadgill’s last night for his annual Austin stopover and gave a clinic on how to entertain an audience. Of course, the freaks were out in force, some with beards to rival Russell’s, others more than proud of their stylish, immense beer guts. But for nearly 90 minutes the old-time Okie and close personal friend to Willie hit nearly all the high points in his career, smashed his way through some classic rock standards, and seemed genuinely pleased to be in South Austin.
His Year
Jim Caligiuri
Wed Aug 12, 12:53pm
, 2009
It’s been more than five years since Colin Gilmore released his last full length disc, The Day the World Stopped and Spun the Other Way (Squirm), but 2009 is shaping up to be his year. It began with the Flatlanders – Joe Ely, Butch Hancock, and his father, Jimmie Dale – deciding to include one of his songs on their latest, Hills & Valleys (New West).
