Redemption Songs

Mea culpa.  Just two months after I retracted my longstanding support of Kanye West following the release of the loathsome Jesus Is King, the troubled icon redeemed himself with the release of the Sunday Services Choir’s glorious Jesus Is Born on Christmas.  It’s the gospel album I wanted from West all along.  The consecrated versions of West’s “Ultralight Beam” and “Father Stretch” as well as a reworking of SWV’s “Weak” will receive the most attention, but the rest of the selections are just as powerful.  My favorite tracks are “Follow Me,” a loopy workout that bounces between the church and the dance floor, and “That’s How the Good Lord Works,” a praise song as invigorating as a riverside baptism in January.  The best part?  West never opens his mouth.  (Almost) all is forgiven.


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I write weekly concert previews for The Kansas City Star.

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I consider Eldar Djangirov’s new solo piano album Letter to Liz at Plastic Sax.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Kanye West- Jesus Is King

My Uber driver involuntarily swerved when I told him Kanye West was my favorite artist as we sped down Mopac Expressway in Austin last week.  I was blathering about my high hopes for the imminent release of Jesus Is King.
As a day-one West fan and avowed Christian, the prospect of a committed gospel album made me giddy.

My faith is gone.  Jesus Is King is a disaster.  Religion has always played an integral role in West’s art, but the tension between God and Satan is supplanted by imperious moral superiority and self-centered pettiness on Jesus Is King.  To top it off, the production is uninspired.  Only “Use This Gospel” and “God Is” contain glimmers of West’s genius.  I would have vastly preferred a live recording of one of his occasionally inspiring Sunday Services. 

As a zealous West fan since the release of “Through the Wire” in 2003, I’ve tolerated mountains of nonsense.  I draw the line at mediocre music.  West’s peace of mind is obviously more important than my selfish needs as a fan, but at least I’ll no longer run the risk of horrifying strangers with an extremely controversial take on music.  West’s three-year artistic rut- and all the baggage that comes along with it- makes him the man who used to be my favorite artist.


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I make weekly concert recommendations for The Kansas City Star.

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I reviewed a concert by Stefon Harris and Blackout at Plastic Sax.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

October Recap

Top Five Performances
1. Nadia Larcher and Ensemble Ibérica- MTH Theater
My review.
2. Max Richter, Grace Davidson and the American Contemporary Music Ensemble- Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater (Austin)
My review.
3. Rodney Crowell- 04 Center (Austin)
Ain’t living long like that.
4. Tatsuya Nakatani- The Ship
My review.
5. Orville Peck- RecordBar
Who was that masked man?

Top Five Albums
1. Kris Davis- Diatom Ribbons
Unit structures.
2. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds- Ghosteen
My review.
3. Robert Glasper- Fuck Yo Feelings
My review.
4. Danny Brown- Uknowhatimsayin?
Don't know nothing but I do know this.
5. Jaimie Branch- Fly or Die II: Bird Dogs of Paradise
Jazz musicians with punk attitudes are inestimable.

Top Five Songs
1. Summer Walker and PartyNextDoor- “Just Might”
Self-awareness can be excruciating.
2. City Girls- “JT First Day Out”
Sprung.
3. Miranda Lambert- “Tequila Does”
Shots.
4. Bill Frisell- “Everywhere”
Sweet dreams are made of this.
5. Kanye West featuring Clipse and Kenny G- “Use This Gospel”
Kenny G takes a solo on Jesus Is King's best track.

I conducted the same exercise in September, August, July, June, May, April, March, February and January.

(Original image of Tatsuya Nakatani by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Alasdair Roberts- The Fiery Margin

As a white Midwestern male of humble stock, I’ve had the luxury of never needing to give much thought to my identity.  My American ancestors- a long lineage of obscure farmers, teachers and preachers- allow me to follow a path that’s largely free of expectations, obligations and encumbrances.

The results of the genetic test I recently took weren’t particularly surprising.  While it’s amusing to confirm my hunch that I’m a modern-day Neanderthal, I learned that a substantial chunk of my nuts-and-bolts are directly traceable to Glasgow.

Do my roots explain my dark disposition?  I account for ten of the 200 views of the stark solo performance of "A Keen" filmed in the home of Alasdair Roberts.  The bleak song about “the grief of a parent upon the early death of a child” is agonizing.  It could be the Scot in me that’s compelled to relish the misery.

The expanded instrumentation of the reading of “A Keen” on the Scotsman’s new album The Fiery Margin is reminiscent of Joe Boyd’s brilliant production for the likes of Nick Drake and Richard Thompson.  While based in tradition, Roberts has more in common with his Drag City labelmate Bonnie “Prince” Billy than with a typical folk purist.

My adamant rejection of the concept of historical trauma led to a heated argument with one of my children last year.  Yet Roberts’ brooding songs about uniquely Scottish forms of torment seem to stir dormant memories in my soul.  The Fiery Margin sounds so much like a home I’ve never known that I may owe my kid an apology.


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My audio feature about Robert Castillo and his Kansas City groove-jazz band The Sextet aired on KCUR yesterday.  The sound will eventually be added to my text.

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“Look at all the murderers and rapists here!” Joe Hernandez exclaimed as he surveyed the harmonious crowd of more than 3,000 at Fiesta Hispana last night.  The Tex-Mex legend who rose to fame as the leader of Little Joe y La Familia pilloried the President’s attacks on the Latin American community.  He asked for a moment of silence to acknowledge victims of gun violence and for “children in cages” before leading his band in a heartbreaking reading of “America the Beautiful.”  Hernandez insisted that “I know who I am and what we are- we don’t need a target on our backs.”  I captured a bit of Hernandez’s defiant “Redneck Meskin Boy”.

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The discounted five-dollar tickets I bought for yesterday’s matinee concert by The Four Italian Tenors at the Folly Theater paid off in the form of complimentary champagne and chocolate.  The ensemble’s hammy popera was just a bonus.

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“I run the town daily like Super Jesus.”  Here’s the music video for “Super Jesus”, the Popper’s new song about the Kansas City cult figure Mike Wheeler.

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I first saw Eddie Money at Royals Stadium in 1978.  Kansas, the Steve Miller Band and Van Halen were also on the bill of Summer Jam.  I last saw Money at the suburban festival Old Shawnee Days in 2012.  Here’s my review..  The bookends are a perfect encapsulation of the career arc of a typical pop star.  Money died on Friday.

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The familiar sample of the Sylvers’ “Stay Away from Me” on Sampa the Great’s “Final Form” sent me down a dusty R&B rabbithole yesterday.  I discovered the bonkers “I’ll Never Let You Go”.  I’d like someone to explain the lyrics on to me.  It’s a metaphor, right?

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Three good songs- “Old Soul”, “Loose Change” and “Cocktail and a Song”- salvage the otherwise drearily mundane self-titled album by The Highwomen.

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You’d be correct if you suspect that I’m over the moon about (almost) everything related to this.

(Screenshot of my 23andMe’s site by There Stands the Glass.)

The Top Musicians, Albums, Songs and Concerts of the Decade

I created this survey as a companion to a Kansas City compendium that serves as the outline for my appearance on the radio program Eight One Sixty on Tuesday, July 2.


The Top Ten Musicians of the Decade
1. Kanye West
2. Kendrick Lamar
3. Jóhann Jóhannsson
4. St. Vincent
5. Flying Lotus
6. Bill Frisell
7. Rihanna
8. Drake
9. Taylor Swift
10. Future


The Top 25 Albums of the Decade
1. Kendrick Lamar- Good Kid, M.A.A.D City 2012
2. Kanye West- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy 2010
3. Frank Ocean- Channel Orange 2012
4. Rihanna- Anti 2016
5. Earl Sweatshirt- Doris 2013
6. Kendrick Lamar- To Pimp a Butterfly 2015
7. Kanye West- Yeezus 2013
8. Chance the Rapper- Coloring Book 2016
9. St. Vincent- Strange Mercy 2011
10. Ambrose Akinmusire- When the Heart Emerges Glistening 2011

11. Kanye West- The Life of Pablo 2016
12. Jlin- Autobiography 2018
13. Kendrick Lamar- Damn 2017
14. Vince Staples- Summertime '06 2015
15. Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah- Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah 2012
16. Jill Scott- Woman 2015
17. Solange- When I Get Home 2019
18. Robert Glasper- Black Radio 2012
19. Killer Mike- R.A.P. Music 2012
20. Jóhann Jóhannsson- Orphée 2016

21. Beyoncé- Beyoncé 2013
22. Brad Mehldau- Highway Rider 2010
23. Brockhampton- Saturation II 2017
24. Miranda Lambert- The Weight of These Wings 2016
25. Drake- Scorpion 2018


The Top 25 Songs of the Decade
1. Kanye West- “Ultralight Beam” 2016
2. Tyler, the Creator- "Yonkers" 2011
3. Nicki Minaj- "Beez in the Trap" 2012
4. Pusha T featuring Kendrick Lamar- “Nosetalgia” 2013
5. Lorde- "Royals" 2013
6. Drake- “Nice For What” 2018
7. Kendrick Lamar- “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe” 2012
8. Ledisi- "Pieces of Me" 2011
9. Taylor Swift- “Getaway Car” 2017
10. Akwid- "California" 2010

11. Run the Jewels- “Close Your Eyes (And Count to F*ck)” 2014
12. Nas and Damian Marley- "As We Enter" 2010
13. Leela James- "Tell Me You Love Me" 2010
14. ASAP Rocky- "Purple Swag" 2013
15. Kanye West- "Power" 2010
16. Pusha T- "Numbers on the Boards" 2013
17. Cardi B- “Bodak Yellow” 2017
18. Skating Polly- "Alabama Movies" 2014
19. Rick Ross featuring Kanye West and Big Sean- "Sanctified" 2014
20. E-40 with YG- "Function" 2012

21. Das Racist- "Rainbow In The Dark" 2011
22. Waka Flocka- "Hard In Da Paint" 2010
23. Rihanna with Kanye West and Paul McCartney- “FourFiveSeconds” 2016
24. Rosalía- “Malamente” 2018
25. Donnie Trumpet & the Social Experiment- “Sunday Candy” 2015


The Top 25 Concerts of the Decade
1. Kanye West- Sprint Center 2013
2. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds- Midland theater 2014
3. Joyce DiDonato with the Philadelphia Orchestra- Carnegie Hall (New York City) 2015
4. Bobby Rush- Living Room at Knuckleheads 2013
5. Deftones- VooDoo Lounge 2011
6. Chance the Rapper- Midland theater 2015
7. The Dubliners- Royal Albert Hall (London) 2012
8. Mary J. Blige- Sprint Center 2013
9. David Byrne- Muriel Kauffman Theatre 2018
10. Maze- Municipal Auditorium 2014

11. The Art Ensemble of Chicago- Tennessee Theater (Knoxville) 2019
12. Miranda Lambert- Sporting Park 2013
13. Pharaoh Sanders- Blues Alley (Washington D.C.) 2014
14. Salif Keita- Town Hall (New York City) 2017
15. Lawrence Brownlee and Eric Owens- Folly Theater 2017
16. Erykah Badu- Sprint Center 2018
17. Future- Petco Park (San Diego) 2018
18. Philip Glass and Tim Fain- Helzberg Hall 2012
19. Anthony Braxton and Jacqueline Kerrod- American Turners Club (Louisville) 2018
20. Miguel- Midland theater 2015

21. Bettye LaVette- Knuckleheads 2014
22. Juan Gabriel- Sprint Center 2015
23. Enrico Rava's Tribe- Winningstad Theatre (Portland) 2012
24. Merle Haggard- Uptown Theater 2015
25. Os Mutantes- Granada 2010

(Original image of the Soul Rebels at the Gem Theater in 2017 by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: David and Tamela Mann- Us Against the World

I took objected as I spotted people clowning on David and Tamela Mann’s new album (and book) Us Against the World.  The couple’s suggestion that the album is intended to serve as a sensual soundtrack for Christian couples struck some wags as hysterical.  I can only assume these heathens are unfamiliar with Sam Cooke, Aretha Franklin and Al Green.

The explicitness of a lot of contemporary R&B eradicates its appeal.  For instance, Trey Songz’s two repulsively graphic 2018 albums 11 and 28 make me queasy.  I’m entirely on board with the gospel-based Manns making grown-and-sexy soul.  Besides, I’m a longtime fan.

Unfortunately, Us Against the World is merely adequate.   Babyface and Toni Braxton’s like-minded 2014 collaboration Love, Marriage & Divorce and Womack & Womack’s 1988 classic Conscience are far more effective.  Even so, Us Against the World songs including “Feels Like” are refreshing examinations of marital grace.


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I touted the music of Logan Richardson, Cardi B and Kanye West on a “Best Music of 2018” program on KCUR’s Up To Date two days ago.

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I write weekly concert previews for The Kansas City Star.

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Ray Sawyer of Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show has died.  “Sylvia’s Mother” and “The Cover of ‘Rolling Stone’” were among very few radio hits my dad and I both enjoyed.

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Pegi Young has died.

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The versatile lyricist Norman Gimbel has died.

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My childhood loathing of Captain and Tennille may have been my first brush with music criticism.  Even as a credulous child, that zippity doo-dah offended my sensibilities.  Daryl Dragon has died.

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Howard Begle, the “legal eagle” who helped Big Joe Turner and Ruth Brown obtain back royalties, has died.  (Tip via BGO.)

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Honey Lantree of the Honeycombs has died.  Here’s “Have I the Right?”.  (Tip via BGO.)

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

If You Know You Know: The Top Albums, EPs, Songs and Concerts of 2018

The Top 50 Albums of 2018
The 131-minutes of byzantine jazz improvisations that crown my rankings is a reflection of the middling year for long-form recordings.  The real action takes place on the subsequent listing of EPs.

1. Dave Holland- Uncharted Territories
2. Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd & SZA- Black Panther: The Album
3. Ambrose Akinmusire- Origami Harvest
4. St. Vincent- MassEducation
5. Rhye- Blood
6. Drake- Scorpion
7. Logan Richardson- Blues People
8. Cardi B- Invasion of Privacy
9. Fatoumata Diawara- Fenfo
10. RP Boo- I’ll Tell You What!

11. Migos- Culture II
12. Cécile McLorin Salvant- The Window
13. Eddie Palmieri- Full Circle
14. Brockhampton- Iridescence
15. Bettye LaVette- Things Have Changed
16. Four Fists- 6666
17. Hailu Mergia- Lnala Belu
18. Leikeli47- Acrylic
19. Blood Orange- Negro Swan
20. Ashley Monroe- Sparrow

21. Anderson Paak- Oxnard
22. Ariana Grande- Sweetener
23. Tyshawn Sorey- Pillars
24. Kelly Hunt- Even the Sparrow
25. Vincent Peirani- Night Walker
26. Rosalía- El Mal Querer
27. Bixiga 70- Quebra Cabeça
28. Brad Mehldau- After Bach
29. Courtney Barnett- Tell Me How You Really Feel
30. Stephonne Singleton- Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard

31. Sons of Kemet- Your Queen Is a Reptile
32. Halestorm- Vicious
33. Jupiter & Okwess- Kin Sonic
34. Rodney Crowell- Acoustic Classics
35. Elza Soares- Deus É Mulher
36. Hélène Grimaud- Memory
37. Fantastic Negrito- Please Don’t Be Dead
38. Nicole Mitchell- Maroon Cloud
39. Jorja Smith- Lost & Found
40. Lonnie Holley- Mith

41. Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats- Tearing at the Seams
42. Andrew Cyrille- Lebroba
43. Santigold- I Don’t Want: The Gold Fire Sessions
44. Noname- Room 25
45. Sly & Robbie and Nils Petter Molvaer- Nordub
46. Ben Miller Band- Choke Cherry Tree
47. Rich the Factor- CEO of the Blacktop
48. Matthew Shipp- Zero
49. Anja Lechner and Pablo Márquez- Schubert: Die Nacht
50. Kamasi Washington- Heaven and Earth


The Top 25 EPs of 2018
Kanye West insists that these short-form recordings are albums.  He's wrong.

1. Kids See Ghosts- Kids See Ghosts (23 minutes)
2. Pusha T- Daytona (21 minutes)
3. Nas- Nasir (25 minutes)
3. Radiant Children- Tryin’ (17 minutes)
4. Tigran Hamasyan- For Gyumri (29 minutes)
5. Black Thought- Streams of Thought, Vol. 1 (17 minutes)
6. Peter Schlamb- Electric Tinks (24 minutes)
7. Nubya Garcia- When We Are (25 minutes)
8. Vince Staples- FM! (22 minutes)
9. Open Mike Eagle- What Happens When I Try To Relax (19 minutes)
10. Kanye West- Ye (23 minutes)

11. Valee- Good Job, You Found Me (14 minutes)
12. The Alchemist- Bread (25 minutes)
13. 2 Chainz- The Play Don’t Care Who Makes It (16 minutes)
14. Miles Davis- Rubberband EP (26 minutes)
15. Gilberto Gil- Pela Internet 2 (24 minutes)
16. Earl Sweatshirt- Some Rap Songs (24 minutes)
17. Chanté Moore- 1 of 4 (19 minutes)
18. Teyana Taylor- K.T.S.E. (22 minutes)
19. Soulive- Cinematics Vol. 1 (18 minutes)
20. Amber Mark- Conexão (17 minutes)

21. Diplo- California (19 minutes)
22. AlunaGeorge- Champagne Eyes (18 minutes)
23. Aphex Twin- Collapse (28 minutes)
24. Ezra Collective- Juan Pablo: The Philosopher (23 minutes)
25. Stik Figa, Ron Ron and Greg Enemy- Are The Wiz Kidz (15 minutes)


The Top 10 Reissues, Compilations and Historical Releases of 2018
Caveat: I haven’t made my way through the new version of The White Album.

1. John Coltrane- Both Directions at Once: The Lost Album
2. Prince- Piano & a Microphone 1983
3. Stax Singles, Volume 4: Rarities & the Best of the Rest
4. Gumba Fire: Bubblegum Soul & Synth Boogie in 1980s South Africa
5. Bob Dylan- More Blood, More Tracks
6. African Scream Contest Vol​.​2 - Benin 1963​-​1980
7. Miles Davis- The Final Tour: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 6
8. Uncle Walt’s Band- Those Boys From Carolina, They Sure Enough Could Sing…
9. The Dur-Dur Band- Volume 1, Volume 2 & Previously Unreleased Tracks
10. Joe Strummer- Joe Strummer 001


The Top 25 Songs of 2018
Spotify playlist

1. Drake- “Nice For What”
2. Kanye West with Partynextdoor- “Ghost Town”
3. Kids See Ghosts- “Freeee (Ghost Town, Pt. 2)”
4. Janelle Monaé- “Make Me Feel”
5. J Balvin featuring Jeon and Anitta- “Machika”
6. Sa-Roc- “Forever”
7. Nas- “Cops Shot the Kid”
8. Rosalía- “Malamente”
9. Maxwell- “We Never Saw It Coming”
10. Tracey Thorn- “Queen”

11. Pusha T- “If You Know You Know”
12. The Breeders- “Wait in the Car”
13. Christina Aguilera- “Maria”
14. Four Fists- “Joe Strummr”
15. Tech N9ne- “Don’t Nobody Want None”
16. Parquet Courts- “Almost Had to Start a Fight/In and Out of Patience”
17. Chris Dave and the Drumhedz featuring Anderson Paak- “Black Hole”
18. Jimothy Lacoste- “I Can Speak Spanish”
19. Migos- “Auto Pilot”
20. Ben Miller Band- “Akira Kurosawa”

21. Post Malone featuring Ty Dolla Sign- “Psycho”
22. The Go! Team- “All the Way Live”
23. Cardi B- “I Like It”
24. Marsha Ambrosius- “Luh Ya”
25. Doja Cat- “Mooo!”
26. Ashley McBride- “A Little Dive Bar in Dahlonega”
27. E-40, B-Legit and P-Lo- “Boy”
28. Snoop Dogg featuring Charlie Wilson- “One More Day”
29. Childish Gambino- “This Is America”
30. Mopo- “Tökkö”

31. Ariana Grande- “No Tears Left to Cry”
32. Young Fathers- “Picking You”
33. Jlin- “Carbon 12”
34. Atmosphere- “Virgo”
35. Turnstile- “Generator”
36. Orchestra Akokán- “Un Tabaco para Elegua”
37. Flatbush Zombies- “Chunky”
38. Art Brut- “Hospital!”
39. Marianne Faithfull featuring Nick Cave- “The Gypsy Faerie Queen”
40. The Nels Cline 4- “Imperfect 10”

41. Justin Timberlake with Chris Stapleton- “Say Something”
42. La Luz- “Loose Teeth”
43. Carrie Underwood- “Ghosts on the Stereo”
44. Valee featuring Pusha T- “Miami”
45. Jorja Smith- “Blue Lights”
46. The Bottle Rockets- “Highway 70 Blues”
47. Shame- “Concrete”
48. Germán Montero- “Bumper Choque”
49. The Dirty Nil- “I Don’t Want That Phone Call”
50. Willie Nelson- “Something You Get Through”


The Top 50 Concerts of 2018
All performances are in the Kansas City area unless otherwise noted.

1. Erykah Badu- Sprint Center
2. Vijay Iyer Sextet- Gem Theater (Open Spaces festival)
3. Drake- Sprint Center
4. David Byrne- Muriel Kauffman Theatre
5. Anat Cohen Tentet- Gem Theater
6. Anthony Braxton and Jacqueline Kerrod- American Turners Club (Cropped Out festival in Louisville)
7. Taylor Swift- Arrowhead Stadium
8. Bang on a Can All-Stars with the Kansas City Chorale- Folly Theater (Open Spaces festival)
9. Protomartyr- Zanzabar (Louisville)
10. Four Fists- Riot Room

11. Pink- Sprint Center
12. Lonnie Holley- Swope Park (Open Spaces festival)
13. Injury Reserve- Encore Room
14. Dave Alvin and Jimmie Dale Gilmore- Knuckleheads
15. Bill Frisell, Rudy Royston and Thomas Morgan- 1900 Building
16. Low Cut Connie- Doug Fir Lounge (Portland)
17. Maxwell- Midland theater
18. Ghost- Kansas Speedway (Rockfest)
19. Cyrille Aimée- Folly Theater
20. The Breeders- The Rave (Milwaukee)

21. Flatbush Zombies- Providence Medical Center Amphitheater (Flyover festival)
22. Ryan Keberle & Catharsis- Black Dolphin
23. The Lyric Opera of Kansas City’s “Rigoletto”- Muriel Kauffman Theater
24. Uriel Herman Quartet- Black Dolphin
25. Julien Baker- Vinyl Renaissance
26. Tech N9ne- West Bottoms (Boulevardia festival)
27. Future- Petco Park (Dia de los Deftones festival in San Diego)
28. Kesha- Sprint Center
29. Michael Hurley- American Turners Club (Cropped Out festival in Louisville)
30. Atmosphere- VooDoo

31. The Project H- Westport Coffee House
32. Shania Twain- Sprint Center
33. Ehud Ettun and Henrique Eisenmann- 1900 Building
34. Randy Bachman- Ameristar
35. Drive-By Truckers- The Truman
36. Los Texmaniacs with Flaco Jiménez- Westin Crown Center (KC Folk Fest)
37. Keith Urban- Sprint Center
38. Lonnie McFadden- Black Dolphin
39. Spoon- Crossroads KC (Middle of the Map festival)
40. Emancipator- Crystal Ballroom (Portland)

41. Kenny Chesney- Arrowhead Stadium
42. Vine Street Rumble- Californos
43. Courtney Barnett- Truman
44. Hermon Mehari Quintet- Gem Theater
45. Giorgio Moroder- Truman
46. Twenty One Pilots- Sprint Center
47. Chris Hillman, Roger McGuinn and Marty Stuart’s “Sweethearts of the Rodeo”- Folly Theater
48. Lucinda Williams- Starlight Theatre
49. Edison Lights- Town Center Plaza
50. Billy Joel- Kauffman Stadium

(Original image of Erykah Badu by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Jorja Smith- Lost & Found

Jorja Smith’s episode of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert floored me.  The performance seemed to signal the arrival of a major talent.  Alas, the 21-year-old British woman’s debut album Lost & Found is slightly less convincing.  I was about to write it off until I was arrested by a surprising interpolation of Dizzee Rascal’s “Sirens,” my favorite song of 2007, on the eighth track.  Smith could be the next big star in the mode of Erykah Badu, D’Angelo or Lauryn Hill after all.


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I covered the first day of the Boulevardia festival for The Kansas City Star

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I write weekly music previews for The Kansas City Star.

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I analyzed the significance of Social Distortion in a forecast of the band’s appearance at Middle of the Map festival.

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I reviewed the Ryan Marquez Trio’s Moving Forward in Time at Plastic Sax.

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I was backstage in Austin Music Hall at a SWSW showcase for the All the King’s Men project in 1997.  I was on cloud nine watching a parade of stars walk past me to perform with Scotty Moore and D.J. Fontana.  Fontana has died.

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At the conclusion of Matt “Guitar” Murphy’s first set at the Jazzhaus in Lawrence, Kansas, in the 1980s, I convinced two friends to abandon the club for my apartment.  I’d run out of money, but cold beer was in my refrigerator.  I’ve been haunted by that shameful decision for decades.  Murphy died last week.

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Lorraine Gordon of the Village Vanguard has died.  I’m fairly certain she’s the person who scolded me for dawdling during my first visit to the club in the 1990s.

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Jalal Mansur Nuriddin of the Last Poets has died.  (Tip via BGO.)

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If three minutes were cut from the 7:33 “Everything,” Nas’ Nasir would be close to perfect.  It’s the best of Kanye West’s recent stellar musical outburst.  My new ranking: Nasir, Kids See Ghosts, Daytona, Ye.  Another thought: it’s increasingly clear that the five-part series (Teyana Taylor’s effort is slated for release on June 22) is intended to be heard as a single song cycle.

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Nick Lowe’s new four-song collaboration with Los Straitjackets is almost as wonderful as his classic work of the 1970s.

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The four-song Consolation affirms my belief that Protomartyr is one of the most vital bands in rock.

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Jeffrey Osborne’s Worth It All suffers from a serious quality control problem.  The soul crooner’s voice is intact, but decent songs are few and far between.  Here’s the title track.

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Lower East Suite Part Three, the sloppy debut album of the Onyx Collective, is a lo-fi mess.  And that’s precisely what I like about it.  The young jazz musicians play with the reckless indifference of punks.  RIYL: the Jazz Passengers, nose-thumbing, the Lounge Lizards.

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Orange Goblin’s The Wolf Bites Back is a blast.  RIYL: Clutch, prison tattoos, Red Fang.  Here’s “In Bocca Al Lupo”.

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I listened to The Carters’ Everything Is Love once.  Never again.  RIYL: Forbes list flexing, Us Weekly, misplaced priorities.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Kanye West- Ye

I’ve long tolerated the erratic behavior of my favorite artist of the millennium.  I stuck with him when he cancelled a concert in Atlanta after I booked a non-refundable trip to see him at Philips Arena.  Even his unsettling flirtation with the current president didn’t phase me.  I’m firmly in the music-is-the-only-thing-that-matters camp.

Each of Kanye West’s first seven albums is a masterpiece.  Released today, his eighth album Ye ends that remarkable streak.  While it’s enormously entertaining and endlessly fascinating, Ye isn’t up to West’s colossal standard.

After listening to the 23-minute project on repeat for hours on end, I’ve concluded that only the druggy gospel of “Ghost Town”- a mashup of the styles of Queen, Rihanna and Kirk Franklin- is exceptional.  The punchline lyrics and inconsistent production on the other six tracks betray a lack of focus.

West flew higher than anyone for more than 15 years.  While Ye can’t be characterized as a crash landing, it’s an extremely bumpy return to earth.


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I write weekly music previews for The Kansas City Star.

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I examined Grizzly Bear’s return to the Middle of the Map festival for The Kansas City Star.

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I recently became obsessed with a premium brand of cream soda.  The empty calories infuse me with a fleeting sense of euphoria.  The silky production on J Balvin’s lightweight Vibras is similarly satisfying.  Here’s “Ambiente”.

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Tia Fuller’s Diamond Cut is precisely the sort of thrilling mainstream jazz album I keep waiting for a Kansas City musician (other than Bobby Watson) to make.

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The song titles and press release for Awase, the latest effort of Nik Bärtsch’s Ronin, are painfully pretentious.  The music, however, is genuinely funky, albeit in a Swiss kind of way.  RIYL: Manu Katché, bass clarinet, the Esbjörn Svensson Trio.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Whoa

I watched surfers from a beachside dive while on vacation in San Diego yesterday.  The soundtrack was similar to the sounds I’d heard at multiple Southern California establishments this week.  Rather than irritating me as they do when I encounter them in my Midwestern home, new millennium reggae songs from the likes of  Rebelution, Sbid, Iration and Damian Marley tickled my ears in an unfamiliar way.  Otherwise subdued barflys banded together for a hearty singalong when the 311 hit “Amber” popped up on the playlist.  I may have joined in.


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I shared tracks by Deborah Brown, Matt Otto with Ensemble Ibérica, Samantha Fish, Lee Ann Womack, Future and Alejandro Fernández on a KCUR program titled “From Kansas City And Beyond, The Best Music Of 2017”.  Bonus: I made a case for Rich the Factor as my favorite Kansas City artist.

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I write weekly music previews for The Kansas City Star.

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I reviewed Lonnie McFadden’s Live at Green Lady Lounge at Plastic Sax.

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Denise LaSalle has died.

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“Fast” Eddie Clarke of Motörhead and Fastway has died.

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Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries has died.

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The crossover gospel artist Edwin Hawkins has died.

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The press materials for Suss’Ghost Box imply that the New York group’s “ambient country” concept is groundbreaking.  It’s not.  Calexico, Bill Frisell and B.J. Cole are among the artists that have previously explored the Ennio Morricone-influenced terrain.  That observation doesn’t mean that I don't take enormous pleasure in Ghost Box.

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The albums Jack Antonoff produced for Lorde, Taylor Swift and his band Bleachers provided satisfying pop kicks in 2017.  Børns’ Blue Madonna offers a similar sort of immediate gratification.  Here’s “I Don’t Want U Back”.

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I intended to bail on Anderson East’s Encore until I recognized the opening lyric of the album’s fifth song.  His surprising cover of Ted Hawkins’ “Sorry You’re Sick” is a nice surprise.  Even so, does the world need another painfully sincere blue-eyed soul singer in the vein of Ray LaMontagne, Allen Stone and Amos Lee?  Here’s
“Girlfriend”.

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”Do you like it hardcore?” Yes, Fools Gold and Masayoshi Iimori, I do.

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Listening to Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s Wrong Creatures is the rock and roll equivalent of rewatching the anodyne John Hughes movie The Breakfast Club.  RIYL: the Black Angels, vinyl reissues of the Velvet Underground, the Kills.  Here’s “Little Thing Gone Wild”.

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The video for Inara George’s lovely chamber-pop song “Young Adult” is charming.

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New Stravinsky!  The world premiere recording of the recently rediscovered “Chant Funébre” by Riccardo Chailly and the Lucerne Festival Orchestra on Stravinsky: Chant funŠbre; Le Sacre de Printemps is a swirling mind-bender.

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Umphrey’s McGee’s It’s Not Us is a typically frustrating affair.  The jam band is best during noisy freakouts that evoke King Crimson’s Discipline.  The group is intolerable when it sounds like a third-tier version of the Police.

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I’m invariably delighted on the rare occasions when I encounter a music enthusiast who is even geekier than I.  Cole Cuchna pores over every note and lyric of Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy on the second season of his Dissect podcast.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

No Future

Anyone who has listened to Future more than me in recent months probably has a nasty codeine habit.  The Atlanta artist has overwhelmed his admirers with an avalanche of high-quality, opiate-laced music in 2017.  My addiction is problematic.  As a guy who recently reminded readers of his affinity for overtly Christian rappers, it’s a blessing that I don’t always comprehend Future’s lyrics.  Even so, mesmerizing tracks like ”Feed Me Dope” from Future’s new collaboration with Young Thug match my current mindset.  The audaciously synthetic sound will almost certainly sound hopelessly dated in a year or two, but at this moment, I’m a hopeless fiend for Future.


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I write weekly music previews for The Kansas City Star.

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I named the MGDs the KCUR Band of the Week.

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I put Changing the Tune: The Kansas City Women’s Jazz Festival, 1978-1985 into context at Plastic Sax.

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Muhal Richard Abrams has died.  I’m horrified that I never heard the jazz giant perform.  I need to get serious about checking the likes of Anthony Braxton, Henry Threadgill and James “Blood” Ulmer off my bucket list.

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L’Orange’s The Ordinary Man packs 16 tracks into 39 minutes.  The ratio doesn’t make for a fluid listening experience.  Each track ends just as the groove begins to sink in.  RIYL: spoken word samples, 9th Wonder, short attention spans.

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I’m predictably elated by Kanye West’s verse on CyHi’s “Dat Side”.

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I overlooked Move Upstairs, the wondrous new album by the Como Mamas, when it was released several months ago.  RIYL: Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens, salvation, the Staple Sisters.  Here’s “Count Your Blessings”.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

I'm Trying To Keep My Faith: The Top Albums, Songs and Concerts of 2016

I made only one music-oriented trip in 2016.  I traveled to Atlanta to attend an ill-fated Kanye West concert.  Yet as these lists indicate, my ears weren't jilted at my home in Kansas City.

The Top 50 Albums of 2016

1. Kanye West- The Life of Pablo
2. Chance the Rapper- Coloring Book
3. Hélène Grimaud- Water
4. Logan Richardson- Shift
5. Rich the Factor- Smile
6. Rihanna- Anti
7. Jóhann Jóhannsson- Orphée
8. David Bowie- Blackstar
9. David Murray, Geri Allen and Terri Lyne Carrington- Perfection
10. Miranda Lambert- The Weight of These Wings

11. Maxwell- BlackSUMMERS’night
12. Nels Cline- Lovers
13. Danny Brown- Atrocity Exhibition
14. Childish Gambino- Awaken, My Love!
15. Pat Metheny Unity Group- The Unity Sessions
16. Kevin Gates- Islah
17. Amina Claudine Myers- Sama Rou
18. Eddie Moore and the Outer Circle- Kings & Queens
19. Savages- Adore Life
20. Joyce DiDonato- In War & Peace: Harmony Through Music

21. Adrian Younge- Something About April II
22. Kendrick Lamar- Untitled Unmastered
23. Leonard Cohen- You Want It Darker
24. Allison Miller’s Boom Tic Boom- Otis Was a Polar Bear
25. The Conquerors- Wyld Time
26. Walker Family Singers- Panola County Spirit
27. Kvelertak-Nattesferd
28. Rokia Traoré- Ne So
29. Anderson Paak- Malibu
30. Céu- Tropix

31. A Tribe Called Quest- We Got It From Here...
32. Willie Nelson- For the Good Times: A Tribute to Ray Price
33. Exmortus- Drive Forth
34. BJ the Chicago Kid- In My Mind
35. Corinne Bailey Rae- The Heart Speaks In Whispers
36. Shirley Collins- Lodestar
37. Sumac- What One Becomes
38. Elliot Galvin Trio- Punch
39. Run the Jewels- 3
40. The Weeknd- Starboy

41. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds- Skeleton Tree
42. Kandace Springs- Soul Eyes
43. Ingrid Laubrock- Serpentines
44. A$AP Ferg- Always Strive and Prosper
45. Young Thug- Jeffery
46. Volbeat- Seal the Deal & Let’s Boogie
47. Drake- Views
48. Willie Nelson- Summertime: Willie Nelson Sings Gershwin
49. YG- Still Brazy
50. The Grisly Hand- Hearts & Stars


The Top Five Reissues and Archival Releases of 2016
1. Charlie Parker- Unheard Bird: The Unissued Takes
2. Urgent Jumping: East African Musiki Wa Dansi Classics 1972-1982
3. Soul Fever: Afro Funk, Disco And Boogie: West African Disco Mayhem!
4. Miles Davis- Freedom Jazz Dance: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 5
5. Gov’t Mule- The Tel-Star Sessions


The Top Five EPs of 2016
1. T.I.- Us Or Else
2. Sarah Borges- Good and Dirty
3. Spoek Mathambo- Badimo
4. Chris Bathgate- Old Factory
5. Vince Staples- Prima Donna


The Top 50 Songs of 2016
1. Kanye West- “Ultralight Beam”
2. Anderson Paak- “Come Down”
3. Andre Williams- “Bury Me Deep”
4. Chance the Rapper- “Same Drugs”
5. Joe- “Our Anthem”
6. Danny Brown- “Really Doe”
7. Tedeschi Trucks Band- “Anyhow”
8. Miike Snow- “I Feel the Weight”
9. BJ the Chicago Kid- “Church”
10. Krizz Kaliko- “Didn’t Wanna Wake You”

11. Anthony Hamilton- “Ain’t No Shame”
12. T.I.- “40 Acres”
13. A Tribe Called Quest- “Kids...”
14. Rihanna- “Love On the Brain”
15. Sarah Borges- “Tendency to Riot”
16. Childish Gambino- “Redbone”
17. Frank Ocean- “Pink & White”
18. Parker Millsap- “Heaven Sent”
19. The Pretty Reckless- “Oh My God”
20. Kvelertak- “1985”

21. Boosie Badazz- “Cancer”
22. 21 Savage- “No Heart”
23. Babymetal- “Karate”
24. Rich the Factor- “Got ‘Em For Cheap”
25. Schoolboy Q- “That Part (Black Hippy remix)”
26. 5 Seconds of Summer- “Girls Talk Boys”
27. Descendants- “No Fat Burger”
28. YG- “Why You Always Hatin’?”
29. Agoraphobic Nosebleed- “Not a Daughter”
30. Jamie Lidell- “I Live to Make You Smile”

31. Kevin Gates- “Thought I Heard (Bread Winner’s Anthem)”
32. Phantogram- “You Don’t Get Me High Anymore”
33. Regina Belle- “He’s Alright”
34. Miranda Lambert- “Ugly Lights”
35. 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne- “Bounce”
36. Margo Price- “Hurtin’ (On the Bottle)”
37. Mayhem Lauren- “Badmon Ting”
38. Volbeat- “The Devil’s Bleeding Crown”
39. Various Blonde- “All Bases Covered”
40. Soul Revival- “If You Ask Me Again (I Do)”

41. Josh Hoyer and Soul Colossal- “Parts of a Man”
42. Famous Dex- "I Get the Drip From My Walk"
43. Shirley Caesar and Anthony Hamilton- “It’s Alright, It’s Ok”
44. Maxwell- “Lake By the Ocean”
45. Solange- “Don’t Touch My Hair”
46. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis- “Bolo Tie”
47. Psychic Heat- “Anxiety Eater”
48. M.I.A.- “Visa”
49. Car Seat Headrest- “Drunk Drivers/Killer Whales”
50. Allen Toussaint- "American Tune"


The Top 50 Shows of 2016
1. Maxwell and Mary J. Blige- Sprint Center
2. Chance the Rapper- Midland theater
3. Lee Fields and the Expressions- The Granada
4. Aida Cuevas with Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles- Yardley Hall
5. Bonnie Raitt- Midland theater
6. Florence + The Machine- Providence Medical Amphitheater
7. Marilyn Maye- Quality Hill Playhouse
8. Exmortus- Aftershock
9. Tortoise- The Granada
10. Stephonne Singleton- Tank Room

11. Adia Victoria- Riot Room
12. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band- Sprint Center
13. Eddie Moore and the Outer Circle- Tank Room
14. Twenty-One Pilots- Sprint Center
15. Goddamn Gallows- Riot Room patio
16. Dolly Parton- Sprint Center
17. Steven Wilson- Folly Theater
18. R. Kelly- Sprint Center
19. Be/Non- Scottish Rite Temple
20. The Who- Sprint Center

21. Lamb of God- Midland theater
22. Chic- Starlight Theatre (opening for Duran Duran)
23. Christian McBride Trio- Folly Theater
24. Tedeschi Trucks Band- Midland theater
25. Pablo Ziegler and the Quartet for New Tango- Polsky Theatre
26. Les Arts Florissant- Helzberg Hall
27. UFO- VooDoo
28. Logan Richardson- Blue Room
29. Lianne La Havas- Uptown Theater (opening for Leon Bridges)
30. Dwight Yoakam- Uptown Theater

31. Roy Ayers- Blue Room
32. Diana Reyes- Barney Allis Plaza
33. Allison Miller’s Boom Tic Boom- Blue Room
34. Elle King- Midland theater
35. Matt Villinger- Orion Room at the Green Lady Lounge
36. 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne- Sprint Center
37. Maarja Nuut- Westin Kansas City at Crown Center
38. Toni Braxton- Sprint Center
39. Midori with the Kansas City Symphony- Helzberg Hall
40. Matt Otto Septet- Blue Room

41. Fantasia- Starlight Theatre
42. Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats-Providence Medical Center Amphitheater
43. Elvis Costello- Yardley Hall
44. Avant- Uptown Theater
45. Helado Negro- RecordBar
46. Julion Alvarez- Sprint Center
47. Josh Groban- Starlight Theatre
48. Ebony Tusks- Midland theater (opening for Zhu)
49. Kevin Gates-  Providence Medical Center Amphitheater (opening for Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa)
50. Candido- American Jazz Museum

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Kanye and Stanley

I fell in love with Atlanta last week.  I was smitten by the city’s Southern hospitality, collard greens, excellent public transportation and vibrant downtown.  Even so, I was unable to get past the highly publicized cancellation of Kanye West’s tour.  I had wheeled the trip around the troubled star’s concert at Philips Arena.  I settled for a Stanley Clarke show.  While the jazz-fusion legend looked and sounded amazing, I never got into his performance.   Not even keyboard whiz Beka Gochiashvili’s lovely playing on “Goodbye Pork Pie Hat” allayed my disappointment.


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I reviewed The Owen/Cox Dance Group and the People’s Liberation Big Band’s interpretation of The Nutcracker.

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I wrote an extended preview of tonight’s Mary J. Blige and Maxwell concert for The Kansas City Star and Ink magazine.

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

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The new compilation Doing It In Lagos: Boogie, Pop & Disco in 1980s Nigeria is an amusing diversion.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Urgent Jumping: East African Musiki Wa Dansi Classics 1972-1982

Political and social mayhem and personal medical ailments won’t get me down.  Urgent Jumping: East African Musiki Wa Dansi Classics 1972-1982 is responsible for keeping me on an even keel.

Big Steve, a regular There Stands the Glass reader, recently tipped his friends off to the new compilation of restorative East African jams.  Afro 70’s ”Hasara Ya Moto is among the selections with restorative qualities.

There are undoubtedly ominous subtexts throughout the two-and-a-half-hour set, but I’m blissfully unaware of the conflicts that may have inspired the music.  In fact, I’m annoyed when a man speaks in English during Hafusa Abasi & Slim Ali and the Kikulacho Yahoos Band’s otherwise wondrously ethereal ”Sina Raha”.


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I reviewed Karrin Allyson’s concert at the Folly Theater.  I also discussed the performance on KCUR.

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I wrote an extended preview of Young Thug’s show at the Midland for The Kansas City Star and Ink magazine..

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

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I took note of A La Mode’s new album at Plastic Sax.

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I reviewed a magic show for The Kansas City Star last week.

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I saw Mose Allison perform only once.  I was one of a few dozen fans who attended his show at The Tuba on Southwest Boulevard in the early 1990s.  The wonderful wit died last week.

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The heroic Sharon Jones died last week.

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Billy Miller of Norton Records has died.

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I’m not nearly as enthralled as most of my hip-hop-loving peers by A Tribe Called Quest’s We got it from Here... Thank You 4 Your service album.  The ideas it signifies are often more interesting than the actual content.  “Kids”- a cranky get-off-my-lawn tirade- is my favorite track. 

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I’m obsessed with the work of Jóhann Jóhannsson.  His score for the new alien invasion flick  Arrival is out of this world.

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Sharon Jones’ mourners might take heart in Special Night, the solid new album by Lee Fields and the Expressions.  Here’s a live rendition of the title track.

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Miranda Lambert’s The Weight of These Wings is the album I’ve long wanted her to make.  ”Keeper of the Flame” is the project’s slickest song.

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The sickeningly cloying Jazz Loves Disney makes me want to break something.

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Daniil Trifinov shreds on Transcendental, two frenzied hours of Franz Liszt.

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Lamb of God’s The Duke benefit EP is RIYL: live souvenirs, Pantera, veteran metal bands that are better than Metallica.

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David Bazan is at his pitiful best on Dark Sacred Night  "Wish My Kids Were Here” is an instant classic in the delectable sub-genre of sad-sack Christmas songs.

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I’m the guy who acts “more stupidly.”  I have more than $200 tied up in tickets to a canceled Kanye West show.

(Original images by There Stands the Glass.)

This Is a God Dream: Music Midway in 2016

I’ll share my enthusiasm for the best music released so far in 2016 on KCUR’s Up To Date program on Friday, June 17.  The following lists of my favorite albums, songs and performances will provide my detractors with fresh ammunition.  I hope that that everyone else will make a few gratifying discoveries.


Top Albums
Even though it’s Kanye West’s weakest album, The Life of Pablo is a revelation.  (Spotify playlist.)

1. Kanye West- The Life of Pablo
2. Chance the Rapper- Coloring Book
3. David Murray, Geri Allen and Terri Lyne Carrington- Perfection
4. Logan Richardson- Shift
5. Savages- Adore Life
6. Hélène Grimaud- Water
7. David Bowie- Blackstar
8. Allison Miller’s Boom Tic Boom- Otis Was a Polar Bear
9. Walker Family Singers- Panola County Spirit
10. Kendrick Lamar- Untitled Unmastered

11. Willie Nelson- Summertime: Willie Nelson Sings Gershwin
12. Exmortus- Drive Forth
13. Adrian Younge- Something About April II
14. Volbeat- Seal the Deal & Let’s Boogie
15. Céu- Tropix
16. Pat Metheny Unity Band- The Unity Sessions
17. Charles Lloyd & the Marvels- I Long To See You
18. Lecrae- Church Clothes 3
19. Conflicts- The North Slope
20. A$AP Ferg- Always Strive and Prosper

21. Anthony Hamilton- What I’m Feelin’
22. BJ the Chicago Kid- In My Mind
23. Psychic Heat- Sunshower
24. Babymetal- Metal Resistance
25. Kevin Gates- Islah


Top Songs
Chance Bennett has been reading my mind.  (Spotify playlist.)

1. Chance the Rapper- “Same Drugs”
2. Anderson Paak- “Come Down”
3. Parker Millsap- “Heaven Sent”
4. Kanye West- “Ultralight Beam”
5. Tedeschi Trucks Band- “Anyhow”
6. BJ the Chicago Kid- “Church”
7. Agoraphobic Nosebleed- “Not a Daughter”
8. Krizz Kaliko- “Didn’t Wanna Wake You”
9. Boosie Badazz- “Cancer”
10. Steve Gunn- “Ancient Jules”

11. Anthony Hamilton- “Ain’t No Shame”
12. A$AP Ferg- “Strive”
13. Regina Belle- “He’s Alright”
14. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis- “Bolo Tie”
15. Mount Moriah- “Precita”
16. Deftones- “Doomed User”
17. Margo Price- “Hurtin’ (On the Bottle)”
18. Rihanna- “Love On the Brain”
19. Keys N Krates featuring Ouici- “Love Again”
20. The Philistines- “Radiation Drive”

21. French Montana, Kanye West and Nas- “Figure It Out”
22. Kvelertak- “1985”
23. Carrie Rodriguez- “Z”
24. Sturgill Simpson- “Breakers Roar”
25. Josh Hoyer and Soul Colossal- “Parts of a Man”


Top Shows
I've attended about 200 individual performances since January 1.

1. Lee Fields and the Expressions- The Granada
2. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band- Sprint Center
3. Exmortus- Aftershock
4. Florence + The Machine- Providence Medical Amphitheater
5. Tortoise- The Granada
6. The Who- Sprint Center
7. Lamb of God- The Midland
8. Christian McBride Trio- Folly Theater
9. Goddamn Gallows- Riot Room patio
10. Be/Non- Scottish Rite Temple

11. Maarja Nuut- Westin Kansas City at Crown Center
12. Tedeschi Trucks Band- The Midland
13.  Logan Richardson- Blue Room
14.  Dwight Yoakam- Uptown Theater
15.  UFO- VooDoo
16.  Pablo Ziegler and the Quartet for New Tango- Polsky Theatre
17.  Les Arts Florissant- Helzberg Hall
18.  Fantasia- Starlight Theatre
19.  Roy Ayers- Blue Room
20. Matt Villinger- Orion Room at the Green Lady Lounge

21. Ebony Tusks- The Midland
22. Avant- Uptown Theater
23. Group of the Altos- The Brick
24. Midori with the Kansas City Symphony- Helzberg Hall
25. R. Kelly- Sprint Center

Top Five Opening Acts
1. A$AP Ferg, for G-Eazy- The Midland
2. Tombs, for 1349- Riot Room
3. Deafheaven, for Lamb of God- The Midland
4. OMD, for Barenaked Ladies- Starlight Theatre
5. Elle King, for Vance Joy- The Midland

(Original image of my 38th favorite performance of 2016- the Calamity Cubes at the Riot Room patio- by There Stands the Glass.)

Speaking to God in Public

My two favorite albums of 2016 are by Chicago rappers.  Here’s the kicker: Kanye West’s The Life of Pablo and Chance the Rapper’s Coloring Book are gospel albums.  West insists that “this is a God dream.”  Chance avers that “I speak to God in public.”  Their testimonials aren’t negated by the inclusion of raps about inebriation, pride, lust and avarice.  The name of this site indicates that I’m sympathetic to their imperfections.  As a person of faith, I neither seek nor require categorical spiritual validation from artists.  Nevertheless, the praise songs on The Life of Pablo and Coloring Book inspire me.


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I reviewed a Florence + The Machine concert.

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KCUR published my review of Go, the new album by the underappreciated Kansas City musician Krizz Kaliko.

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I reviewed Andrew W.K.’s concert on Saturday.

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I logged eight hours at the Westport Roots Festival.  Here are my notes for The Kansas City Star.  I also wrote a preview of the annual event.

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

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I admire Logan Richardson’s momentous homecoming concert at Plastic Sax.

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The Kansas City rapper Gee Watts created a video for ”Hallelujah”.

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The eponymous album by the young Tuareg band Imarhan is exciting.  Here’s a video for the title track.

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I’ve long appreciated David Bazan.  Blanco is RIYL: despair, the Magnetic Fields, lo-fi synths.

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Black Mountain might be trolling on IV.  RIYL: Dio, ‘80s nostalgia, the Tubes.  Here’s ”Mothers of the Sun”.

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I don’t enjoy playing the role of a fussbudget, but Robert Glasper's revision of Miles Davis’ music on Everything’s Beautiful is a bummer.  RIYL: Erykah Badu, jokers who like to shout “remix!”, Marcus Miller.

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A Love Electric’s exciting Psychmonde is RIYL Chris Whitley, drugs, Ziggy Stardust.

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I’ll cop to liking Otep’s dystopian pop-metal.  Generation Doom is RIYL: Nine Inch Nails, Hot Topic apparel, Korn.   Here’s ”Down”.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Concert Review: Exmortus at Aftershock

Being the oldest guy in the room didn’t phase me, but I started to panic on the evening of Ash Wednesday when I realized that I might have been the feeblest person at Aftershock.  Almost every one of the 75 other people at the metal show was capable of cleaning my clock.

The hulking bill of Enforcer, Warbringer, Exmortus, Cauldron and Vanlade attracted corresponding burly people.

I documented my appreciation for Exmortus’ Ride Forth last month.  The new songs by the Los Angeles metal band sounded even better live.  The four guys in the band, incidentally, may have been the only men at the Merriam venue smaller than me. 

Kansas City’s Vanlade opened the show.  Bless their hearts.  Cauldron, a throwback metal trio from Chicago, was excellent.  Exmortus’ amazing guitarist sat in with the Los Angeles thrash band Warbringer. 

Sensing that I was pressing my luck and knowing I’d already received a great deal in exchange for my $20 investment, I didn’t stick around for the headlining set by Enforcer.  Even so, I regret not seeing a Swedish band accustomed this playing for a few dozen people in Kansas.


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I boldly predicted that the Steeldrivers would win a Grammy Award in my review of the band’s concert at the Folly Theater on Friday.  I was right.

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I reviewed a concert by Avant and Silk at the Uptown Theater.

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I have yet to hear The Life of Pablo, but I’m looking forward to digging in.  Kanye West’s previous six albums are nothing short of great.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

I'm Feeling Low and the Fish Won't Bite

Just as the song suggests, a loud dose of vintage R&B almost always sets me straight when I'm blue.  When I'm ailing, however, even the sweetest music rankles me.  I'm back in the swing of attending performances, but I only lasted twenty minutes at a gig last night.  The flu is the enemy of music.


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I remember the late Kansas City drummer Tommy Ruskin at Plastic Sax.

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Little Jimmy Dickens has died.  I'm so glad I was able to see him a handful of times at the Grand Ole Opry.

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Guitarist Jeff Golub has died.

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Alberta Adams has died.

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D/Will created a video for "Keep Coming Back".

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I agree with the pontificators who suggest that the entirely decent "Only One," the new collaboration between Kanye West and Paul McCartney, is the worst thing West has released.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Ian McLagan, 1945-2014

I've never met Mick Jagger.  It's probably just as well.  After all, what would we talk about?  I don't have any insights into jet ownership or luxury apartments in Cannes.  Talking to Ian McLagan was easy.  The occasional sideman for the Rolling Stones and a founding member of the Small Faces and the Faces was one of rock's most approachable stars.  Back when SXSW was more of a regional music conference than a global marketing platform, I made a point of catching McLagan perform at the Saxon Pub every March.  Watching a British legend joyously perform in a Texas roadhouse thrilled me.  His appearance in Kansas City at Davey's Uptown in 2004 (or maybe it was 2005) was even more rewarding.  Alas, McLagan's 2013 gig at Danny's in Lenexa was merely adequate.  McLagan died last week.


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I reviewed Jenny Lewis' concert at Liberty Hall.

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My favorite jazz performances of 2014 are listed at Plastic Sax.

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It would be churlish of me not to share the "2014 Year In Review" promotional video from a company that employed me for several years.

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Mary J. Blige's The London Sessions isn't quite as good as I'd been lead to believe.  RIYL: Keyshia Cole, pain, Charlie Wilson.

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I'm horrified to confess that I find Room, the new collaboration between Julian Lage and Nels Cline, entirely unlistenable.

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I sold my rarest Sun Ra vinyl years ago at $100 a pop.  Even so, I'm inclined to buy vinyl copies of Marshall Allen Presents: Sun Ra and His Arkestra- In the Orbit of Ra to give to my fashion-conscious friends this holiday season.  The new collection is an excellent introduction to Sun Ra.

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Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone of the Zombies are charming in their "What's In My Bag" segment.

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"Yeezus Film" hints at the brilliance of Kanye West's 2013 tour.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

The Kendrick Conundrum

Where in tarnation is my album of the year?  I've found plenty to like but little to love among the hundreds of albums I've heard in 2014.  (Perhaps my lack of focus plays a role in this conundrum.)  I prefer the top seven titles in my year-end 2013 list in the column to the right to anything I've encountered during the past nine months.  Where's the stuff that turns my world upside down?  Kendrick Lamar's disappointing new song "i" sent me into panic mode.  C'mon Kanye.

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I reviewed concerts by Spoon and Living Colour.

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Here's the video for Josh Berwanger's "Enemies".

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Kenny Wheeler has died.

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George Hamilton IV, a staple of the Opry, has died.

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Highway Robbery, the new album by Freeway and the Jacka, is RIYL: J. Stalin, thug life, Messy Marv. The Real Rick Ross and Freddie Gibbs are in the video for "Cherry Pie".

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Jerry Douglas, Rob Ickes and the late Mike Auldridge sound great on The Three Bells.  RIY:: dobro, Gene Wooten, pickin' and grinnin'. 

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Goat's formula- equal parts the Doors, the Velvet Underground, Tinariwen and Toumani Diabaté- is irresistible on Commune.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)