Thursday, October 22, 2009

Time With the Big Man

Earlier this morning I recorded a phone interview with Clarence Clemons (E-Street Band) and Don Rio, and his longtime friend & co-author of the memoir, Big Man, Real Life & Tall Tales. It just came out yesterday and it's a fantastic read. What's great is that instead of being anything like a regular bio or auto-biography, this is a book of stories. When you hang out with a traveling band for any length of time, you'll start hearing the tales of all the crazy shit they do and some that just happens without much effort on any of the members' parts. Being around when the stories start coming out is one of the most interesting and fascinating things a fan can ever get to do - Clemons and Rio are giving fans of Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street band a huge treat by sharing these episodes. Another bonus is that the prose reads as though you're sitting at their feet.

Each chapter is a vignette; about 1/2 of them are true; the rest may as well be. I consider this book a must for rock fans. In the meantime, I think I'm going to run the phoner when they get a little closer to Nashville's Sommet Center show.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Relix Mag's Top 50 Concerts

Relix magazine released this list, compiled by journalists, musicians, and other industry vets. Of course, some of us will disagree.

#1 was the warm-up to MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech at the US capitol, with Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, Odetta and Peter, Paul and Mary. The rest, descending:

50. Arcade Fire - Coachella 5/1/05
49. Pantera - Santa Monica Civic Center 5/2/94
48. Phil Ochs - Carnegie Hall 3/27/70
47. B.B. King - Regal Theater, Chicago 11/21/64
46. H.O.R.D.E. Festival - Cumberland, ME 7/9/92
45. Janis Joplin - Monterey Pop Festival 6/17/67
44. Radiohead - Santa Barbara Bowl 6/30/01
43. RATM - DNC Staples Center LA 8/14/00
42. MMJ - Bonnaroo 6/12/04
41. The Clash - Bonds Int'l Casino NYC 6/1/81
40. Muddy Waters - Checkerboard Lounge, Chicago 11/22/81
39. Metallica - Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas 1/4/92
38. Andy Warhol's Exploding Plastic Inevitable w/The Velvet Underground and Nico - The Trip, LA 5/3/66
37. Dylan - Boston Music Hall 11/21/75 (late show)
36. Pearl Jam - Soldier Field, Chicago 7/11/95
35. Nirvana - Unplugged Sony Music Studios NYC 11/18/93
34. Concert for Bangladesh - MSG 8/1/71
33. Miles Davis - Plugged Nickel, Chicago 12/22/65 (set 2)
32. MC5 - Grande Ballroom, Detroit 12/30/68
31. Roosevelt Sykes, B.B. King, Bukka White, Zigaboo Modeliste, George Porter & Professor Longhair - New Orleans Jazzfest 4/14/73
30. James Brown - Boston Garden 4/5/68
29. Cream - MSG 11/2/68
28. Michael Jackson - MoTown 25, Pasadena Civic Auditorium 3/25/83
27. Minor Threat - 9:30 Club, W'ton DC 9/23/83
26. Allman Brothers Band - Fillmore East NYC 6/26/71
25. Bruce Springsteen - The Bottom Line NYC 8/14/75
24. U2 - Red Rocks 6/5/83
23. The Ramones - CBGB 8/16/74
22. Grateful Dead - Fillmore West 3/1/69
21. Lollapalooza '91 - Shoreline 7/26/9120. Aretha Franklin - Fillmore West SF 3/7/71
19. The Rolling Stones - MSG 7/26/72
18. Coltrane - Village Vanguard NYC 11/3/61
17. Otis Redding w/Booker T. & The M.G.s - Monterey Pop Festival 6/17/67
16. The Who - Grande Ballroom, Detroit 5/9/69
15. Bob Marley & The Wailers - The Roxy, H'Wood 5/26/76
14. Led Zeppelin - The Forum LA 6/25/72
13. Talking Heads - Pantages Theatre LA 12/18/83
12. Pink Floyd - Nassau Coliseum 2/28/80
11. David Bowie - Santa Monica Civic Auditorium 10/20/72
10. Phish - Big Cypress 12/31/99
9. Elvis - NBC Studios, Burbank, CA 12/3/68
8. Sex Pistols - Winterland 1/14/78
7. The Band - The Last Waltz, Winterland 11/25/76
6. The Beatles - Shea Stadium 4/15/65
5. James Brown - The Apollo 10/24/62
4. Jimi Hendrix - Woodstock 8/18/69
3. Dylan - Newport Folk Festival 7/25/65
2. The Beatles - Ed Sullivan Theatre 2/9/64

et tu?