Patty Griffin at the Wiltern

Ahhh Patty, we meet again. I saw Patty Griffin at the Wiltern in Los Angeles three years ago when she was promoting her 2007 album, ''Children Running Through". I love these kinds of reunions, reuniting with my favorite artists at venues I've seen them at previously. Patty is currently touring the country promoting her new album, "Downtown Church" and stopped at the Wiltern along the way to give her Los Angeles fans an incredible show. The songs from her new gospel-influenced album were heavily featured throughout the show, but the religious overtones certainly didn't distract from the actual performance. By that, I'm mainly referring to Patty's singing. I think I can safely say she is THE voice. I have yet to find another singer whose voice is so soulful, stirring, impassioned and abundantly rich. There are simply not enough words to describe this woman's voice, so you're just going to have to trust me on this and listen to her music.

Before her set, she warmed up that unmatched vocal instrument by joining her opening act, Buddy Miller (who produced her new album) on stage to sing a few songs with him. After his set was over, following a brief intermission, Patty came out in full force, ready for her audience to experience something truly cathartic. Opening with "Standing", I knew this was going to be a laidback, mellow, and at times, emotional night of good times and good tunes. I was glad to hear her perform my two favorites from her new album, "Coming Home to Me" and "Little Fire." When introducing her song, "Heavenly Day", she explained that she considers it the only real, legitimate love song she's written...and it just so happens to be about her dog. Who knew? (Which makes me wonder why she doesn't consider her brilliant, sweet song "When It Don't Come Easy" a love song, but I guess that’s another story).

Then, it was time for something new. I love this part. I'm always eager to hear new songs at a concert. An unreleased, unrecorded song she had recently written, sung from the point of view of her grandfather. The hilariously adorable song called "Get Ready Marie" had the audience roaring with laughter as the lyrics alluded to the fact that men only have one thing on their minds and if it takes getting married to get it, then so be it. (Patty, please record this one asap!)

While the majority of the show was mainly focused on the songs from "Downtown Church", she offered up some songs from past albums, all religiously themed. "Mary", from her "Flaming Red" album, is the poignantly sad story revolving around Mary's state of mind in the aftermath of the death of Jesus and her gospel-inspired "Up to the Mountain" was inspired by the trials and tribulations of Martin Luther King, Jr. I was hoping she would perform "Moses" from her debut album in keeping with the religious theme of the night, but sadly that didn't happen. She was rather conservative with her more popular songs, opting to close out the show with more gospel-laden tunes. Yes, I was a little disappointed about that, but in the end I decided it was just fine because she was doing exactly what she wanted to do and sharing the songs she wanted to share. And we in the audience loved it all.

The best part of the night? The dancing! Patty didn't go near her keyboard the entire night, which was rather surprising, but I guess it meant that she wanted to stay standing because she was there to groove and had a grand old time doing so by dancing along to her more jazzy numbers.

Now, back to the voice. After singing so powerfully for nearly two hours, and closing her main set with the uplifting “We Shall All Be Reunited”, it just astounded me that she had the voice to belt out three more songs during her encore. Simple incredible. And so comes my least favorite part of any concert: the end. It was a wonderfully moving show, though, and I'm hoping she makes her way back here at least one more time on her tour.

Lyrics of the Day

The sky looks pissed, the wind talks back
My bones are shifting in my skin
And you, my love, are gone.
My room feels wrong, the bed won't fit
I cannot seem to operate
And you, my love, are gone.

So glide away on soapy heels
And promise not to promise anymore
And if you come around again,
Then I will take the chain from off the door.

-Ingrid Michaelson

Upcoming Concerts

Okay all. There are a lot of shows coming up that I highly recommend you check out. Here are a few concerts coming up that I'm definitely planning on attending in SoCal.

Patty Griffin - April 10th at the Wiltern (expect a review from on this one). If you're not familiar with Patty, I recommend dowloading some of her stuff pronto. "Impossible Dream" is my favorite album of hers (particularly the song "Useless Desires"). Yet, there's something to be said about her stripped down debut "Living With Ghosts" (just her and an acoustic guitar). And it really doesn't get much better than the sweet, slow, heart-wrenching song "Rain" from her album "1,000 Kisses." She's currently touring to support her new album, "Downtown Church", which is a collection of gospel songs. If you would like to read my review on this album, click here: http://www.accesshollywood.com/on-the-download/on-the-download-patty-griffin_article_28071

Lilith Fair - touring all summer, but in Los Angeles/Orange County July 10th at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater. So, the dates and cities were just recently announced and it looks like they're still trying to figure out who's playing in what city/venue. So far, to be honest, the LA date doesn't look to promising. But i'm hoping they'll beef up the lineup just a little bit. Most of the performers have been announced already. So here is my ideal lineup (and if i have to arrange a little road trip to see all of these bands/artists...so be it). But, of the performers, this is who I would love to see in LA, to make my life and budget a little easier: Colbie Caillat, Court Yard Hounds, Erykah Badu, Gossip, Kelly Clarkson, Mary J. Blige, Metric, Sara Bareilles, Sheryl Crow, Sugarland, Tegan and Sara (of course), The Bangles, Ingrid Michaelson, Vedera, and maybe a little bit of Ke$ha (don't judge). Who knows if any of them will play in LA, but I'm seriously hoping so...especially Vedera. If not, i'll be hitting up every city each one is playing in until I see them all. (Well...we'll see if that ACTUALLY happens, but it sounds like fun!)

Jenny Lewis (opening for Levon Helm) - August 15th at the Greek. How beautiful will this concert be? The Greek is where I saw Rilo Kiley's very last concert (at least, that's what a lot of people were touting it as, but i'm optimistic that we haven't heard the last of RK...in fact...I know we haven't. Here's hoping for at least another RK tour...) So I'm really looking forward to seeing her open for the Levon Helm Band. I've NEVER missed J.Lew when she plays in LA and this will be my 13th time seeing her in concert. Or is it my 14th? Oh hell, I'm starting to lose track. But when I told my dad about Levon Helm playing, he got really excited. So I'm thinking maybe I'll bring him along. He can introduce me to Levon, and I can introduce him to the genius that is Jenny Lewis. This show is sure to be legendary.

Paramore with Tegan and Sara - September 19th at the Honda Center in Anaheim. My head just about exploded when I learned of this joint venture between two of my favorites. I've seen Tegan and Sara several times now, but never in such a big venue, so I'm curious to see how that will play out. And this will be my first time seeing Paramore. Excited!!!

Stay tuned for more concert updates...

Lyrics of the Day

No force of nature can break
Your will to self motivate
She say this face that you see
Is destined for history.

--Michael Jackson

"The Runaways"

Okay, this one's gonna be a bit short, but ever-so-sweet. I just watched the movie touted as the "Joan Jett" flick, "The Runaways." Now, my passion for music doesn't go so far to the point where I would consider myself a 'music snob.' I don't know everything. I don't claim do know everything. I just know what I like. So I'll be honest here, I didn't really know much about the story of The Runaways. I knew they existed. I knew they were Joan Jett's first band, but I couldn't name any other members or any other songs of theirs besides "Cherry Bomb." But I gotta tell ya, I found myself tapping my foot along to the beat of every song in that movie and now I'm interested in buying either the soundtrack or a Runaways album. (I'm not above calling myself a bandwagoner in certain situations...it's rare, but it happens.)

I know this is a music blog, but seeing as how this is a music biopic, I think it's fairly relevant. And as far as biopics go, this one was actually pretty decent. (Still doesn't hold a candle to my all-time favorite biopic: "The Buddy Holly Story", but it was still pretty damn good). The plot itself wasn't all that riveting. Just the basic story of their humble beginnings, rise to quasi-fame, and subsequent destruction of the lead singer leading to their breakup. It's not the story that drives the film. It's the performances. And dayum...Dakota Fanning done growed up. After her performance of Cherie Currie, I think it's pretty safe to say she'll be making the transition to more grown up roles a lot more easily than most other child stars.

I was fairly unsure about the fact that Kristen Stewart was playing Joan Jett. Bella Swan? Really? Oh man...this'll be interesting. But now I couldn't possibly imagine anyone but Kristen playing the iconic Joan Jett. She BECAME Joan...so much to the point where I wasn't watching Kristen playing Joan...I was just watching Joan herself...in the 70's...making her way in the "man's world" of rock music. It's kinda scary to think that Lindsay Lohan wanted to play Joan...or so I heard. Thankfully that didn't happen.

I'm sure it was to coincide with the movie's release, but Joan Jett just released a collection called "Joan Jett and the Blackhearts Greatest Hits." It includes songs like "Bad Reputaion," "I Love Rock and Roll," "Crimson and Clover," and interestingly enough "Cherry Bomb." Download it if you want a little bit of badassness.

I know this was kind of a lame post, but seriously...check out the movie. It's pretty decent. And now I'm inspired to write a blog on the best and worst musical biopics of all time. For a later date...

My Interview with Natalie Maines and Glenn Frey

The Dixie Chicks and The Eagles? Yes, please!


Ask anyone who knew me in college and they will tell you my favorite band was without a doubt The Dixie Chicks. I had all their albums, knew all their songs, learned them on guitar and sang them at karaoke. I had seen them on every tour they had. Safe to say, I was a huge fan. Still am, of course, but the fact that they haven’t released in album in five years makes it a little difficult to keep them fresh in my mind. But they’re always there and their music is always with me. So as an avid, semi-obsessed fan, when I found out I had a chance to interview Natalie Maines, I immediately jumped at the opportunity, regardless of the fact that I have never had an official sit-down interview with anyone before. A minor detail I would work out later. This was Natalie friggin’ Maines! And to add to it, I was going to interview her side by side with Glenn Frey from the Eagles. Yup, little ol’ me was going to be in the presence of musical greatness. The reason for this interviewed taylor-made for me? The Dixie Chicks and The Eagles are going out on tour together this summer. Man, that’s gonna be one killer show.

So, truth be told, I walked into the interview absolutely terrified. Butterflies and all that. Since this was my very first sit-down interview, I had no idea what to expect. But after walking into the room, I introduce myself, took my seat directly across from them and immediately felt right at home. It ended up being more of a conversation amongst three music lovers than an ‘interview.’ Before the interview started, I told Natalie how I’d never missed a Dixie Chicks concert whenever they were in LA or Orange County. After that, I informed Glenn that the first song I ever learned to play on the guitar was “Peaceful Easy Feeling” by the Eagles. He said that means I “started out with true greatness.” And then I blushed, feeling a “h’yuck, aw shucks” moment coming on.

I started off the interview asking what brought these two powerhouse acts together and who contacted who. Glenn responded saying that they first reached out to the Chicks and were fans of theirs.

“I’m just glad that it’s THEIR tour. They handle all the decision making and the pre-production sort of stuff. That’s the stuff that can be very taxing. So I love when we get invited on someone else’s tour,” said Natalie.

After asking how the Eagles have influenced her musically, Natalie told me that she grew up listening to the Eagles and that there were very few bands that bridged the gap between kids and adults. The Eagles was one of those bands.

After asking Natalie if she was nervous about returning to the stage after a four-year break from touring, she said she was more excited then anything and not nervous at all. When I asked her about Martie and Emily’s side project, Court Yard Hounds, she replied, “I’ve heard it few times and I think it’s great.” Adding that it was very brave of them to go off on their own, saying that they are the brave ones. “I’m not brave. I’m the big mouth,” she said with a laugh. “Martie and Emily were ready to start recording again and I was just happy to be in sunny California. Crafting and gardening,” she added with another chuckle.

Regarding the Chicks’ return to touring, Glenn stated, “It’s not hard being a Dixie Chick. You guys have done it for so long. Even if you haven’t played for a couple years…it’s just a matter of showing up and doing a little bit of calisthenics with you partners.”
He then went on to talk about what he calls “the circle of fear,” which is where they gather to practice and make sure that everyone is on the same page music-wise. “You just sit there with a couple of acoustic guitars and make sure everyone’s singing the right parts…”
“Kind of like the anti-Grateful Dead,” I interjected.
“Exactly,” he responded.
Though Natalie called that a “scary circle,” I sure would love to be in the middle of it, just taking it all in.

So, the interview continues and I’m kind of surprised at the fact that my voice managed to refrain from cracking.
“Can you tell us what lies in the future for the Dixie Chicks? Are you guys planning on getting back into the recording studio?”
“No plans for that yet. I don’t force anything. I just like things to feel right and let them come together,” replied Natalie.
“So this is more of a comeback tour, right? It isn’t a farewell tour, is it?”
At that, Natalie emphatically assure me, “Oh no, no. Not at all…We have not broken up. We’ve always wanted longevity. We’ve worked really, really, really hard. People think that because you haven’t toured, you’re broken up. But we’ll always be the Dixie Chicks. Right now, there’s no new album, but that doesn’t mean anything.”

Good answer, Natalie. Good answer.

On the subject of bands taking long breaks, Glenn said “You know there may be a little bit of anxiety of ‘are our fans still there? Are they still gonna show up?’ And then they do. And then a really nice sort of reunion between you and your fans.”

So I’m running out of time and running out of tape and I didn’t get to all the questions I wanted to ask, but I quickly inquired what Glenn’s favorite Dixie Chicks song is, to which he replied “Wide Open Spaces.” (The song that started it all for the lovely, harmonizing trio.) When I asked Natalie what her favorite Eagles song was, Glenn interjected with “Oh God, please don’t say ‘Desperado.’ I’m so tired of playing that.”

For those of you who plan on checking out this tour, you might be in for a treat because the idea of the two bands performing something together on stage is definitely not off the table. “We’re talking about it,” says Frey.

Okay, so this interview has gone by way to fast and sadly, had to end. But before I was scooted out the door, I asked Natalie one quick personal question that I simply wanted to know for myself: when the Chicks first started out, they decided to get matching chicken feet tattoos on their feet for every big milestone they reached as a band. So I asked her:
“How many chicken feet tattoos do you have on your foot now?”

“Oh gosh,” she laughed. Well, we’re supposed to have, like, nineteen now, but for now we’ve stopped at six. Man, it hurts. And every time we get a new one, the older ones are faded so we have to get them touched up and it’s kind of painful. Yeah, that was my bright idea.”
Natalie and Glenn couldn’t have been nicer and I couldn’t have asked for a better first interview experience. Finally, after all this time, I got to meet Natalie. This is a woman whose voice would just echo through my mind every time I heard one of their songs. I absolutely love this woman. She’s talented, brassy, and unapologetic yet humble at the same time. And Glenn Frey? He’s nothing short of a legend. I interviewed one of my idols and a legend. I am awesome.

Lyrics of the Day

"If only I could believe that I do deserve something good,
then I could relax and be myself.
Cuz if I fall any harder, I would break in two
I wish the other half was you."

-Mike Comfort