Bobby Hutcherson, 1941-2016

As the first album I heard that made me realize that jazz could be just as confrontational as rock or R&B, Out To Lunch changed my life.  Bobby Hutcherson’s entry at the five-second mark of the opening track ”Hat and Beard” on Eric Dolphy’s famous 1964 album is one of my favorite moments in jazz.  Following the news of Hutcherson’s death last week, I investigated a few albums I’d never heard.  ”Rain Every Thursday” from the vibist’s misunderstood 1972 funk album Natural Illusions is my new favorite jam.


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While I hadn’t looked forward to covering the show, I adored Josh Groban’s appearance at Starlight Theater last week.  Here’s my review.

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I’ve attended six, seven or eight Snoop Dogg concerts.  Last week’s show in Bonner Springs with Wiz Khalifa, Kevin Gates, Jhené Aiko and Casey Veggies was one of the best.  Here’s my review.

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Friends don’t believe me when I tell them that being in the midst of thousands of giddy teens energizes me.  I relished Saturday’s concert by 5 Seconds of Summer, Hey Violet and Roy English.  Here’s my review.  I documented 15 representative seconds of screaming at Instagram.

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

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I discussed Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear on KCUR last week.

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I wrote an extended preview Beach House’s concert at the Uptown Theater.

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I reviewed a release by the Brandon Draper Quintet at Plastic Sax.

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Toots Thielemans has died.  The Brasil Project was one of my favorite albums of 1992.

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Ruby Wilson has died.

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Various Blonde created a video for ”All Bases Covered”.

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I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords.  Steve Aoki’s remix of Soundgarden’s “Spoonman” pleases me.

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Dolly Parton gets freaky on the delightfully odd Pure and Simple.  Here’s “Can’t Be That Wrong”.

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Do not- I repeat, do not- click on this link.

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Deborah Joy Winans’ ”The River” is a wondrously sensual gospel song.

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Lars Danielsson’s Sun Blowing is a thrilling Scandanavian jazz outing.

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I have yet to listen to Frank Ocean's long-awaited new release.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Descendents- Hypercaffium Spazzinate

I passed on Warped Tour last week.  The reduced number of stages and a disappointing lack of variety meant that the chances making a new discovery weren’t very good.  And the idea of paying $45 to stand on black asphalt in extreme heat to hear Good Charlotte just didn’t appeal to me. 

I wouldn’t have hesitated to pony up had the Descendents been on the bill.  The group has been talkin’ ‘bout my generation for decades. 

The new album Hypercaffium Spazzinate contains 21 brief songs that address the concerns of guys my age.  “No Fat Burgers” is my new theme song and the discontent of “Business A. U.” is all too relatable.  Here’s ”Victim of Me”.


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I reviewed a concert by Miike Snow and Jack Garratt.

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I reviewed a concert by the Indigo Girls.

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I discussed Rachel Mallin & the Wild Type on KCUR last week.

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

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I wrote an extended preview for Umphrey’s McGhee’s upcoming concert.

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I graded every concert in the forthcoming seasons of the American Jazz Museum’s Jazz at the Gem and the Folly Theater’s jazz series at Plastic Sax.  Spoiler alert: Jack DeJohnette!

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Until Friday, the most expensive concert tickets I’d purchased were for a Kraftwerk show in Toronto.  I splurged on a pair of 11th row tickets for Dolly Parton’s concert at the Sprint Center last week.  The entirely delightful show was worth the breathtaking expense.

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The Conquerors created an entertaining video for “Wyld Time.”

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Elliot Galvin makes jazz seem boring.  The wild experimentation he and his band display on Punch indicates that most mainstream jazz is hopelessly prosaic.

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Date night fail #541: Unaware of the intent of the new solo album by the Lady Antebellum vocalist, I cued up Hillary Scott & the Scott Family’s Love Remains for the drive to Dolly Parton’s concert on Friday.  I expected to hear slick love ballads.  Instead, my date and I got an earful of songs about Jesus.

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Amina Claudine Myers’ harrowing new solo album Sama Rou is staggeringly heavy.  RIYL: Nina Simone, avant-garde Jesus, Bessie Smith.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: St. Paul & the Broken Bones- Half the City

At the advent of the CD revolution I set out to build a comprehensive library of classic soul.  Each week I'd diligently purchase a title by the likes of Percy Sledge, Al Green, James Carr and Joe Tex. I scrimped and saved to acquire pricey box sets compiling the works of James Brown, Aretha Franklin and Stax Records.

I also made seeing the giants a top priority.  I took in multiple performances by the likes of Charles Brown, Solomon Burke, Bobby Bland, Etta James, Isaac Hayes, Marvin Sease, Ike Turner and James Brown.

My obsession has a downside.  I've never managed to muster the same level of enthusiasm as my peers for soul revivalists like Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings.  A lot of these new acts are undeniably great, but when Millie Jackson, Jimmy Scott, Bobby Womack, Charlie Wilson and Bobby Rush are still out there doing it, it's hard for me to get worked into a lather by expert mimics.

That said, I'm smitten by Half City, the new release by St. Paul & the Broken Bones.  The throwback approach of the Alabama-based band works largely because vocalist Paul Janeway doesn't try to be what he's not.  He's obviously obsessed with Otis Redding, but much like the late, great Eddie Hinton, he's not an embarrassing parodist. 

St. Paul & the Broken Bones merit their prestigious position in my collection between the Staple Singers and the Stylistics.


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I reviewed a concert by Slayer, Exodus and Suicidal Tendencies.

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I contributed to a feature on Dominique Sanders for KCUR's Up To Date.

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Tech N9ne's Strangeulation by the the numbers: the album topped Billboard's rap, R&B and hip-hop charts last week and landed at #5 on the Top 200.

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I hadn't realized that the Dan Conn Collection at the Marr Sound Archives existed until a link posted by There Stands the Glass reader BGO led me to the discovery.  Dan, a former co-worker, introduced me to the music of artists ranging from Red Garland to Doc Watson.

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Here's another nice video feature on Radkey.

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Anyone who likes vintage Approach and Miles Bonny will love the new video for "Chief".

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The ninth episode of the second season of the KC Cypher Series is not worth your time.

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The highlight of Dolly Parton's charming Blue Smoke is a cover of Bob Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right."  RIYL: Silver Dollar City, Elvis Presley, America.

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If Outkast and Kelis aren't booked in Kansas City prior to the festival, I may travel to St. Louis in September for Loufest.

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I innocently hit "play" on the Juilliard String Quartet's Elliott Carter: The Five String Quartets on a recent afternoon.  After several interruptions, I finished the epic cycle five hours later.  It's stunning. 

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From a purely sonic perspective, Michael Jackson's Xscape is an extraordinary achievement.  Tracks like "Blue Gangsta" sound as if they were recorded last month.  M.J.'s original demos are also worth a listen.

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I'm hardly a Black Keys fanboy, but I suspect Dan Auerbach's production of Nikki Lane's All or Nothin' is responsible for the album's excellence.  RIYL: Whiskeytown, something borrowed, Rosanne Cash.

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Love in da club.  Troy Ave's BSB Vol. 4 is RIYL: 50 Cent, prison, Wu-Tang Clan.

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Back On the Controls, ostensibly a new album by Lee "Scratch" Perry, baffles me.  RIYL: eternity, Mad Professor, confusion.

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Lantlôs' Melting Sun isn't quite as good as many reviews would have you believe.  RIYL: Deftones, dreaming out loud, Isis.

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Jody Stephens of Big Star is featured in a segment of "What's In My Bag."

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Joe Louis Walker is challenging Buddy Guy for the title of the most vital blues veteran of 2014 on Hornet's Nest.

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CNN aired a 15-minute documentary about Clipse.

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My cousin is in fine form on Virtuoso Rossini Arias.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)