Category Archives: concert reviews
Berklee Singer-Songwriters Rocked The Coffeehouse
After being enthralled with Susan Cattaneo‘s performance in Amy Black’s Muscle Shoals tribute show, I knew I had to hear her play her own songs. I noticed that she was on the schedule at St. John’s CoffeeHouse Concerts, a coffee house series close to home that I had never attended (and to be honest did not know existed), and jumped on the chance to see her.
Susan Cattaneo
Last weekend, Susan, a songwriting professor at Berklee College of Music, was on the bill with Kelly Riley, a Berklee alumnus.
Kelly Riley
Who Knew Hip-Hop Bluegrass Would Be So Good
The concept of combining hip-hop and bluegrass music fascinated me. I love bluegrass, but knew almost nothing about hip-hop.
Gangstagrass
Last week, the hip-hop bluegrass band Gangstagrass performed at Johnny D’s, one of my favorite venues in the Boston area.
Gangstagrass (Adriel, Rench, and Dan, l to r)
A Fine Guitar Performance
This was another show that I attended based on a friend’s suggestion. I had heard of Pierre Bensusan, the French-Algerian guitarist who is celebrating his 40th anniversary as a musician, but had never seen him perform or even heard more than a few numbers.
Pierre Bensusan
Pierre performed to a sold-old crowd last week at Club Passim, which I knew would be the perfect place to see him.
Pierre
An Italian Star Shines
I had not heard of Zucchero before a friend mentioned this concert to me and how much she wanted to see him. I decided to attend without so much as watching a YouTube video of him.
Zucchero
Zucchero is a huge star in Italy and, judging by the reaction of the audience, he’s big here as well.
Zucchero
Alejandro Escovedo Speaks To Our Hearts
I am a relatively new fan of Alejandro Escovedo; a couple of years ago, a friend suggested I might enjoy him so I got a ticket to the first show I could. That first show hooked me – I now try to see him every time he swings through the Boston area.
Alejandro Escovedo
Alejandro appeared with the Sensitive Boys at Tupelo Music Hall last week to a woefully undersold room; fewer than half the seats of the 250-seat venue were sold (and a fair number of seats that I believe were sold were empty).
Alejandro and The Sensitive Boys
Simon Townshend Stands Well On His Own
Some friends of mine who are huge fans (and whose opinions I trust) turned me on to Simon Townshend a couple of years ago.
Simon Townshend
Simon is Pete’s younger brother and he plays with The Who when he’s not touring on his own. I love The Who but I would rather see Simon on his own; his deeply personal songs shine in the small venues where I have seen him perform.
Simon
I Love Me Some Old-Timey Music
One of my favorite venues, Johnny D’s, started a Free Friday series within the past year, and it took my friend Laney Jones to get me to one of those events.
Laney Jones
This was going to be my first time seeing her with her full band The Lively Spirits (which ended up being not quite true – her fiddle player was not playing with them this night), and I was excited!
Jacy Anderson, Laney and Matt Tonner
An Ethereal Performance By A King
Carole King, that is…
Carole King
Let me start by saying that this is not going to be a review but rather an expression of the high esteem in which I hold Carole.
Carole and The Blue States
A Real King Graced The Stage
BB King is one of the first blues musicians with whom I fell in love when I was around 13 years old. I had not seen the 88-year-old BB perform in at least fifteen years, so I was overdue for one of his shows.
Quinn Sullivan and BB King
BB is a living legend; he has been performing for 66 years, which is more than many artists can say. Last night, Lynn Auditorium was the scene of his most recent performance.
BB
Bluesy Soul Was In The House
I was not familiar with John Németh & The Bo-Keys before this show; to be honest, I went because I wanted a table for the late show that followed.
John Németh
Whatever the reason, I’m glad I went to Johnny D’s early because I was introduced to a terrific blues/soul harmonica player and singer, as well as to The Bo-Keys.
The Bo-Keys
suze reviews the blues 