Sit Down. Be Humble. The Top Albums, Songs and Concerts of 2017

The Top 50 Albums of 2017
1. Kendrick Lamar- Damn
2. Vince Staples- Big Fish Theory
3. Big K.R.I.T.- 4eva Is A Mighty Long Time
4. Lee Ann Womack- The Lonely, the Lonesome & the Gone
5. Miguel Zenón- Típico
6. Tarkovsky Quartet- Nuit Blanche
7. Matt Otto and Ensemble Ibérica- Ibérica
8. Brockhampton- Saturation II
9. Lorde- Melodrama
10. Bobby Watson- Made In America

11. Víkingur Ólafsson- Philip Glass: Piano Works
12. Carlos Vives- Vives
13. Future- Hndrxx
14. Orchestra Baobab- Tribute to Ndiouga Dieng
15. 2 Chainz- Pretty Girls Like Trap Music
16. Aruan Ortiz- Cub(an)ism
17. Tinariwen- Elwan
18. JD McPherson- Undivided Heart & Soul
19. Yelena Eckemoff- Blooming Tall Phlox
20. Gorillaz- Humanz

21. King Krule- The Ooz
22. Rob Luft- Riser
23. Brother Ali- All the Beauty In This Whole Life
24. Wavves- You’re Welcome
25. Migos- Culture
26. Syd- Fin
27. Jonas Kaufmann- L’Opéra
28. Future- Future
29. Sunny Sweeney- Trophy
30. Uniform- Wake In Fright

31. Tyler, the Creator- Flower Boy
32. Rudresh Mahanthappa and the Indo-Pak Coalition- Agrima
33. Miguel- War & Leisure
34. CyHi the Prince- No Dope On Sundays
35. Brockhampton- Saturation
36. Spoek Mathambo- Mzansi Beat Code
37. Thundercat- Drunk
38. Juana Molina- Halo
39. Samantha Fish- Chills & Fever
40. Omar Souleyman- To Syria, With Love

41. Shabazz Palaces- Quazarz vs. The Jealous Machines
42. Future and Young Thug- Super Slimey
43. St. Vincent- Masseduction
44. Taylor Swift- Reputation
45. Rich the Factor- El Factor
46. Willie Nelson- God’s Problem Child
47. Avishai Cohen- Cross My Palm With Silver
48. Lil Uzi Vert- Luv Is Rage 2
49. Juanes- Mis Planes Son Amarte
50. Jay-Z- 4:44


The Top 50 Songs of 2017
(Spotify playlist)
1. Brother Ali- “Own Light (What Hearts Are For)”
2. Kendrick Lamar- “Humble”
3. Lil Uzi Vert- “XO Tour Lif3”
4. Calvin Harris featuring Frank Ocean and Migos- “Slide”
5. Valerie June- “Astral Plane”
6. Vince Staples- “Yeah Right”
7. Lorde- “Liability”
8. Sunny Sweeney- “Bottle by My Bed”
9. Young Fathers- “Only God Knows”
10. Future- “Mask Off”

11. Craig Finn- “God in Chicago”
12. Ibibio Sound Machine- “Give Me a Reason”
13. Fat Joe and Remy Ma- “Spaghetti”
14. Alejandro Fernandez- “Agridulce”
15. Rick Ross featuring Young Thug- “Trap Trap Trap”
16. José James- “To Be With You”
17. Brockhampton- “Junky”
18. LCD Soundsystem- “Emotional Haircut”
19. Mark Eitzel- “The Last Ten Years”
20. Isaac Cates & Ordained- “Hold On”

21. Cardi B- “Bodak Yellow”
22. Eli Young Band- “Skin & Bones”
23. Marvin Sapp- “Close”
24. Stik Figa- “Cold”
25. Sam Smith- “Pray”
26. Alan Jackson- “The Older I Get”
27. Princess Nokia- “Tomboy”
28. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit- “Hope the High Road”
29. Hermon Mehari featuring Kevin Johnson- “Cold”
30. Adriel Favela- “Me Llamo Juan”

31. The Roots featuring Bilal- “It Ain’t Fair”
32. Kodak Black featuring Xxxtentacion- “Roll in Peace”
33. Bruno Major- “On Our Own”
34. Future and Young Thug- “Feed Me Dope”
35. Pokey Bear- “I Can’t Be Faithful”
36. Carlos Vives- “Al Filo de Tu Amor”
37. Migos- “T-Shirt”
38. Rich the Factor- “Luther”
39. Queens of the Stone Age- “Un-Reborn Again”
40. Jonwayne- “These Words Are Everything”

41. A Boogie Wit da Hoodie- featuring Kodak Black “Drowning”
42. Bonobo featuring Rhye- “Break Apart”
43. Chronixx- “Majesty”
44. Pokey LaFarge- “Riot In the Streets”
45. Karriem Riggins with Jessica Care Moore- “Suite Poetry”
46. Pistol Pete- “2bad2good”
47. Luis Fonsi featuring Daddy Yankee- “Despacito”
48. Deborah Brown- “Ask Me Now”
49. Rodney Crowell- “It Ain’t Over Yet”
50. J Balvin- “Mi Gente”


The Top 50 Concerts of 2017
1. Lawrence Brownlee and Eric Owens- Folly Theater
2. Salif Keita- Town Hall (New York City)
3. Donny McCaslin Trio- Folly Theater
4. Brian Blade & the Fellowship Band- Gem Theater
5. Arcade Fire- Silverstein Eye Centers Arena
6. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit- Uptown Theater
7. Marilyn Maye- Quality Hill Playhouse
8. Fantasia- Sprint Center
9. Municipal Waste- Providence Medical Center Amphitheater (Warped Tour)
10. Eddie Palmieri- Blue Note (New York City)

11. Garth Brooks- Sprint Center
12. A Place to Bury Strangers- Madrid Theatre
13. Danilo Pérez’s “Jazz 100”- Yardley Hall
14. Thundercat- Granada
15. The Lyric Opera’s “Eugene Onegin”- Muriel Kauffman Theatre
16. Jack DeJohnette Trio- Gem Theater
17. Clutch- Uptown Theater
18. Halestorm- Kansas Speedway (Rockfest)
19. Alaturka- Polsky Theatre
20. Patti LaBelle- Muriel Kauffman Theatre

21. Lecrae- The Truman
22. Motionless in White- Midland theater
23. Sheer Mag- Kaiju (Louisville)
24. DJ Shadow- Madrid Theatre
25. Willie Nelson- Starlight Theatre
26. Aaron Neville and Michael Goods- City Winery (New York City)
27. Lou Donaldson- Tompkins Square Park (New York City)
28. Tech N9ne- Midland theater
29. Rich the Factor- 7th Heaven
30. Xenia Rubinos- RecordBar

31. Queens of the Stone Age- Crossroads KC
32. Marco Antonio Solís- Sprint Center
33. Gerald Spaits’ Sax and Violins- Westport Coffeehouse
34. Hudson- Yardley Hall
35. St. Vincent- Uptown Theater
36. Matt Otto Trio with Anthony Wilson and Shay Estes- Blue Room
37. Ramsey Lewis- Gem Theater
38. Raipillan- Festival Vallarta Azteca del Folclor Internacional (Puerto Vallarta)
39. Chris Brown- Sprint Center
40. Greg Tardy Trio- Blue Room

41. Flying Lotus- Midland theater
42. Janet Jackson- Sprint Center
43. Nick Lowe with Los Straightjackets- Knuckleheads
44. The Lyric Opera’s “Everest”- Muriel Kauffman Theatre
45. Lage Lund with the Albert Marques Trio- Cornelia Street Cafe (New York City)
46. PussyVision- Davey’s
47. Pure Disgust- Encore Room
48. Katy Guillen & the Girls- Boulevardia festival
49. Jimmy LaFave- Folk Alliance Conference
50. Soundgarden- Starlight Theatre

(Original image of Lage Lund by There Stands the Glass.)

Ain’t Nobody Praying For Me: Music Midway in 2017

 

The Top Songs of 2017 (So Far)
Three topics that have unsettled my home during the last six months- faith, sobriety and formulating an appropriate response to the new political climate- are addressed on Brother Ali’s hopeful anthem.(Spotify playlist)

1. Brother Ali- “Own Light (What Hearts Are For)”
2. Calvin Harris featuring Frank Ocean and Migos- “Slide”
3. Kendrick Lamar- “Humble”
4. Valerie June- “Astral Plane”
5. Sunny Sweeney- “Bottle by My Bed”
6. Lorde- “Liability”
7. Rick Ross featuring Young Thug- “Trap Trap Trap”
8. Young Fathers- “Only God Knows”
9. Future- “Mask Off”
10. Ibibio Sound Machine- “Give Me a Reason”

11. Fat Joe and Remy Ma- “Spaghetti”
12. Alejandro Fernandez- “Agridulce”
13. José James- “To Be With You”
14. Craig Finn- “God in Chicago”
15. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit- “Hope the High Road”
16. Mark Eitzel- “The Last Ten Years”
17. Adriel Favela- “Me Llamo Juan”
18. Stik Figa- “Cold”
19. Rodney Crowell- “It Ain’t Over Yet”
20. Migos- “T-Shirt”

21. Chronixx- “Majesty”
22. Motionless in White- “Loud”
23. Carlos Vives- “Al Filo de Tu Amor”
24. Chief Keef- “Reefah”
25. Ledisi- “High”


The Top Albums of 2017 (So Far)
No contest- 2017 belongs to Kendrick Lamar.

1. Kendrick Lamar- Damn
2. Matt Otto- Ibérica
3. Orchestra Baobab- Tribute to Ndiouga Dieng
4. Future- Future
5. Sunny Sweeney- Trophy
6. Tinariwen- Elwan
7. Juana Molina- Halo
8. Víkingur Ólafsson- Philip Glass: Piano Works
9. Bobby Watson- Made In America
10. Migos- Culture

11. Miguel Zenón- Típico
12. Future- Hndrxx
13. Making Movies- I Am Another You
14. Brother Ali- All the Beauty In This Whole Life
15. Wavves- You’re Welcome
16. Samantha Fish- Chills & Fever
17. Omar Souleyman- To Syria, With Love
18. Syd- Fin
19. Yelena Eckemoff- Blooming Tall Phlox
20. Gorillaz- Humanz

21. Uniform- Wake In Fright
22. Oleta Adams- Third Set
23. Jessi Colter- The Psalms
24. Willie Nelson- God’s Problem Child
25. Lorde- Melodrama


The Top Shows of 2017 (So Far)
My cousin the opera star made me wince from laughing so hard in my front row seat at the Folly Theater.  Eric Owens one-upped him by causing me to sob.

1. Lawrence Brownlee and Eric Owens- Folly Theater
2. Charlie Wilson, Fantasia and Johnny Gill- Sprint Center
3. A Place to Bury Strangers- Madrid Theatre (opening for the Black Angels)
4. Donny McCaslin Trio- Folly Theater
5. Salif Keita- Town Hall (New York City)
6. Greg Tardy Trio- Blue Room
7. Danilo Pérez’s Jazz 100- Yardley Hall
8. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit and Strand of Oaks- Uptown Theater
9. Halestorm- Rockfest at Kansas Speedway
10. Jack DeJohnette Trio- Gem Theater

11. Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood- Sprint Center
12. Ramsey Lewis- Gem Theater
13. Patti LaBelle- Muriel Kauffman Theatre
14. Joseph- Madrid Theatre
15. Jessica Care Moore- Black Archives of Mid-America
16. Soundgarden and Dillinger Escape Plan- Starlight Theatre
17. Alaturka- Polsky Theatre
18. Lalah Hathaway- Kansas City Jazz & Heritage Festival in the Jazz District
19. Pure Disgust- Encore Room
20. Jimmy LaFave- Folk Alliance at the Westin Crown Center

21. Tech N9ne- Midland theater
22. Punch Brothers- Crossroads KC
23. Motionless in White- Midland theater
24. Simone Porter- Folly Theater
25. George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic- Boulevardia in the Stockyards District

(Original image of Lalah Hathaway by There Stands the Glass.)

Concert Review: Lawrence Brownlee and Eric Owens at the Folly Theater

Lawrence Brownlee’s powerful singing and enthralling emoting impressed me as I sat in the rear balcony of Carnegie Hall two years ago.  When I discovered that I could secure front row seats for my cousin’s April 6 show at the Folly Theater at an 80% discount, I jumped at the deal offered by the Harriman-Jewell series.  I was rewarded for my nominal investment with my favorite show of 2017 to date.  Yet it was Brownlee’s fellow opera star Eric Owens who I most appreciated during the program of arias, Great American Songbook tunes and gospel selections.  Less flashy but more stirring than Brownlee, Owens reduced me to tears as he delivered “Give Me Jesus.”  Jovial duets on uptempo selections like the ridiculous “Dolores” caused my face to ache from smiling so strenuously.  Libby Hanssen reviewed the concert for The Kansas City Star.


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I reviewed Kris Kristofferson’s return to the Uptown Theater for The Kansas City Star.

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I reviewed Judah & the Lion’s concert at the Uptown Theater for The Kansas City Star.

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I wrote extended concert previews about Radiohead and Chris Brown for The Kansas City Star and Ink magazine.

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My latest rounds of weekly music previews for The Kansas City Star and Ink magazine are here and here.

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I recently designated Second Hand King and Katy Guillen & the Girls KCUR’s Band of the Week.

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Donny McCaslin floored me at the Folly Theater on Friday.  My notes are at Plastic Sax.

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I did some work with Lonnie Brooks in the 1990s.  The Chicago blues artist was a warm, generous man.  Brooks died last week.

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Until I read his obituaries, I didn’t know that Arthur Blythe was married to the one-time Kansas City based vocalist and actress Queen Bey.

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“I took my roof off at the red light!”  I’m not too proud to admit that I can’t get enough of Rick Ross’ noxious Rather You Than Me.  Here’s ”Trap Trap Trap”.

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I ordinarily don’t have much patience for newly recorded mainstream jazz albums.  Heads of State’s All in One is an exception.  The septuagenarian saxophonist Gary Bartz is in top form.

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Raekwon’s The Wild may be the strongest album by a Wu-Tang Clan member other than Ghostface of the last five years.  Here’s ”This Is What It Comes To”.

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F*cked Up’s “Year of the Snake” has restored my faith in 23-minute songs.  RIYL: MC5, kicking out the jams, Dwarves.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)