lschofield.net

We hadn’t been to the Kennedy Center for a long time.  It’s a great venue to walk around – very recognizable from television (at least in the DC area).  A top tier venue for performances.  The down side is that its about the hardest place to get into if you haven’t been there before.  It’s surrounded by several protective layers of highways with poorly marked entrances like many areas in downtown DC.  It took us three tries to actually get into the parking lot.  We were glad we left plenty of time to get there.

We had great seats, 10th row, and its always very cool to see someone as recognizable as Wynton Marsalis be right on the stage in front of you.

Two sets, first one was mostly Basie tunes. I expected museum pieces, but they were lively and spontaneous. The second set was an original suite inspired by artists (a Monet movement, a Van Gogh movement, etc.). Some were a little too experimental for me, but others were great composition and performance.

The big surprise was how much an ensemble experience it was.  Wynton was the MC for the performance and took a few solos.  But, he was a member of the band and not the star of the show and I think all the players had a chance to solo throughout the night.  It was very cool to see him in this role and we enjoyed the performance very much.

Other perk; the audience was much better behaved than most DC area performances.  Very little moving in and out during the performance and the common distractions of public events.

Tags: Kennedy Center, music, performances, Wynton Marsalis
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »

Brian Setzer at Strathmore Hall

After avoiding Strathmore Hall for years (a taxpayer protest), this is the third event we’ve been to at Strathmore in two months.

Brian Setzer was there with his big band for a concert billed as a Christmas Extravaganza.  While there were a number of Christmas tunes done up in that Rock & Roll/Big Band/Rockabilly style he’s been doing for a while, there were also a number of his recognizable hits including a few numbers done with the Stray Cats trio of Brian, Bass, and small drum kit.  And, the stage and costumes were all Christmas themed, including a snow machine for the grand finale.

This was our first time seeing Brian live, and we were real close to the stage for an easy view of his playing.  While the style he plays in is somewhat narrow from an electric guitar standpoint, you’d be hard pressed to find a better player as he effortlessly cruises between vintage rock and roll, rockabilly, surf, and swing styles.  He does this with a beautiful vintage guitar rig and a long cable, moving (sometimes running, sometimes almost duckwalking) all across the front of the stage and making great connection to the audience.

The martini glass backdrop, Vegas style lounge jackets, emphasis on swing music, create a very high energy performance that we enjoyed from end to end.  We really enjoyed the hits like Rock This Town and Sexy and Seventeen, and the swing arrangements of the Christmas songs were a lot more fun and a lot less annoying than the endless repetition that drives you insane by the actual holiday (although it is early in the season).  The swing arrangement of the Nutcarcker Suite was fun and creative, and his tribute to Danny Gatton was a great connection to a local player which we enjoyed.

The crowd was a funny mix which we are seeing for this venue, most likely due to the crowd being a mix of fans and theater patrons who are there on a subscription package and not necessarily familiar with the music.  Vocals were a little muddy and hard to hear, which we’re now seeing as typical for this venue, unfortunately.

Tags: Brian Setzer, concerts, music
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »

Hall & Oates at Wolf Trap, August 2, 2009

From August 2, 2009.

Most likely, everyone from my high school from near my age feels a connection to the music of Hall & Oates.  Daryl Hall went to my high school, and they were becoming famous while I was in school.  They became huge when I was in college with three monstrous selling albums during the early days of MTV when videos had a big impact on music sales and pop culture.

I saw them once before, when I was in college they played at the school’s arena where I worked.  I not only got to see the show promoting their Voices album, but my vantage point was from the left corner of the stage and was able to get tickets for friends from high school.  It was an incredibly exciting show, and had a big impact on me in terms of what large shows were about and the magic creators of music generate when they create songs that are loved by many.

So, here we were 25 years later going to see Hall & Oates again.  I knew I would love the show regardless just based on nostalgia.  So, consider this an extremely biased review.

Hall & Oates Ticket

Here was the cool thing about the show.  They opened up with Man-eater, a huge number one hit.  Most bands would save a song like this for the end, or for the mandatory fake encore.  Hall & Oates are able to open with a song like this because they can follow it up with another dozen top 10 songs.  The only negative about a show like this is that the crowd is filled with people that love and know all these songs and have that urge to sing along with every song.

The only thing that was missing for me was that I hoped G. E. Smith would be there from all those classic albums.  However, nothing was lacking – Daryl and John where there, along with some of the others from those classic albums.  And, the somewhat small lighting production gave the show a more intimate feel, similar to the vibe of the web show Live from Daryl’s House (which is really great, if you haven’t seen it).

(Picture quality poor – must have had the camera set wrong)

Tags: Hall & Oates, music, performances, Wolf Trap
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »

We knew some of Chris Isaak’s songs, and knew who he was, and knew he put on a great show.  Now, we know all of this from first hand experience.

Part of what made this event fun was that the band has played together for 20 years or so, and had that tremendous tightness that only comes about from knowing each other well and trying to get to the same place musically.  There were very spontaneous moments that only come about when the band can look at each other and do something that is not on a controlled script.  Whether faked or not, it felt very real for Chris to walk out into the audience with a radio mike, finish the song before he got back, and call out “do an Elvis tune” and continue to wade through the audience.

A lot of his material is dark – sad – melancholy.  But well written and well performed and highlighted with a pretty slick light show.  There was a retro looking TV screen behind the band that played images through some kind of LED display, and those automated lights up top that can do so many things with color and lenses.

We walked away very impressed, and would go see Chris Isaak again when he comes to town.  And, downloaded a dozen or so songs from iTunes the next day.

(Sorry the picture is bad.  Taken with the cell phone camera which is easily fooled by stage lighting)

Tags: Chris Isaak, music
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »

(Performance was Sunday, August 9, 2009)

Looking for something to do on a Sunday evening, we went to the Birchmere to see the Neville Brothers. We had seen them once before at Merriweather Post, where the acoustics were so had the band was overwhelmed by echos. We had seen Aaron at the Birchmere before, so we knew how cool it was to see him in a small club.

But, to sum up the show in one word, “wow”.

First of all, its somewhat overwhelming to be sitting there with Arron Neville 30 feet in front of you singing.  It’s just a real un — believeable experience.  Then Aaron with his brothers, the whole band lined up.  The set jumps between party songs to hits, to great covers you can’t believe you’re hearing them perform in person.

The Brother John/Iko song is a highlight.  Just puts you right in New Orleans.

We really loved the cover of Bill Wither’s Use Me.  The song has a great groove.  Tell It Like It Is always gets the ladies yelling.

A real surprise – a cover of Hall & Oates Sara Smile (which we heard by the original a few nights ago).  Wow, chills over that one.

We really didn’t want the show to end.  It’s fun thinking about the songs they could do to hear how The Neville Brothers would do them.  So, a few new ones, lots of the ones we love, and some of the ones we don’t know well but are just a great funky groove.  A super show in a great club.  Way better than TV on a Sunday night!

Tags: Birchmere, Neville Brothers
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »

We ended up in second row center for Randy Travis in Baltimore last week.  Believe it or not, this isn’t necessarily the best vantage point when the stage is higher off the ground.  Kind of like the front row at a movie theater.

Randy Travis signs our CD Case at Pier 6 in Baltimore

But, it has the obvious advantages of being close to the action.  Randy’s band was a collection of aces (some from Nashville, no doubt), including some who have been with him a long time.  And, when you’re this close and the artist is this nice about getting close to the crowd it turns out you can get close enough for an autograph! He’s signing our CD case in this picture.

He played a nice full set with material from all across his career.  This is the second time we’ve seen him – we saw him a few years ago at Wolf Trap and we were so impressed with his stage presence that we wanted to see him again.  He really is a great act to see in person, he seems to work hard to please the crowd, and I really enjoy the more traditional approach to Country & Western music.

He did seem to be getting over a cold a little bit, which was noticable when he talked between songs.  The sound was a little muddy too for the vocals, but this might be another “minus” to sitting close – you’re in front of the sweet spot for the sound system.

Weather was great for an outdoor concert as well.  While Pier 6 isn’t the best venue in how the seats are laid out (long and narrow, so most of the seats seem far from the stage), you can’t beat the location on a nice night watching the sun go down over Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.  And, lots of dining choices near by including Little Italy. Also, camera friendly policy for this performance.

A nice night. The only negative – took forever to get out of town because of some event at the nearby stadium. Detected too late to head out the other side of the harbor.

Tags: concerts, music, Randy Travis
Posted in Reviews | | 2 Comments »

The alley where Blues Alley is.

At the last minute we decided to go see Pat Martino down at Blues Alley on Sunday night.

We’ve seen Pat here before, and he was performing a three night stand in conjunction with a recording project.  We were there in plenty of time to get our favorite seat back by the bar next to the railing, and by the time of the show the place was pretty full.  This is one of the great venues for music fans, as it is very small and intimate and the artists frequently are hanging out at the back between shows for conversation and autographs.

Pat was there with Hammond B3, drums, and sax, and his guitar sounded great in the hall with that super deep bass.  It was a great set, with lots of songs we hadn’t heard before and great soloing.  One highlight was Pat playing Green Dolphin Street – beautiful and haunting.  Gave me chills to hear it performed.

We thought about sticking around for another set, but it was a Sunday night and a long drive back to the ‘burbs.

Tags: guitar, jazz, Pat Martino
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »

Boz Scaggs Ticket Stub

Second event at Wolf Trap for the season.  The weather was a little more typical for June in Washington, but very much on the pleasant side.  Not quite sold out, but a good crowd.  Boz Scaggs was the first act, and we really enjoyed it.  He went through most of the hits, but the surprise was a nice number of bluesey, New Orleans inspired songs with some great guitar playing.

Michael McDonald was the second act – a rapid fire collection of a large number of songs everyone knows well.  The highlight for me was Michael playing You Don’t Know Me (the Eddie Arnold tune) accompanied by just himself on piano.  A nice surprise.

First time seeing both performers.

Tags: music, Wolf Trap
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »

Google Maps is out as a beta application. Brilliant implementation.

Tags: Google, Maps
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »

My first reaction to this Beta (and free) product was posted on Lyle’s Technical Journal. Very positive.

Tags: Google, Software
Posted in Reviews | | No Comments »