Historic 1974 reunion tour is released online along with thousands of rare rock, folk and jazz concerts

Bob Dylan and The Band in historic reunion tour 1974 (photo Jim Summaria creative commons)

Wolfgang’s Vault has released four concerts from the 1974 tour of Bob Dylan and The Band that are free to listen to on the web or on an iPhone with their WVIP membership.

In 1974 Bob Dylan, the voice of the sixties generation, had been laying low in Woodstock New York since 1967. His albums after the motorcycle accident had been different, not the “wild mercury” sound of Highway 61 and Bringing It All Back Home.
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A great, sentimental song about dads everywhere performed by the world’s greatest guitarist

Chet sings this about his dad, a music teacher. When he performed it during An Evening with Chet Atkins and Friends, including Mark Knopfler, there wasn’t a dry eye in the audience. It makes me sentimental about my dad every time I hear it. I hope you enjoy it.

Also in the show were the Everly Brothers, Emmylou Harris, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Michael McDonald. The performances are first rate, except Michael MacDonald who is vastly over-rated.

The video is a little muted so don’t be afraid to turn up the volume. The 1987 concert was on VHS and Laserdisc Amazon Chet Atkins & Friends: Music from the Heart [VHS]. Update: PBS re-released this as Chet Atkins Certified Guitar Player DVD As seen on PBS

Small break in downpour gives fans what they waited for

Fans from all over the Maritimes waited for hours in the dampest day on PEI all week for their star performer at the Taylor Swift concert. People don’t mind the rain when their favourite artist has traveled to perform for them.

The highlight of the 5 day Cavendish Beach Music Festival, Swift endeared herself by telling fans she was in love with them like her “sparkly dresses.” Her intro was a big hit with screaming fans.

While she may sound insincere to adults, remember how we adored The Beatles and every other rock group that appealed to us when we were teens. The Charlottetown Guardian gushed as usual Sold out crowd at Taylor Swift show They did hone in on Swift’s popularity with teens – simple lyrics, songs are easy to play on the guitar and she relates to her audience. Oh to be that young and innocent once more.

Scanty reports of “thousands” in the audience have us wondering

Keith Urban video, Cavendish Beach Music Festival Tourism PEI

On Tuesday, the Charlottetown Guardian was predicting 100,000 people would attend the 5 day Cavendish Beach Music Festival. All over North America concerts are being canceled due to poor ticket sales. We wondered if that would hit Cavendish as well.

Today the story is out they have unsold tickets for Taylor Swift. Limited number of remaining Taylor Swift tickets released today Read the rest of this entry »

PEI lavishes $3 million on US culture while throwing scraps off the table at local artists

Taylor Swift at Cavendish Beach Music Festival, $3.5 million for "come from away" talent

The Cavendish Beach Music Festival starts today, a five day extravaganza of American country music. Big US artists like Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, a few Canadian acts and even fewer Island artists thrown in as tokens will entertain the tourists and locals. Cost to the taxpayers $2 million this year and last.

We just got finished with a 4 day Cirque du Soleil festival. Sure they are from Montreal but this is really a Las Vegas act, certainly not local PEI talent. Cost to the taxpayer $250,000 to $500,000.  Next week, we are importing US talk show hosts Regis and Kelly at a cost of $1 million plus.

Add it all together that comes to $3.5 million spent to fund cultural events on PEI for the tourists with almost zero Island culture. Or is the money being spent to entertain voters prior to the next election?

The Province did put up $300,000 over three years to kick start the Festival of Small Halls which is all about Island artists and talent. The total commitment to promoting Island artists is 1/10th the money spent on big name acts from away.   Read the rest of this entry »

Now is the summer of our discontent, made embarrassed by fans who won’t pay for high priced ticket

U2 - sitting out this season with injuries

How many concerts have been delayed, canceled or ruined this summer by the greed and age of musicians?

Bono’s out with a bad back. U2 tour canceled.

Simon and Garfunkel delayed with their over-priced tour until the 12th of Never.  Garfunkel has a “bad voice.” Sure and his few fans are ticked off at $1,262 a pair tickets.

Christina Aguilera canceled her tour, ostensibly because she’s busy making a movie. The scuttlebutt she couldn’t sell enough tickets.

Have you noticed the greed by musicians and promoters? Tickets are selling for $300, $500 and more than $1,000. Then you can watch it as many times as you like, up close and personal with drink, toke or smoke in hand. Bathroom breaks included.

You could buy a wide screen TV, Blu-Ray player, 5.1 surround sound system and the concert DVD for less.

Price gouging by Hong Kong promoters killed Bob Dylan’s tour of China, not the Chinese government. It’s greed, greed, greed all around. And the lying about why they cancel only makes it worse. My dog ate the homework teacher.

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One of the first country singers to blend country and black blues died 77 years ago on May 26th, 1933

Fans of country music and the blues remember the early death of Jimmy Rodgers, The Singing Brakeman, on May 26, 1933. He was one of the early white performers to mingle the blues and country music, although not the first.

Bob Dylan is quoted as saying “Jimmie Rodgers combined the elements of blues and hillbilly sounds before anyone else had thought of it. His plaintive voice and style would outlast them all.”
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Perseverance pays off for Gordon Tentrees

Gordon Tentrees Mercy or Sin

Gordon Tentrees has a new CD, on-the-road video and tour but the price tag seems steep for purchase.

I’ve been getting Facebook messages from Canadian roots artists Gordon Tentrees for ages.

Gordon is here, Gordon is there. Those message drop like leaves on the floor. Every artist is sending out their itinerary but there isn’t enough time in the day to read them.

Today Gordon Tentrees said he had something funny for me to watch.

Funny is good. So I watched and listened. He’s right. It is a fun song. (Video follows after the break)
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Biggest thing to happen to concerts on PEI – Taylor Swift at the Cavendish Beach Music Festival Saturday July 10 2010

The tickets sold out immediately but will be available on the secondary market. Check Kijiji from time to time. Links: Taylor Swift’s website Cavendish Beach Music Festival

CBC hosts Bruce and Matt Rainnie have a chance to help the talented Colton Matheson but will they?

Bruce Rainnie, Colton Matheson (Ambassador) and Matt Rainnie, all smiles now but will they disappoint him later

For more than 50 years CBC and Charlottetown Rotary have been using an Easter Seals poster child with a disability to raise money for Easter Seals. Once the money is in the bank the little boy or girl is virtually abandoned.

As a Rotarian on the Easter Seals Committee, that never bothered me until the 50th Anniversary year. For the first time, we convinced the Committee to invite some of the past Ambassadors to the Telethon.

The now teens and early 2o’s former Easter Seals Ambassadors told me in frank terms they felt used by Rotary. The were abandoned after the Telethon. We should have known the youngsters with disabilities had feelings but we didn’t. Rotary still doesn’t care about the children afterward as individuals. (See end note)

This is a good year for CBC to turn over a new leaf and actually help Colton Matheson beyond a few weeks of excitement.  Read the rest of this entry »

Stadium Tour to begin June 8 2010 in Toronto Ontario

Natalie Maines of Dixie Chicks

Despite rumors the girls were splits-ville, the controversial and popular Dixie Chicks are checking into the same stadium and hotels maybe for the first time in 4 years.

The shows begin in Toronto June 4th at the Rogers Centre and the last announced date is June 28th at St. Louis MO. Keith Urban misses Toronto, Winnipeg Manitoba and St. Louis.

The show should be a good mix since The Eagles are So-Cal Rock-Country, the Dixie Chicks are Country-Rock (or just country without Natalie) and Keith Urban is country and handsome.

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Master of the 5 string banjo profiled in PBS special – The Complete Earl Scruggs Story

Short intro of Earl Scruggs and Bill Monroe backstage at the Ryman Theatre home of the Grand Old Opry

If Bill Monroe popularized the high lonesome sound of Virginia and Kentucky, it was Earl Scruggs who changed instrumental sound of bluegrass with his 3-finger banjo picking.

Scruggs, one of Monroe’s band, pioneered three-fingered syncopated picking on the 5 string banjo. He became a household name when he and Lester Flatt, known as Flatt and Scruggs, performed The Ballad of Jed Clampett with Jerry Scroggins.
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American music is popular around the world. Check out this Japanese bluegrass band compared with Bill Monroe

Wingrass Live in Sapporo, Japan September 2007

The band starts pretty laggard but they pick it up half way through.

Prior to 1989, the United States largely ignored international copyright protection. Now the US is the biggest booster of protecting artistic copyrights. Does their recent interest correlate with the decline of America as a world class producer of hard goods? Probably. It’s too late for bluegrass and most rock and roll which has been copied around the world spreading goodwill about America.
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