Be Good Or Be Gone

Since the previous There Stands the Glass post seven days ago, I’ve taken in 30 sets of live music.  My ten favorites:

• Four Fists
• Sufjan Stevens
• Ebony Tusks
• Duncan Burnett and the Ministry
• Jorge Arana Trio
• Sleater-Kinney
• The Phantastics
• Sie Lieben Maschinen
• Anna Cole and the Other Lovers
• Peter Hook and the Light

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I reviewed a concert by Sleater-Kinney and Theesatisfaction on Sunday.

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I reviewed Ink’s Middle of the Map Fest on Friday and Saturday.

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I reviewed Death Cab For Cutie’s concert at the Midland theater on Thursday.

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I reviewed Sufjan Stevens’ concert at the Midland theater on Tuesday.

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I contributed a Local Listen segment about La Guerre to KCUR.

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Here’s a ten-minute documentary about the obscure Kansas City musician Michael Angelo.  His 1977 debut album will be reissued on April 28.

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“Yoga” indicates that Janelle Monáe is intent on expanding her audience.

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Live at Monterey Jazz Festival, the debut release of a band co-led by Dave Douglas and Joe Lovano, is every bit as impressive as you’d think.  RIYL: Dave Holland, present-day Wayne Shorter, Tim Berne.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Percy Sledge, 1940-2015

Tears come easily for me.  Music often acts as the trigger, and classic R&B voices get me almost every time.  I just cued up Percy Sledge’s out-of-print 1994 album Blue Night and was immediately overcome by emotion.  Listen for yourself.  Damn.  Sledge died last week.


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I reviewed Lil Boosie’s wack concert at the Midland.

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I reviewed a solid concert by Sixx:A.M. and Apocalyptica.

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I reviewed Matt Kane & the Kansas City Generations Sextet’s Acknowledgement at Plastic Sax.

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I didn’t know about Tony Bennett’s secret weapon until I first saw Ralph Sharon perform with the vocalist in the 1990s.  Sharon died on March 31.

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Johnny Kemp has died.

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After years of conjecture, a collaboration between Tech N9ne and Eminem has been released.

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Todd Clouser’s Chant is RIYL: Allen Ginsberg, beatniks, John Trudell.  Clouser created a video for “You the Brave.”

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Lila Downs’ Balas y Chocolate is a lot of fun.  RIYL: Vicente Fernández, parties, Kinky. 

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Tyler, the Creator’’s Cherry Bomb is much better than I anticipated.  And yes, “Smuckers” is the hip-hop event of the year.

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Kenny Lattimore’s Anatomy of a Love Song is RIYL: Luther Vandross, classic R&B, Marvin Gaye.  Here’s the video for “Love Me Back.”

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The-Dream’s silky Crown is RIYL: Michael Jackson, radio playlists, Future.

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Beethoven, Period, a collaboration between Matt Haimovitz and Christopher O’Riley, is my default work soundtrack.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Concert Review: Max Raabe und Palast Orchester at Helzberg Hall

Curious to discover what qualities allow a German big band to attain enough popularity to justify a tour of American concert halls, I bought a half-price ticket to see last week’s Kansas City debut of Max Raabe und Palast Orchester at Helzberg Hall.

I was entertained.

The audience of about 1,000 was more varied than the typical big band crowd.  A prominent young burlesque dancer was seated next to me while the oldtimers behind me reminisced about Glenn Miller prior to the concert.

The broad appeal of Raabe’s ensemble was immediately apparent.  The vocalist and the members of his 12-piece band are terrific showmen.  Raabe is a droll comedian with an extraordinary voice. 

Almost every selection included at least one subtle gag while other numbers were played entirely for laughs.  Dramatic lighting aside, however, the band didn’t rely on any special effects.

With a repertoire of songs popular during the Weimar Republic, the band revived compositions by the likes of Harry James and Kurt Weill. 

Formerly a skeptic, I’m a believer.


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If forced to enter a talent contest, I'll revive Stan Freberg’s ”John and Marsha.” .  Freberg died last week.

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I reviewed a Dr. Dog concert last week.

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Sunday’s outing by Mark Dresser, Myra Melford and Matt Wilson astounded me.  My notes are posted at Plastic Sax.

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I contributed a Local Listen segment about Kangaroo Knife Fight to KCUR.

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Young Fathers’ White Men Are Black Men Too is a grower.  After almost writing the album off as an assortment of unfinished demos, it finally connected with me.  Here’s the video for ”Shame”.

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About a third of Brian Wilson’s No Pier Pressure is solid. 

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Eliane Elias’ Made In Brazil is just as glossy, slick and overblown as its cover art suggests.  I like it in spite of myself.  RIYL: Dionne Warwick, MPB, Elis Regina.

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While all is not forgiven, David Sanborn continues to redeem himself.  Quartette Humaine. his 2013 collaboration with Bob James, was excellent.  And the new Time and the River is a fine funk/R&B/smooth jazz project. 

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Lage Lund’s guitar trio album Idlewild is deceptively deep.  RIYL: Emily Remler, subtle rebellion, Bill Frisell.

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I don’t understand why the cool kids are fascinated with Royal Thunder.  The band isn’t much different than the Pretty Reckless, a rock act that’s shunned by tastemakers.  That said, I also admire Crooked Doors.  RIYL: Buckcherry, “active rock”, Halestorm.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Jodeci- The Past, The Present, The Future

Several weeks after attending an embarrassingly inept concert featuring Guy, K-Ci & JoJo, El DeBarge and Doug E. Fresh at Municipal Auditorium, I cued up Jodeci’s comeback album with great trepidation. 

Against all odds, The Past, The Present, The Future is amazing.  The sex songs are sexy and the love songs are dreamy.  The new effort is clearly superior to the band’s 1991 debut album.

Instead of jeering when K-Ci and JoJo spoke about a forthcoming Jodeci reunion during their outing at Municipal Auditorium, I should have applauded.

Here’s a video for ”Every Moment”.


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Hearing David Lindley in a concert hall setting was a nice change of pace.  I reviewed his concert at Johnson County Community College.

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I contributed a Local Listen segment about Rex Hobart and the Misery Boys to KCUR’s Up To Date.

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GlassField’s The Answer’s In the Pit of Your Stomach is RIYL: Fleet Foxes, Missouri indie-folk, Iron & Wine.

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Stik Figa and Leonard Dstroy have a video for ”More Or Less”.

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Loyal readers of There Stands the Glass will recall that I fell head over heels for José James’ No Beginning No End.  The smooth, innovative project was my fifth favorite album of 2013.  James’ followup album was a funky mess.  Aside from the rendition of “Strange Fruit” that closes the recording, the new Yesterday I Had the Blues: The Music of Billie is as straightforward as a Tony Bennett album.  I can’t imagine anyone not liking it.  Yet I doubt I’ll ever love it.

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I’m worried for myself.  I was repeatedly moved to the brink of tears as I listened to Valentina Lisitsa’s solo piano album Plays Philip Glass. 

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Donny McCaslin’s fascinating electro-jazz album Fast Future is RIYL: the Pat Metheny Group, 2015, Nile Rodgers.

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Hilary Hahn’s new Mozart set is nice.

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After viewing their ”What’s In my Bag” segment, I want to hang out with the Decemberists.

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Danya Stephens’ Reminiscent is uneventful.  RIYL: Walter Smith III, Blue Note blowing sessions, Ravi Coltrane.

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I can’t stand Ben Goldberg’s Orphic Machine, but I suspect a few There Stands the Glass readers will adore the hybrid of jazz and art-rock.  RIYL: Bjork, intellectuals, Becca Stevens.  Here’s an EPK.

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Pending the availability of cheap flights, I might attend the Free Press Summer Festival in Houston.  The lineup that includes R. Kelly, Slim Thug, Pentagram, Yung Lean, Mastodon, Z-Ro, Chance the Rapper, Sturgill Simpson, Lecrae, Charles Bradley, Bun-B, Diarrhea Planet, Ilovemakonnen and Paul Wall is calling my name.

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I didn’t have high expectations for Kaleo’s set at the Tank Room last Thursday but I didn’t expect generic blues-rock from the Icelandic band.  It’s not the worst show I’ve seen in 2015, but it’s certainly among the most disappointing.

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As I was appreciating the Norwegian tubist Daniel Herskedal’s excellent Slow Eastbound Train, a resident jazz-hater suggested that he admired the sound and asked “what kind of music is this?”  I didn’t have a good answer.  I suppose it’s contemporary Nordic classical music.

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I freely admit that Sufjan Stevens’s Carrie & Lowell is quite good.  RIYL: Iron & Wine, hushed indie folk, Alexi Murdoch.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)