February Recap

Top Five Performances
1. Elton John- Sprint Center
My review.
2. Blake Shelton with Trace Adkins, Lauren Alaina, John Anderson and the Bellamy Brothers- Sprint Center
My review.
3. Ben Allison’s Think Free- Mod Gallery
My review.
4. Chris Hazelton’s Boogaloo 7- Black Dolphin
I like it like that.
5. Heat Index- Thee Gin Mill
Sizzling fusion in the suburbs.

Top Five Albums
1. Yugen Blakrok- Anima Mysterium
A fearsome roar from the Black Panther soundtrack alum.
2. Nubiyan Twist- Jungle Run
Nourishing future jazz.
3. Drew Williams’ Wing Walker Orchestra- Hazel
The Lee’s Summit musician makes a national splash.
4. Mavis Staples- Live in London
A great American.
5. Cochemea Gastelum- All My Relations
Metaphysical jams.

Top Five Songs
1. Natti Natasha- “Pa’ Mala Yo”
Who’s bad?
2. Reggie B and the Popper- “Not Funky”
Heartland funk.
3. Tropkillaz, J Balvin, Anitta and MC Zaac- “Bola Rebola”
Balling.
4. Ariana Grande- “NASA”
Spaced out.
5. Keaton Conrad- “What Am I Supposed to Do?”
Kansas City’s Prince of Pop.

(Original image of Elton John by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Eddie Palmieri- Full Circle

I blew my travel budget on an Eddie Palmieri show in New York last year.  By Kansas City standards, I spent crazy money to catch the salsa legend at the Blue Note.  As a snippet of footage I posted to Instagram suggests, he was worth every penny.   The octogenarian and his expansive band revise salsa classics on the joyous new album Full Circle.   Not only does the project substantiate my enthusiasm for the Blue Note show, its life-affirming jubilance provides precisely the sort of consolatory tonic I need this summer.


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I reviewed Shania Twain’s return to the Sprint Center for The Kansas City Star.

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I write weekly concert previews for The Kansas City Star.

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I take note of the fine new album by Chris Hazelton’s Boogaloo 7 at Plastic Sax.

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The title of the Internet’s Hive Mind is unintentionally ironic.  Me-tooers have heaped praise on the return of Syd the Kid’s stylish soul group.  Telling the truth is unfashionable, but I don’t mind being the bad guy.  Here goes: Hive Mind is a terrible disappointment.  Aside from the sublime bass lines, there’s little to admire about the dreary project.

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Decade, a collaboration between 90-year-old Lee Konitz and 36-year-old pianist Dan Tepfer, is a mystical mind-meld.  RIYL: chess, Sam Rivers, astrophysics.

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Protoje’s A Matter of Time is a solid roots-rock-reggae album.  RIYL: Chronixx, getting past Legend, Burning Spear.  Here’s “Bout Noon”.

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I’d long ignored friends as they've touted footwork.  What a mistake!  Since R.P. Boo’s new I’ll Tell You What! turned my head, I’ve been astounded by almost every track on footwork playlists including Spotify’s Footwork Fever.  Better late than never.

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As a grown man, I’m disinterested in rap beefs and internecine heavy metal skirmishes.  I don’t particularly care why the metal community is divided by Skeletonwitch’s Devouring Radiant Light, I just know that I’m down.  RIYL: Deafheaven, sore throats, Revocation.  Here’s “Fen of Shadows”.

(Original image of Eddie Palmieri at the Blue Note by There Stands the Glass.)

He Was a Friend of Mine

You don’t want to be my friend.

Four of my closest high school pals are dead.  I haven't spoken to a few others in years.  Maybe that’s why I reacted so poorly when a former classmate I’ve loved since the day we met in 1979 dropped a disheartening bomb on me during a break at last week’s appearance by Adam Lambert at the Silverstein Eye Centers Arena.

While I discussed the merits of Pentatonix with his child, my friend casually mentioned that it was the first live music event he’d attended since he accompanied me to a 2001 show by Prince at Municipal Auditorium.

I responded by inviting the girl to move into my home to escape her unsound living conditions.  What’s worse- my failure to insist that my friend join me at any given show during the past 14 years or his inability to maintain a balanced life?

Then again, maybe the joke’s on me.  While I’ve spent much of my adult life listening to loud music in dark rooms, my friend has become a successful attorney and a prominent community leader.

What have I done?


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I reviewed a concert by Adam Lambert and Pentatonix.

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I played songs by Samantha Fish, Eddie Moore and the Outer Circle, Chris Hazelton’s Boogaloo 7, Kendrick Lamar, Rudresh Mahanthappa and Lila Downs during my appearance on KCUR’s Up To Date last week.  Here’s the podcast.

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I write weekly music previews for The Kansas City Star and Ink magazine.

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I contribute weekly Local Listen segments to KCUR.

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I took notes at a performance by the Brian Scarborough Quintet at the Westport CoffeeHouse.

(Original image of Lemony Snicket at the Plaza Library by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Dessa- Parts of Speech

I pondered the fleeting nature of fame as I watched Paula Cole perform three weeks ago.  Cole won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1998.  So how did she end up playing a free concert at a suburban shopping mall for a few hundred curiosity seekers 15 years later?  Cole hasn't lost any of her talent or good looks.

Part of every popular artist's challenge is fending off the relentless waves of fresh talent.  One significant “new” contender is Dessa.  Part of the prodigiously gifted Doomtree crew from the Twin Cities, Dessa updates the confessional singer-songwriter rock associated with Cole and other Lilith Fair-style musicians on her latest solo album. 

Because that sensibility isn’t my thing, I most appreciate the tracks on Parts of Speech that hew most closely to hip-hop.  ”Warsaw” is my favorite song while ”Call Off Your Ghost” does nothing for me.  A sparkling interpretation of Bruce Springsteen’s “I'm Going Down,” not surprisingly, delights me.

It's a strong effort, but there’s probably not a “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?”-size hit on Parts of Speech.  Those coveted shopping mall gigs are going to have to wait. 


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A triple bill of Los Lobos, Los Lonely Boys and Alejandro Escovedo exceeded my expectations.  Here’s my review of Saturday's concert at Knuckleheads.

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The three free new songs by Chris Hazelton’s Boogaloo 7 are RIYL: “Suit & Tie,” Dr. Lonnie Smith, Lou Donaldson. 

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The Abnorm’s new mixtape is titled The Soular Powered Project.

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I’ve met several members of Bloodstone and I’ve had extensive dealings with a one-time manager of the Kansas City-based band.  But until a few days ago, I never knew that Bloodstone starred in a movie.  Here’s the  trailer for “Train Ride to Hollywood.”

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Telarc Records will issue Trampled Under Foot’s new album this month.  Here’s an excellent  EPK.

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The video for Cowboy Indian Bear’s “I Want a Stranger’s Heart” is effective.

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Here’s a nice video recap of the 2013 edition of the Middle of the Map festival.

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Here’s murky footage of Mayor Sly James singing “It’s Not My Cross to Bear.”

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Steve Paul filmed a portion of “a mid-afternoon show of santeria/conga/rumba music” on a recent trip to Cuba.

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Sunday’s BET Awards was the most entertaining music-themed award show I’ve watched in years.  The segments featuring Charlie Wilson and R. Kelly were excellent.  I loved the performances by Janelle Monae, Robin Thicke, Tamela Mann and Kendrick Lamar. 

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I’m not too proud to admit my affection for In a Warzone, the entirely derivative new album by the Transplants.  RIYL: Rancid, Blink-182, Slightly Stoopid. 

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I have absolutely no reservations about sharing my enthusiasm for Otis Clay’s new album Truth Is.  It’s first-rate soul-blues.  ”All That’s Missing Is You” is my jam.  RIYL: Sharon Jones, Tyrone Davis, Jerry Butler.

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This week’s most compelling new releases include albums by Akkilles, Deap Vally, The Fall, the Joe Farrell Quartet and Joe.  The latest from John Scofield is at the top of my list.

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Kansas City Click: Diarrhea Planet is on Tuesday’s bill at the Riot Room.

The Bottle Rockets perform at Knuckleheads on Wednesday.

Matt Stillwell appears on the KC Live! stage on the Fourth of July.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)